‘The Boy and the Heron’: a magical Miyazaki mystery tour
“The Boy and the Heron” marks director Hayao Miyazaki’s first feature-length film in a decade, and the legendary animator has lost none of the magic that makes his films so revered. The creator of “My Neigbor Totoro” (1988), “Princess Mononoke” (1997), and “Spirited Away” (2001) is back with a triumphant film that, as expected, is as enthralling as it is occasionally confounding. I have seen “The Boy and the Heron” twice, yet I still cannot fully explain it to you.
It doesn’t matter; Miyazaki sweeps or, rather, spirits you away to worlds filled with sights you have never seen before — to places filled with wonder, beauty, and terror. His stunning animation always keeps you riveted, even when you’re unsure of the plot. In this film, for example, a building engulfed in flames is rendered as an endless series of fiery splotches, something akin to a Jackson Pollock painting; it’s majestic even in its deadly awfulness.
“The Boy and the Heron” is an “old man’s movie,” and I don’t mean that pejoratively. It is a film made by a man looking back at the long life he has lived (Miyazaki is 82), and commenting on it from a worldly perspective achieved only with age. Several directors have taken similarly introspective paths in recent years. See Pedro Almodóvar’s “Pain and Glory” (2019) and Martin Scorsese’s “The Irishman” (also 2019).
None of these directors would have made those films in their youth; in each, there’s some reflection on who they once were and how that colored who they came to be. Like Almodóvar, Miyazaki fictionalizes some of his own life and adds it to the story here. The result is a film that is full of wisdom without losing its sense of wonder.
“Heron” opens during World War II. Mahito (voiced by Soma Santoki) witnesses the tragic death of his mother when she’s caught in a blaze that consumes the hospital where she worked. The film fast-forwards a year, and Mahito’s father is now married to his former sister-in-law, Natsuko (voiced by Yoshino Kimura), who is pregnant.
Natsuko’s attempts to bond with Mahito are tempered by his own confusion about his new family. These feelings play out on the young man’s face with such recognizable expression that no explanation is required. Helping to ease him into his unfamiliar surroundings are a motley crew of intriguingly drawn characters, elderly housekeepers who are as tough as they are nurturing.
Mahito is also an outcast at school, which leads to him being bullied and, in one of the more graphic sequences in a Miyazaki film, a shocking scene of selfharm. Though this film isn’t gory or excessively violent, its PG-13 rating should be heeded; the existential ideas about death and other mature themes are better suited for older kids and teenagers.
While recuperating, Mahito meets the heron that had been flying around outside his father’s house, being a general nuisance. With its human-like teeth and growly voice by Masaki Suda, the heron cuts quite an intimidating figure. Even scarier is what the bird tells Mahito: He’s been sent to guide the boy to the Land of the Dead, where his mother may currently reside.
The two travel to the entry point of their journey, some kind of rock formation that, according to the Heron, was built by Mahito’s great-uncle. Once inside the rocky structure, we get a taste of the brilliantly animated world-building that Miyazaki is known for in all his films. For starters, the heron isn’t a heron at all — it’s really a grumpy man wearing a heron suit for reasons I’ll leave you to discover.
Additionally, some of the people Mahito meets in this world mirror younger versions of the old housekeepers who protected him at home. He also encounters Natsuko, who appears to be in danger after entering this realm to have her baby.
It wouldn’t be a Studio Ghibli film without the introduction of wondrous, unforgettable characters who are integral or, in some cases, tangential to the plot. “The Boy and the Heron” gives us the “warawaras,” ghost-like little white creatures that represent souls en route to Earth. We also meet the scary pelicans that like to eat them.
As Mahito continues on his journey, “The Boy and the Heron” adds layer upon layer of visuals and events that can be interpreted in ways far too complex for a simple review. You will need to experience the film, and all its curiosities, for yourself.
There’s one final detail I’ll tell you about — my favorite characters. They’re cute parakeets that inhabit a world where Natsuko may be hiding. The design of these talking birds, especially that of their king (voiced by Jun Kunimura), is a perfect mix of adorable and creepy, emphasis on the adorable.
But these fine-feathered friends have a dirty little secret: They’re actually murderous creatures armed with gigantic pieces of cutlery. Miyazaki cuts from their cute visages to a shot of them holding enormous knives and axes behind their backs. I’ve never wanted a parakeet before, but if I can get one of these badass budgies, maybe I’ll reconsider.
“The Boy and the Heron” leaves us with questions about our place in the universe and whether it’s worth saving. You may also exit the theater contemplating the afterlife. Regardless of the ideas swirling around in your head, you’ll have witnessed the work of a director who has not lost his ability to stoke your imagination.