Hello everyone, and we are back with a brand new anime review, but there is a sad reason behind why I am reviewing this one. As some of you may know, not too long ago, a tragedy happened. I am of course referring to the incident at Kyoto Animation where someone committed arson, and burned down the studio with about 35 causalities, and an additional 33 injured. It was absolutely horrible what happened that day, and my deepest regards go out to those who were injured, and the families of the people working there, and it was also from what I heard one of the deadliest massacre’s on Japan soil, so its much more than just a minor accident. I had also heard of this studio before, and how acclaimed they were so its equally upsetting that such terrible things would happen to such talent, but I had never actually seen any of their works until recently. So I decided to check out A Silent Voice, mainly because it was the only thing I knew they made, and I had heard a lot of great things about it, and its manga source material. I remember it was released in a limited number of theater in 2017, a year that was not so great in terms of animation in many people’s eyes. While I do agree that it was not as consistently awesome as past years, there were still a handful of phenomenal stuff (Coco, and Lego Batman are among my favorites of that year), and merely pretty great stuff (Captain Underpants, and Cars 3), as well as some films I liked a little more than most (the Boss Baby, and the Lego Ninjago Movie), and this is just talking about the mainstream films. There are still plenty of foreign, and smaller (in terms of distribution) films that I missed that I really want to check out (The Breadwinner, In This Corner of the World, etc.), and this was one of those. So what do I think? Well for one thing, it should have gotten that darn Best Animated Feature Oscar Nomination, that’s for sure!
The film takes place in modern day Japan, and follows a young boy named Shoya Ishida who at the beginning of the film is about to commit suicide. He recalls his days in elementary school where he had friends, loved hanging out with them, and misbehaving in class with them as well. He seems to live an okay life, until everything changes when a new student joins the class. The student in question, Shoko Nishimiya, is deaf, and is happy to be a part of the class. She tries to integrate with them, but she ends up annoying some if the kids, including Shoya, and his friends. This is when they start to bully her, making fun of her, and even going so far as to rip her hearing aids out. When word starts to spread about this, it is Shoya who is blamed for this behavior, and not only is he suspended from school for a few days, but he is also bullied by the class, as he experiences just what Shoko felt, and he loses his once loyal friends in the process. He blames her for all of this which leads to them getting in a fight, and Shoko changing schools. Later he finds what looks to be the notebook Shoko would use to communicate, and he decides to keep it. In the present day he is a social outcast who has trouble communicating with other people. He also feels awful about the way he treated Shoko and wants more than anything to make amends with her. He attempts to do this by learning sign language in order to communicate properly, and he goes to visit her at the sign language center to return her notebook back. After apologizing to her, they start to hang out more, meeting at the bridge to feed the koi, slowly starting to form a new friendship. While this is happening, Shoya starts to meet other people, and slowly start rebuilding his life again. But when certain complications arise, and truths are revealed can the two be able to truly forgive each other, and themselves?
When first hearing about this film, and how emotionally heartbreaking it was, and having seen a couple of clips from it, I was thinking that this was going to be just another tragic crossed star lovers story where there are certain setbacks that keep the couple from being together because of past events, and that it would end in a tragic way. I also thought this was going to end up being one of those feel bad movies that leaves you very depressed inside. And man, I had no idea how wrong I was about that. This ain’t really a feel bad movie at all, and it sure ain’t like one of those types of stories I mentioned before, its more of a movie that gives hope, if that makes any sense. At its heart, its a story about people, not just the main character, trying to learn from, and not let themselves be stopped by the mistakes of the past, that way they can build a better future for themselves, and in the process become better people. Its also a movie that deals with how the people in our lives whether they be friends or family can help with that process, and how those connections with others can improve our lives for the better and how we shouldn’t just isolate ourselves from them. No matter how lonely, or tough life may be we must always remember that there are those who actually care about you, and believe in you to support you all the way, and that we should not take them for granted. All of these themes are handled so well in a way that is poignant, and powerful, and it has the power to resonate with so many people, myself included, who could relate to these types of messages. This is especially true in the ending scene which truly hits hard with a huge, satisfying, emotional punch, and it left a big impact on myself. In fact there are many scenes throughout the film that similarly feel like that, almost making me want to tear up. Another thing this film does so well is how it takes a real, and honest look at the horrors of bullying, and how that affects children. There are some scenes in this film that can be hard to watch, not only because their devastatingly heartbreaking, but because they present a painfully realistic, and accurate portrayal of bullying. To be honest this is not too far off from how things can be in real life, and it is vital that this type of problem gets more attention in the world today. This can also apply to the way the film handles subjects such as suicide, isolationism, and the struggles people with disabilities can face in this day and age. I just find it so amazing to see a film that with all of these important messages, and themes in an honest way, and does it all in a delicate balance in an extremely well told story that is engrossing, heartfelt, and what other great adjectives you could think of.
