3.7 Stars A visually pleasant feature length animation. If you like Studio Gibhli films you will like The Boy and The Heron I usually mildly enjoy Gibhli productions but they always seem to have rushed endings after the climax and leave me a bit unsatisfied in how the world building is not fully thought out or connected in concept; instead they seem to be thought out in disconnected visual scenes that are later tied together in a loose narrative. The Boy and the Heron is no exception to this in my eyes, it didn't break any molds, but its not a devolution. The morals and messaging of the story are pretty positive, but not very impactful since they rely on very fantastical elements to assist the main protagonist in coming to grips and accepting hard changes in his life.