While the Second World War rages, the teenage Mahito, haunted by his mother's tragic death, is relocated from Tokyo to the serene rural home of his new stepmother Natsuko, a woman who bears a striking resemblance to the boy's mother. As he tries to adjust, this strange new world grows even stranger following the appearance of a persistent gray heron, who perplexes and bedevils Mahito, dubbing him the "long-awaited one."
Type:
MOVIE
Country:
JP
Genres:
Animation, Adventure, Fantasy, Family, Drama
Release:
July 2023
Production:
Studio Ghibli
Cast:
Soma Santoki, Masaki Suda, Ko Shibasaki, Aimyon, Yoshino Kimura, Takuya Kimura, Keiko Takeshita, Jun Fubuki, Sawako Agawa, Karen Takizawa, Shinobu Ôtake, Jun Kunimura, Kaoru Kobayashi, Shōhei Hino
Tags:
loss of loved one, world war ii, education, coming of age, spirituality, poverty, teenage boy, troubled childhood, semi autobiographical, moving to a city, anime, hand drawn animation, magic world, animation, courage, absurd, earnest