The Boy and the Heron

Dir. Hayao Miyazaki. 2023, Japan. 120 mins. DCP. In Japanese with English subtitles. The legendary animator Miyazaki, who has captured the imaginations of children and adults the world over for decades with his boundlessly creative fantasy worlds (Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro), returns after a decade’s hiatus with an extraordinary and eccentric tale of a young boy entering an alternate realm of existence to help change his real world. Maintaining a tone of whimsy while balancing themes of emotional and sociological import, The Boy and the Heron follows teenager Mahito, who moves with his father to the countryside from Tokyo after his mother is killed in a fire during World War II. While adjusting to a new life with his kindhearted aunt, he meets an irascible, talking heron, who reluctantly guides the boy on a journey into a fantastical parallel universe, where he might be able to save his own future and make sense of his past. Full of brilliantly conceived characters and unforgettable images, this hand-drawn beauty evokes and references so much of Miyazaki’s career, while finding entirely new spaces to enter. A GKIDS release. Recommended for ages 10+

Tickets: $15 / $11 senior and students / $9 youth (ages 3–17) / free for MoMI members at the Senior/Student level and above. Order tickets. Please pick up tickets at the Museum’s admissions desk upon arrival. All seating is general admission. Review safety protocols before your visit.