The Boy and the Heron, famed Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki’s latest—and likely last—film is about giant talking murder parrots. Like his previous films, The Boy and the Heron plays like a strange dream faithfully depicted on screen. It’s a whimsical, magical and mysterious children’s movie.
The Boy and the Heron starts in World War II era Tokyo. Mahito learns that his mother has died in a hospital fire, grounding the movie in a deep sense of loss. It’s a real portrayal of the pain experienced by children.
A few years later, Mahito moves to a country house and lives with his father, Natsuko. The heron he encounters leads him into a strange and unfamiliar world.
Like his previous works, The Boy and the Heron exhibits the same sort of semi-spiritual animism, with magical and hallucinatory logic. Finally, Mahito faces a choice that leads to a beautiful ending to the movie.
Miyazaki, in his 80s, is probably the most important animated filmmaker of the last 40 years. His final work is a strange and beautiful swan song—or perhaps a heron song?—a bow from a great artist after a life well-lived.