starring Soma Santoki, Masaki Suda
written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki
124 minutes
in Japanese with English subtitles
Twelve year old Mahito Makai (Soma Santoki) moves with his father to the countryside after his mother is killed when the hospital in which she works is destroyed during a bombing run by Allied forces. Mahito grudgingly accepts Natsuko, his father's second wife who is also his mother's younger sister, as his new mother.
Mahito is intrigued by a gray herron that he sees the first day in his new home. Mahito is pulled into another world while investigating a mysterious abandoned building. Mahito is convinced that Natsuko, who went missing, must be somewhere in the abandoned building.
Mahito crosses paths with the gray heron (Masaki Suda) more than once. He meets Kiriko, a younger version of a women from the world from which he came. Kiriko helps him to find his bearings. Himi, a fire spirit who helps him find Natsuko, very much resembles a younger version of his mother.
Mahito's quest to find his new mother and bring her back home brings him into contact with his great grand-uncle who built the mysterious abandoned building.
There are elements of this movie that remind me of Spirited Away (2001) and My Neighbor Totoro (1988) but this movie is distinct enough not to be confused with those two.
This is the first Miyazaki film that I have seen which has a boy as the main character. In addition to the two movies mentioned above I have also seen Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984) and Princess Mononoke (1997).
The Miyazaki films that I have seen are all beautiful and very creative but they have all left me feeling as though I missed something. The Boy and the Heron is no exception. I enjoyed it but I can't make all the pieces fit together neatly.
There are moments that I found to be very moving. It was well worth my time and money.
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