Hayao Miyazaki's 'The Boy and the Heron' reveals PH release date
You won't have too wait too long now to watch the latest masterpiece from acclaimed Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki.
The Boy and the Heron is set to premiere in Philippine cinemas on Jan. 8, making it the first film from the esteemed director to be shown on the big screen in the country.
Originally titled How Do You Live, the film has been a mystery all throughout its production, with Studio Ghibli choosing not to release information about its plot synopsis, list of voice actors and characters, advertisement, or any other promotional material.
The story follows a boy named Mahito who enters a magical world with a talking gray heron after finding an abandoned tower in his new town. Yearning for his mother, Mahito ventures into a world shared by the living and the dead where death comes to an end and life finds a new beginning.
The Boy and the Heron premiered in Japanese theaters on July 14, 2023, and since then, it has received praise from both critics and acclaimed directors.
Guillermo del Toro, for instance, introduced the film at its gala presentation at the Toronto International Film Festival and praised Miyazaki and his latest work in an interview.
"Hayao Miyazaki, I think, is a guy that has exquisite technical finesse, but is also a man that has decided to confide in us his most intimate biography through his work. Rhythmically, he is very contemplative," del Toro said.
"There was something exquisite, an old master dispenses with tools and dispenses with flourishes. They stop trying to impress, and they do sort of a simple but beautiful gesture with the brush. And that’s what it felt to me, it was an incredibly beautiful gesture with the brush," he added.
The Boy and the Heron was also a hit at the box office, having achieved a record-breaking $12.8 million (P712 million) in North America. This cemented it as the first original anime title to top the box-office chart in the region.
The anime film also opened at No. 1 in Japan, which marked the biggest opening weekend for a Miyazaki film in the country. It continued its winning streak at the box office for its opening in South Korea, Taiwan and France.
The film’s Japanese voice cast includes Soma Santoki, Masaki Suda, J-pop star Aimyon, Yoshino Kimura, and Takuya Kimura of former J-pop boy band SMAP. Its English cast meanwhile has big Hollywood stars lending their voices, such as Christian Bale, Dave Bautista, Gemma Chan, Willem Dafoe, Karen Fukuhara, Mark Hamill, Robert Pattinson, and Florence Pugh.
The Boy and the Heron was touted to be Miyazaki's last film. However, Studio Ghibli announced last September that the accomplished filmmaker has been pitching them new movie ideas since his latest work was released.