Not only is this film beautiful in a storytelling, and thematic sense, but also a visual sense as well. I gotta say the level of craftsmanship here is quite impressive with Naoako Yamada doing a great job directing, helping making this small scaled feature feel hugely impactful, and she does an equally nice job of giving the film a distinct style that makes it feel different compared to other anime films, thanks to the many clever stylistic choices that are made throughout. One of the biggest one is since Shoya has trouble looking people in the eye and communicating with them, there are big X marks put on the faces of everyone around him, and whenever he starts to get to know someone more, the X falls off the face. Its just one of the many clever uses of symbolism present here, and its a really effective one at that. The backgrounds are very beautiful capturing the Japanese setting very well, with many nice details throughout, and some shots are almost painterly like with some nice colors. Meanwhile the character designs have a more down to Earth feel to them just like the backgrounds, and the thing I love the most about them is the level of emotion the character’s express feels so real, and expressive, and its some of the most well done I’ve seen in an anime (which is really saying something considering when it comes to these type of stuff, anime excels pretty often). As for the character movements are also very smooth, realistic and grounded, not trying to be overexaggerated or so fast paced which works considering the nature of the film and it was a bit of a breath of fresh air for me since most of the anime I have watched so far has been very fast paced, and over the top, so watching something like this was a nice change of pace. The soundtrack is something I also really liked here since not only is the score for the film really touching, quiet, and powerful, but there are some really neat song choices like the classic “My Generation” by the Who makes plays in the opening, and it fits the scene surprisingly really well, and the end credits song “Ai Wo Shita No Wa” (Loving Is) by AIKO is also very nice as well.
I must say, I am impressed by the ballsy move to make the protagonist of the feature the bully who caused all of this trouble in the first place. Usually in a story like this it would be the other way around with the one who is being bullied, which in this case would be Shoko, being who we see have to go through the trial and tribulations, so it was very interesting to see the film go in this direction but it is a risky choice that is difficult to pull off. And what do you know it, this film is able to successfully pull it off in spades where we are invested in both of the main characters, and are able to sympathize with them. With Shoya he is someone who has never been good with other people even before he started bullying Shoko, and he only attracted people’s attention because of his misbehavior, and picking on this deaf girl helped him with that. There are times where you feel like hating this kid because of how far he goes at points, and he even starts to hate himself for what he did back then, but he would still do anything to make amends with Shoko, and try to change to become a better person, and be able to make communicate with other people to make friends even if at times he feels like he doesn’t deserve it. He doesn’t expect to be forgiven for what he did, but he just wants to live knowing that he did the right thing in the end, and I found his journey to be so compelling, and he turned out to be a really complex, and thoughtful character to follow. I’m just amazed they were able to make the bully out of all characters a sympathizable character whom you want to see get redemption at the end. As for Shoko she also just as good of a character as Shoya as a girl who also has trouble communicating with other people, but is always willing to be friends with her classmates even if she is constantly being picked on. She turns out to be a little more than the hapless victim who is perfect, and innocent in every way, since she does turn out to be unsure of most things, and she starts to find herself guilty of this whole situation to begin with, and blames herself for Shoya’s hard life. The relationship between these two individuals was very touching, interesting, and even heartbreaking to watch mainly because we care about, and sympathize with both characters, and want to see them be friends, and it undoubtedly works as the huge beating heart of the feature. What’s even better is that they are helped out by a wonderful supporting cast of complex, and compelling characters. Among my favorites would have to be Shoko’s sister, Yuzuru, who is very protective and starts off not wanting Shoya with her sister but starts to grow a liking toward him, and learns to focus on taking care of herself, and Tomohiro Nagatsuka, one of the first people Shoya meets who becomes an actual friend, even teaching him what being a friend truly means, and he provides some good natured comedy to the proceedings. There are plenty of others who make a huge impression like Naoka Ueno, another girl who picked on Shoko, and blames her for ruining kindergarten, Miki Kawai, another girl from kindergarten who is kind to her fellow classmates but can get very rude when pushed, Toshi Mashibasa, a friend of Miki’s who also starts to get along with Shoya, Miyoko Sahara, the only kid who would bother to get along with Shoko as kids, who sees herself as being a coward sometimes but wants to improve herself, and the mothers of both shoya, and Shoko who are both parents who are facing a lot of hardships with their children but still care about them to the fullest (I also thought Shoya’s niece, Maria, was absolutely adorable even with limited screentime). Again I am impressed by how much I ended up caring about every single one of these people, and how some of these character who would seem nonredeemable on paper manage to be far more complex, developed which again is far from a simple task.
In the end, A Silent Voice is a beautiful, and poignant film that fires on all cylinders. It has an interesting, and well done story that subverts expectations, visually stunning animation that is nice to look at, a memorable, and well rounded cast of characters, and a bunch of themes, and messages that will resonate with a lot of people. It is baffling how this did not get nominated for best animated feature because it most definitely deserved it (and like the Lego Batman Movie was hugely snubbed). I know the Oscars don’t really matter because that doesn’t really determine the quality of movies, but I still think great works like this deserve recognition. Oh well, at least it does have a huge fanbase, and was acclaimed by most who saw it, and it might be one of my favorite animated films this decade which is really saying something considering what has came out. I just cannot believe that a studio made such a fantastic film like this had to suffer this fate, and it makes me angry that this had to happen, but I still hope that those lost someone in that massacre, or were hurt themselves can be able to recover, and maybe one day Kyoto Animation could be brought back, and if there’s any way to help I am all for it. In fact this movie makes me want to check out more of their work, and hopefully I’ll have the chance to do so. I’m also interested in checking out the manga since I have heard many say it is even better, and feels like a new experience so that’s something I plan on doing. Well what do you guys think? Is the manga worth a read? What are other works has Kyoto Animation done? Once again if there are any anime’s you would like to see me talk about just sound off in the comments, and hopefully I can get to it, and look forward to the start of my series of reviews concerning My Hero Academia in time for season 4 so look out for those. And if you haven’t already I highly recommend checking out A Silent Voice whenever you can because it is just so amazing, and it is on Netflix, so if you have the chance please give it a watch and tell me what you think.
Rating: A
Leave your thoughts down below in the comments, and see you guys later!
Review Time 