Monday Morning Maybe

Add your email and we'll match picks to the services you stream at home.

Poster for The Boy and the Heron

The Boy and the Heron

Seen it?

2023 | 124 min | Animation, Fantasy, Drama

Friday Night Flick

Why it’s a Friday Night Flick

Critics loved it (97% on Rotten Tomatoes), audiences rate it highly (7.4 out of 10), it won an Oscar and it made about 6 times its budget. Make plans for this one.

Based on critics, audiences, awards, box office and buzz. Details below.

Is it for you?

Who'll love it
Made for fantasy fans and animation lovers. If you loved The Green Mile or Batman Begins, start here. Critics rate it higher than audiences do, so it rewards patience more than it chases thrills.
The mood
Feel-good.
The pace
Takes its time with its characters, at 2 hr 4 min.
What might put you off
  • Rated PG-13: peril. Probably too much for younger kids.
  • It's in Japanese, so expect subtitles (or a dub).
  • Audiences were cooler on it than critics.

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."

How it earned its rating

  • CriticsVery strong

    97% on Rotten Tomatoes, 91 on Metacritic

  • AudiencesStrong

    7.4 out of 10

  • AwardsStrong

    Won 1 Oscar: Academy Awards: Best Animated Feature. Won 1 Golden Globe: Golden Globe Awards: Best Animated Feature Film. Won 1 BAFTA: British Academy Film Awards: Best Animated Film. Also nominated for 1 more Golden Globe. Plus 2 other awards.

  • Box office & staying powerStrong

    $296 million worldwide on a $50 million budget

  • Buzz & cultural impactStrong

    About 851K people sought it out in the past year

Trailer

More like this

Want more like this, picked just for you? Get my picks

Cast & crew

Directed by Hayao Miyazaki

  • Soma SantokiMahito Maki (voice)
  • Masaki SudaGray Heron (voice)
  • Ko ShibasakiKiriko (voice)
  • AimyonLady Himi (voice)
  • Yoshino KimuraNatsuko (voice)
  • Takuya KimuraShoichi Maki (voice)
  • Keiko TakeshitaIzumi (voice)
  • Jun FubukiUtako (voice)
  • Sawako AgawaEriko (voice)
  • Karen TakizawaWarawara (voice)