The Boy and the Heron – ★★★★

The Boy and The Heron

Fantastically beautiful in both expected and unexpected ways. The animation in the fire scenes was remarkable and surprisingly evocative and scary. Not our favorite Miyazaki but the kids and I both really enjoyed it, though I wonder how much of it they followed in parts. My 8 year old is not exactly as familiar with World War II and metaphors for grief as most folks on Letterboxd.

Maybe seeing in the theater without distractions is why it worked better for me on first watch than some of Miyazaki’s other more fantastical, less narratively straightforward films have. Looking forward to rewatching it again to see if it rises any higher in my Ghibli rankings.

This is actually my first ever Miyazaki to see at release in theater. The third one on the big screen this year though as we saw Nausicaä and Mononoke as part of Ghibli Fest this year. Will definitely make it to a few more when the next one rolls around.

Rating: 4.0 stars

🍿 Crossposted on Letterboxd
💿 Watch The Boy and the Heron in theaters

Spirited Away – ★★★★½

Spirited Away

First rewatch since I saw it when it came out in college. I recalled thinking it was really odd and just ok. Now I think it is really odd (even for Miyazaki) and great.

Not as high up on my Ghibli favorites list as the ones that are pure delight, but definitely one of the most well made and best stories of all their fantastic films.

🍿 View Letterboxd review
💿 Buy Spirited Away on Amazon