For decades, Hayao Miyazaki has brought to life spectacular fantasy worlds, elaborate storytelling, and breathtaking visuals. Over the years, he has amassed a fanbase that can only be best described as a cult following (myself included). His most celebrated movie, Spirited Away, was a landmark film that exalted Japanese anime to new heights internationally, being the first Japanese animated movie to win an Oscar. Many of his other films, including Princess Mononoke, Howl’s Moving Castle, and Kiki’s Delivery Service, are still immensely popular among anime lovers. Sadly, 2023 may mark the finale of Miyazaki’s colorful directing career as he has announced that his new film shall be his last.
Miyazaki’s final film was originally titled How Do You Live, named after a Japanese novel by the same name. However, the name was changed to The Boy and the Heron upon release and has been confirmed to stray from the plot of the novel. The film follows a young boy named Mahito Maki, who moves to a new town after his mother is killed in a fire during the Pacific War. During his time there, he enters a fantastical world through an abandoned building and meets a talking gray heron. The Boy and the Heron was released on July 14th in Japanese theaters and will be released in the US on December 8th, 2023.
Studio Ghibli implemented an unprecedented marketing strategy for this film, which is by having none at all. Virtually nothing was disclosed to the public; there were no trailers, casting details, synopsis, or images until after its theatrical release in Japan. The only exception is the poster on the right. In an interview, Toshio Suzuki, lead producer and “right-hand man” of Miyazaki, contrasted Ghibli’s approach to Hollywood’s conventional methods of advertisement: “There’s an American movie — ah, I almost said the title out loud! — coming out this summer around the same time [as How Do You Live?],” he said. “They’ve made three trailers for it, and released them one at a time. If you watch all three, you know everything that’s going to happen in that movie. So how do moviegoers feel about that? There must be people, who, after watching all the trailers, don’t want to actually go see the movie. So, I wanted to do the opposite of that.”
The lack of marketing turned out to be attractive to prospective viewers and the movie was a commercial success. The movie reeled in $13.2 million in its opening weekend (an enormous box office for Japan) and set a new three-day opening record for IMAX ticket sales with $1.7 million.
With Miyazaki’s retirement, the future for Studio Ghibli is uncertain. Contrary to Disney and Pixar, the style of Studio Ghibli is so distinct and unique that no one will be able to replicate it. Even Miyazaki’s son was unable to recreate his father’s magical touch. But I would much rather Studio Ghibli become a legend in the animation industry, a beautiful artifact from a glorious past that continues to inspire, than for it to decay like Disney, a studio, that in my opinion, has sold its soul for money and lost all artistic credibility in the process. Nonetheless, I will see Studio Ghibli off with a bittersweet farewell when I watch The Boy and the Heron and revel in Miyazaki’s final masterpiece.
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