December is a great time to plan a trip to the theater, and this year especially seems to have something to satisfy fans of every genre. You don’t have to tell anime fans that, though, because they’re likely all too aware that the next project from famed director Hayao Miyazaki, The Boy and the Heron, hit theaters on December 8. The animated feature was produced by Studio Ghibli, which is known for some of the most iconic movies in the genre, and from the looks of the reviews, Miyazaki doesn’t disappoint.
The story follows a young boy Mahito (voiced by Luca Padovan in the English dubbing), who crosses into a world between the living and the dead in search of his mother. The Boy and the Heron boasts an A+ dub cast that includes Robert Pattinson, Christian Bale, Florence Pugh, Dave Bautista, Mark Hamill and Willem Dafoe (whose project Poor Things is also debuting to rave reviews this weekend). Katie Smith-Wong of FlickFeast rates The Boy and the Heron 4 out of 5 stars, calling it the most personal story of Miyazaki’s career. She writes:
