“The Boy and the Heron” review: long live Hayao Miyazaki

Boy and heron This is not just a movie. It’s a comeback Hayao Miyazaki, one of the greatest directors in film history. Between this and The wind is getting stronger, his previous film released back in 2013. And not only that, the film in question became the promise of the artist’s next farewell. The last farewell to the audience, so that the grandson will always remember him when he is no longer here. It has finally emerged that the director has rediscovered his dream and what was supposed to be his final retirement may eventually give way to another film he is already working on. But that will be a different story.

Author of such works as Spirited Away or My Neighbor Totoro adapts to Boy and herona 1937 novel called How are you doing? Thanks to his arguments, Miyazaki allows your unique perspective on life to shine through. It gave it such a farewell flavor that in Japan, where it was released a few months ago, the film hit theaters with only a mysterious white poster in which a heron could be spotted. There were no synopses, trailers or any advertising campaign. The return of the prodigal son of Japanese animation was a special event. It broke box office records.

The main character of the story is a young man MahitoA 12-year-old boy living in Japan at the height of World War II. Boy and heron It all starts the day a little boy’s mother dies in a fire. With no time to think about it, he moves with his father and new wife—his mother’s sister—to a farm in the country. Gloomy, Mahito He cannot cope with the terrible loss. But there he meets a mysterious heron, who assures him that she has been waiting for him and will not stop bothering him. By following her, you will eventually discover a whole world of fantasy.

Miyazaki stamp

The film starts off as a typical coming of age drama. Little protagonist Boy and heron He is going through a major change in his life and is overwhelmed. This classic narrative lasts only 20 minutes. Enough time for Mahito start discovering the new world in which you had to live. There he meets his aunt – his new mother – and a friendly group of charming old ladies. Military conflict is also visible in the background, as the boy’s father is in the arms industry, producing aircraft parts.

But once these basic concepts are established, the adventure begins. Miyazaki reveals its magic. The one that several generations fell in love with. Totoro, Chihiro, Mononoke or Ponyoto name some of his best stories. At first he does it drop by drop, slowly. But in the second half it unfolds into an extremely rich mythological feast. The ability to turn his realistic films into an ode to fantasy is something no other director can or will ever achieve. Brand Miyazaki unique in Boy and heron He demonstrates this once again with a pomp that only geniuses can achieve. He will turn 83 in January.

Ideology Miyazaki It is practically unlimited. TO Boy and heron A parade of creatures from other worlds, as well as from ours. Giant birds, meteorites and tiny chubby creatures. Always a lover of nature, the director even allows himself a few winks. This is the case, for example, with that transition into a fantasy world through a tunnel, as in the beginning Spirited Away. But there is also a crowded naturalistic epic Princess Mononke. Not to mention the numerous themes it deals with, from the uncontrollable desire to live to the need to grow up and leave childhood behind. Everything in the film echoes the director’s past. And no matter how charged he is, again, he never loses himself. Its plot is again impeccably clear.

Complexity Boy and heron

It’s true that, like most veteran directors, what was once pure electricity and energy has now turned into deeper reflection, tinged with the melancholy of experience. IN Boy and heron action is enough because Miyazaki can’t be Miyazaki without his injections of overwhelming adrenaline. But the film also allows itself the luxury of reflection, especially in the opening customs section when the pacing is more sedate. This is what he did before, and this, especially in Chihiro, contributed enormously to the film. Here, although he does not reach these levels, he also effectively implements them.

When the film ends, I feel depressed. Because Miyazaki In his works he always hid a double reading. But Boy and heron This is perhaps the most difficult of all. The main lining, the theme on which the whole story is Mahito, this is overcoming grief. But behind the adventures lie conversations on an endless number of topics. About depression, birth, death, fate, honesty, courage, time, chaos, balance and even militaristic alienation. But first of all, about life, about how to learn to live. Something that interested the director so much throughout his career.

After all, there are so many layers that Boy and heron It holds within itself that the viewer can do nothing but delight in what he sees, even if it is impossible to understand everything. Its voluminous ambitions mean that it is not as round as the masterpieces that brought it such great acclaim. But he doesn’t need it. Because, as we said, this is a special film. And, above all, sensory. It has a very subtle aroma and aftertaste that lasts forever when the screen turns off and the room lights turn on. Time will be in charge of putting him in the place he deserves in every viewer’s life.

Miracle Studio Ghibli

Yes, on a storytelling level Boy and heron extraordinarily magnificent, on a technical level it is also on par with the best films Studio Ghibli. The company released its previous film, Erwig and the Witch, with a digital 3D experiment. The result was terrible. That’s why, Miyazaki returned to the path of classic 2D. Once again, he rebelled against modern trends in animated films and opted for traditional aesthetics. A decision through which he imbues his new universe with an indescribably beautiful hue. Even in the unpleasant and heartbreaking there is hidden the charm of an old-fashioned story.

I hope that in Ghibli reconfirm that this is the correct path. Because when they make their artists work, they have no rivals. The equation of imagination, talent, vitality and magic is a formula they have perfected for over forty years. This is the true legacy that Miyazaki will leave them whether he retires now, in 2013, or in another ten years. Guillermo del Toro Last year, he championed a fundamental motto: “Animation is not a genre.” That is, animation is cinema, simply put. And in this battle, Miyazaki He is one of the best soldiers. Long live your films.