Gong﨑 Jun "Heron and Boy" plot analysis! What kind of life do you want to live after waking up?

What is "Heron and Boy" red? Master the highlights and plot analysis of the movie at once.

Japanese animation master Jun Miya﨑 launched the animated feature film "Heron and the Boy" in 10 years, which went to zero publicity of mysticism, but surpassed the box office record of the first 4 days of "Shinyin Girl" in four days of its release in Japan, accumulating more than 8.25 billion yen at the box office so far.

"Heron and Boy" not only spends a lot of effort to draw works, but also invites many heavyweight casts to participate, the Japanese version invites well-known Japanese artists such as Masaki Sugata and Takuya Kimura, and the Chinese version invites popular actors such as Zeng Jinghua and Xu Guanghan, and the popular combination makes fans' expectations break the table.

In addition, the soundtrack of the film still uses music master Hisaishi Jean, and the theme song of the movie is created by Japanese all-round creative ghost Genshi Yonezu over 4 years, hoping to convey a strong and magnificent vitality.

"Heron and Youth" as Gong Jun's annual sincere work, let's take a look at the brilliant highlights and plot analysis of this movie!

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Photo | Courtesy of Jia Shang Entertainment

Heron and Boy plot introduction and 3 behind-the-scenes Easter eggs

The story of Heron and the Boy begins with an air raid siren covering Tokyo, and the protagonist's real mother dies in a sea of fire. After his mother's death, Majin returned to live with his mother's house with his father, and Mahito's father also remarried Aunt Natsuko (his mother's sister).

Whether it's moving to his mother's mansion, getting a new mother, or adjusting to a new school, everything makes the real person feel out of place, and at this time, he meets Heron. After meeting the heron, strange events occur one after another, and the real person also embarks on a magical journey of exploration.

There are many small details in this movie as a whole, and here are 3 must-know behind-the-scenes Easter eggs to share with you. (The text contains the plot, invite you who have not seen it, you can go to the movie first and then read, there will be a more complete experience!) ）

Easter Egg One: The story prototype of "Heron and Boy"

The Heron and the Boy movie, originally titled What Life Do You Want to Live, is taken from Genzaburo Yoshino's novel of the same name, published in 1937, however, the plot of this film is closer to another "Book of Lost Things".

The Book of Lost Objects is Irish children's literature published by John Connery in 2006. In "The Book of Lost Things", the boy David suffered World War II, his mother died of illness, his father remarried, and it was difficult to accept the drastic changes in his life, he hid in the sea of books, but suddenly disappeared, and then was guided by the alien to enter the other world to start a fantasy journey.

Also facing the death of his mother, his father's remarriage, and the adventures of encountering aliens and other worlds, the plots of "The Book of Lost Things" and "Heron and the Boy" are similar, but Gong Jun puts his own young life experience on a similar story outline and retells the story.

Photo | Courtesy of Jia Shang Entertainment

Easter Egg Two: A glimpse of the elements of movies throughout the ages

"Heron and the Boy" has always been rumored to be Miyiya's retirement work, and there are many elements of past movies buried in it, and if you are a fan of Ghibli movies, it should not be difficult to find these little Easter eggs!

During the movie, many scenes and lines are familiar, such as a small white ball named "Wa la Wa La", similar to the wood spirit in "Magic Princess", representing the pre-reincarnation infant soul; The Heron's human form is similar to Granny Tang in "The Hidden Girl";

The prairie and portal approximate the scene of Hall's Moving Castle; "Don't look back." This line also echoes "Divine Hidden Girl".

"Heron and Boy" can not only be said to be a collection of the essence of other works in the past, as a small surprise for fans, but also can be said that Gong Jun absorbs the memories and meanings of these years in different works, disassembles them into pieces of puzzles, and guides fans to piece it together.

Photo | Courtesy of Jia Shang Entertainment

Easter Egg Three: A work of sincerity in detail control

Although Gong Jun is old, his requirements for animation production have not diminished in the slightest. The film mobilized 60 animators to hand-draw the work frame by frame. Under the strict control of Gong Jun, only one minute of precious animation can be completed in a month, so it took 7 years to complete this masterpiece.

In addition, in order to restore the details of the era, they are also quite careful about the picture that flickers for a few seconds. For example, when the real person returned to his mother's mansion, all kinds of tuna, canned beef, sugar, and even cigarettes in the suitcase were regarded as treasures by the maids and mothers-in-law. This also shows that in the context of the era of war and material shortage, the preciousness of materials can also be seen in the living conditions of the real family. And through the foreshadowing of details, it really makes the whole animation more three-dimensional.

What does Heron and the Boy want to say?

Heron and the Boy may or may leave you confused. For me, it brings a dream-like trance, as if I have mastered something, but I don't fully understand it.

This work differs from Gong Jun's previous style in that it does not have a very precise story line or values. In simple terms, it tells the story of a boy who has lost his mother, embarks on an adventure to save his stepmother, and finally chooses to accept the loss and move on.

However, in addition to this interpretation, the film also presents the scattered life issues of you and me, as well as Gong Jun's ambition for the world.

From the protagonist real person, we see the heartbreak, awkwardness and sincerity of adolescent boys; From Aunt Xiako, I saw that she wanted to protect the real person, and she was deeply afraid of her sister's Huomei's heart; From the heron, a deep insight into human nature is seen; I see hope for the future in my mother, Huomi. Each character leads us to see how different individuals approach life.

(Same scene plus screening: "Hall's Moving Castle" and "Grave of the Fireflies" looked like this before the adaptation?) 5 original Ghibli anime novels, the starting point is too tearful! ）

Photo | Courtesy of Jia Shang Entertainment

Each character has his own beliefs, and the collision and interaction of these beliefs produces changes in relationships and moods, although the plot does not provide a sufficiently complete explanation for these changes. However, because of this, the film can be seen as a story of self-reconciliation, family relationships, or Miyako Jun's autobiography.

You can interpret it from any angle, which is reserved for you to have a dialogue with yourself. In addition, the story is also integrated into the background of the war, running through Gong Jun's anti-war beliefs. At the same time, this is also a gift he wants to give to his grandson, hoping that his grandson can face life bravely.

In "Heron and Boy", the real person has experienced a dreamlike adventure, and the viewer seems to have entered a dream. And when we wake up, we finally have to face the real life. Heron and the Boy intends to tell too much, so some people think that the film is the wayward work of the master.

Ending "Heron and Youth" with courage and hope, thinking in a different direction, perhaps Gong Jun's willfulness is because he has gone through the lost era, so he constantly asks the world: What kind of life do you want to live?

Such an urgent message, as long as you can feel a little, that is enough.