'The Boy and the Heron' Is Beautiful, But Is It Studio Ghibli's Best? 19 Honest Reviews

Studio Ghibli will arguably be one of the most distinctive and impactful film studios in history. Continuing its legacy with The Boy and the Heron, the Japanese animation studio is known for its whimsical creatures, luscious fantasy worlds, and painstaking attention to detail. Not only that, but the stories of each movie are filled with a charming and bittersweet warmth. So it’s no secret that viewers had a lot to say for the studio’s newest release.

The Boy and the Heron is Ghibli’s newest film, a coming-of-age fantasy that released on December 8th, 2023. The reviews were overwhelmingly positive, with most of the criticisms relating to incoherence of the plot. Would we say it’s the best Studio Ghibli film to date? Many people it lands among the top of the list. Read more of what viewers had to say below.

Multitudinal

Important

Lots Of Adjectives

Lucky

Shattering

Screaming

The Boy and the Heron (2023) pic.twitter.com/Dai6QXZp18
— Matt Mustin (@MattMustin) December 12, 2023

‘I’ll Be So Lucky To Have You.’

Minor Spoilers

Robert Pattinson Is Him

Robert Pattinson showed up with iPhone voice recordings and had already nailed the voice for ‘THE BOY AND THE HERON’ before recording started.

It was his first ever voice role and he finished in 2 days.

(Source: https://t.co/RDX8jHckZg) pic.twitter.com/6pw41nt4Hf
— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) December 7, 2023

Miyazaki Horror

The Score Is Not A Bore

every year i allow myself to get emotionally invested in one Oscar race as a treat/punishment & this year i've decided it's Joe Hisaishi for Best Score. oppenheimer's is cute, poor things' is kooky, but The Boy and the Heron is maybe the greatest work by an all-time master. heed!
— david ehrlich (@davidehrlich) December 11, 2023

We Love Studio Ghibli Creatures

So funny to watch The Boy and the Heron and hear an entire audience gasp and giggle with joy at the first appearance of a new Miyazaki creature. Tattoo shops around the world are bracing for impact.
— Will (@SilentDawnLB) December 10, 2023

What Do They Mean

The Boy and the Heron spoilers out of context pic.twitter.com/zuMrIJR7H7
— esteban knows ball (@es_tea_ban) December 10, 2023

Subtitle Surprise

With THE BOY AND THE HERON as number one and GODZILLA: MINUS ONE as number two yesterday, are we poised to have the first domestic weekend with two Japanese language films topping the box office? Should be a sign to major theater chains that Americans *will* read subtitles.
— Justin LaLiberty (@jlalibs) December 9, 2023

Why Do ‘The Simpsons’ Fit Everything

THE BOY AND THE HERON (2023) pic.twitter.com/9PHLc1uhMp
— Jacob (@JEBermanator) December 11, 2023

We Love Surrealism

The Boy and the Heron is gorgeous, surreal, elegiac. It explores the nature of grief, time, and empathy. It’s one of Miyazaki’s darkest, most mature works.

It creeps up on you. I think I loved it, but I have much to contemplate. I’m not sure. pic.twitter.com/c1YJ2VenDE
— Maxwell “Swell” Haddad (@cinemaxwell) December 8, 2023

That’s It

this review of the boy & the heron … i’m moved this is exactly it pic.twitter.com/0KbJaoPidt
— margaux (@iss3ymistak3) December 10, 2023

A Thoughtful Tweet But Also AWWWWW

I think the most thought provoking thing about The Boy and the Heron is the idea of legacy and the willingness to relinquish control of what you want to leave behind for the next generation. #TheBoyAndTheHeron pic.twitter.com/BlRWGfhUGU
— Devin – Art (@bluboy4ever) December 7, 2023

Let’s Go

Wild how the American studio executives prolonged the strike because they were greedy, delayed basically every major release until next year, and terraformed an environment for Japanese movies like Godzilla Minus One and The Boy and the Heron to flourish like never before. https://t.co/NfxITNU6VO
— Edaphosaurus (@Edaphosaurus) December 11, 2023

A Film About Grief And Legacy

Watched The Boy and the Heron today. I've seen many describe it as a film about grief and legacy. That it's a statement about the world once Miyazaki's no longer creating art.

I agree. But whatever he meant, I have a feeling it'll endure as his most bizarrely fantastical work. pic.twitter.com/LillKRmj1i
— Hasif (@HasifUzir) December 10, 2023

World-Building

The Boy and the Heron is sitting with me better and better since last night. I love that Miyazaki leaves the perfect amount of world building and story unsaid, because you can imprint infinite personal experiences onto it.

I love it, a total favourite. pic.twitter.com/7BCMcDlrhp
— Adam 🐊🪲🛸 (@JohnGudmann) December 9, 2023

Oops

Miyazaki having the number one movie in America would be a hilarious capper to the worst year Disney’s ever had https://t.co/OR5323vtVe
— Jesse Hawken (@jessehawken) December 10, 2023

A Lot To Unpack

Still unpacking THE BOY AND THE HERON but wow, what a movie. Feels more “adult” along the lines of THE WIND RISES, as compared to much of Miyazaki’s other work. It’s even less afraid of abstraction than just about anything else he’s done, too.
— SPIRAL CURSE DEMARCO (@Clarknova1) December 11, 2023

Shoutout To Joe Hisaishi

Joe Hisaishi should win Best Score at the Oscar’s for The Boy and the Heron. pic.twitter.com/kIayajM3ZH
— Joe (@Cinema_Joe23) December 7, 2023

Guess It’s That Good

Massive shout out to the twenty-something year old woman sitting a couple of rows in front of me who spent the first hour and a half of The Boy and the Heron playing The Binding of Isaac on their iPad only to put it down and start crying for the climax.
A real as hell move. pic.twitter.com/AKt3VIEkkx
— Rolo Tony (@PoorOldRoloTony) December 8, 2023

Forgetting Is Normal

Stunning

THE BOY AND THE HERON: Monumental. Unlike anything Miyazaki has made and yet the complete culminating statement of his life’s work, grappling with what we leave for the generations to follow, the mistakes and the mess and the possibilities. I just sat there in silence, stunned. pic.twitter.com/8etiYrKkxB
— Daniel Lammin (@DanielLammin) December 10, 2023