Review of Whisper of the Heart

What can I say about Studio Ghibli's Tenth Film, Whisper of the Heart? Well, let's start with the story. The film focuses on a love story between two middle-school students, and their unexpected meeting. It goes in a few different directions from there, changing focus to the everyday trials and tribulations of a person's life. Anyway, the tale is told wonderfully, with each scene presented in a joyful almost fantasy-like nature. That's not to say the characters or their interactions are fantastical, quite the opposite, everything comes off as incredibly realistic. I guess the story just has a sort of dream-like quality to it, having heartwarmingscenes that are strung together, while still being able to come off as genuine and not cheesy.

I feel like part of that has to do with the characters. The characters are presented in such a realistic fashion that any of the moments that would otherwise be cheesy or corny end up feeling natural and lifelike. All of the characters, even the supporting ones, all feel incredibly authentic, like they have a life that they're living, and have real emotions to them, real joy, real troubles.

Part of that emotion certainly comes from the wonderful voice cast. I watched it in Japanese, and all of the actors did a magnificent job, splendidly conveying their characters, and making the script really shine.

The film also has a wonderful score, composed by Nomi Yuuji. Each scene is accompanied by a piece of music that perfectly fits the mood, and really adds to the overall feel. The main theme, "Country Roads", also shows up as a reprise throughout the score, and because the song has such a significance to the film's narrative, it paints a wonderful picture, and fits impeccably. I couldn't imagine any other score accompanying this film. It's absolutely beautiful.

The art gives us some really beautifully crafted scenes, as well. Colors are bright and vibrant when they need to be, and desaturated and melancholy when trying to set a specific mood. Everything moves fluidly and animates wonderfully, and there are even moments where the art and animation took my breath away. However, there are also moments where the art just feels serviceable. Still, even in these moments, the art was well-crafted, just not quite as gorgeous as it is in some of the other scenes. The art is definitely dated, but it still holds up, even when compared to modern day animated films.

Overall, Whisper of the Heart tells a simple tale, one of joy, one of sadness, one of life. It's a realistic story that I think anybody would be able to relate to, with some fantastic moments that shows just how beautiful life can be, even with all of it's adversity. On top of that, it also has some beautiful art, and a wonderfully crafted score.

This is definitely a 10/10 for me.