Why Studio Ghibli Films Hurt So Much 

Hey everyone - this video is currently dying, which sucks, because it means a lot to me. It would mean a lot to me for you to like/comment/share the video as that does help with the algorithm.

"It is better to make three children happy than to make a film for five million." That. That literally brought me to tears.

"terrible things are inevitable but despair is not"

"Humans create art as a way of negotiating with themselves, we create stories that say things not necessarily because we are convinced of them, but because we want to be convinced of them." That touched me lot💙

The funniest part of Tim’s squirrel comment at the start is that there are no squirrels in New Zealand, so it’s actually even more understandable for him to be distracted by them.

“We did not choose this world, but we must live in it.”

My dog is reaching the end of her life, but I've never known adult life without her. When I found her in a shelter, she had never known a home, and I had just moved so far from mine for the first time. We became each other's home. I've never been this attached to a friend or animal before her, and I'm scared of the life I will have to live without her. But I've come to realize the beauty in having a love so deep that the mere thought of it being gone is completely foreign. All I can do is cherish every moment and know that she would come with me to the end if she could. And since she can't, I'll go with her to her end, making it as comforting and peaceful as she has made the last 12 years of my life. And then I must live. Thank you for your thoughts as always Tim. My partner and I were really looking forward to your input on The Boy and the Heron

"There is this deceptive comfort to that melancholy I've seen a lot of. It's tempting to think there's some virtue in being miserable because you're aware of the woes of the world, especially when being miserable doesn't necessarily translate to doing anything about it--especially because sometimes we can't do anything about it; we're paralyzed. Like feeling powerless is some kind of moral high-ground people try to obtain--when it's not--its cynicism masquerading as wisdom." --Tim Hickson, 2024. That quote hits like a train. I've thought the same thing for years, but I've never been able to put it into words that gave it justice. Thank you, Tim, for reminding us that misery is not a virtue, despite our modern tendency to cynically glorify our suffering by trying to one-up everyone else's pain. Hopefully, we can take your words to heart. I know I will. :)

"We are small people, each in our own small worlds and yet even if we can't change the world we can change ourselves inside it." Beautiful words 👍

I adore Ghibli, even at its saddest moments because they always feel so human.

this was the first and only ghibli movie i didnt immediately "get" at the end. its taken a LOT of reflection and deep diving into miyazaki's life and through videos like this that i have gained a true appreciation for it. thank you so much, as always, for your insight

The Wind Rises and The Boy And The Heron are so similar in their autobiographical nature, setting, and dilemmas posed to the protagonists that I’m convinced they belong to the same timeline in the Ghibli universe. There’s a terrifiingly high chance Jiro is indirectly responsible for Mahito’s mother’s death. THANK YOU Miyazaki.

One Ghibli film I wish you had talked about more was Porco Rosso and how it relates to The Wind Rises. Both of those films are set in the interwar period and built around similar themes about the beauty of flight and its corruption into tools of war. Porco Rosso is a lot more optimistic and fantastical compared to The Wind Rises, while being no less beautiful, and I think the melancholy comes more from the audience knowledge that Porco's era is fundamentally transient. You see that in things like the rise of the fascists in Italy, but they aren't the main focus of the film - the film is about people who dare to pursue their dreams in the sunny and anarchic Adriatic. But then in The Wind Rises, which is far more cynical, the dream is no longer about flying planes but building planes. The engineer hero Jiro isn't just an everyman but has to make use of his limited time of genius - "Can you feel the wind rising?" - and he does so by neglecting his beloved and supportive wife to pursue his professional achievement of designing the Zero. At the end his wife dies, and many people will die because of his plane, but he lived up to his potential as a genius engineer and that makes the ending bittersweet. In The Wind Rises, Jiro's marriage scene is scored to music from Porco Rosso. I personally think that the intertextuality of it makes The Wind Rises a better capstone to Miyazaki's film career than The Boy and the Heron.

"You carry yourself with you" is such an important thing to recognize and live with

god I didn't think a movie review would make me cry.

Firstly, when I saw The Boy and The Heron in theaters last month, I soon learned how it’s very evocative of Hayao Miyazaki’s personal life. And then I told myself again why animated storytelling like Ghibli is so impactful and almost palpable: you have no limits to what you want to express to the world, especially when reflecting on your past. Secondly, this was the English dub I saw, and can I just say that Karen Fukuhara was probably the perfect choice for Lady Himi in that dub? Not only have I been exposed enough to her roles as Glimmer from She-Ra and Kipo enough to recognize her voice through her animated character portrayals, but when Miyazaki’s message for this movie is that it’s good to be alive, Karen Fukuhara makes Himi _sound_ alive and make her sound really grateful to be alive. Even if her future ends in a tragic death, at least she knows she’ll be alive long enough to give birth to Mahito. I don’t know how else to describe it, but the amount of emotion in her lines is so good, especially the excitement she has when she tells Mahito that he’ll be her son, to where it genuinely sounds like Karen was gonna cry (if anyone shed tears in that recording booth, I wouldn’t blame them at all) This movie definitely earned that Golden Globe and New York Film Critics award. (Edit from two days following the Oscars - Very glad it won “Best Animated Feature”)

While I have not given up on the world or on humanity, there are definitely times where I question whether I should or not. The lines of "terrible things are inevitable but despair is not" and "we did not choose this world but we must live in it" really hit home. Seeing videos like this, and knowing there are stories like The Boy and The Heron make me realize I'm not the only one who sometimes wants to give up and doesn't, and that makes me feel better. This is a lovely video, thank you for your hard work. Best wishes.

This is one of Miyazaki’s and perhaps Studio Ghibli’s most complex films and ​​⁠I really enjoyed the symbolism of The birds that appeared in the film (The Heron, the Pelicans, and the Parakeets) and represent a characteristic from our human nature.🕊️🐦🪶🦜 1. The Grey Heron symbolizes the Messenger of Death, a silent observer of human existence. In addition, he is also the embodiment of Mahito's trauma from the bombing of a plane causing the death of his mother. 2. The Pelicans symbolize the desire/want and the neglected emotions in Human nature as they are hungry and desperate in finding food. At the same time, they also are a metaphor for abortion and miscarriage in newborns hence the Pelicans eating the Warawara. 3. The Parakeets (including the Parakeet King) symbolize the wrath and violence that plagues humanity. Their aggression and menacing behaviour mirror the brutality of conflict between humans.

Heck, even Castle in the Sky will bring a tear to your eye.

Fun fact - Totoro and Grave of the Fireflies were originally released as a double feature in 1988. I highly recommend this to any one with the guts to do it. There is no 'canonical' order specified, so for your own sake, PLEASE watch Totoro second. The subtext and stakes of Totoro are drastically augmented by the preceding brutality of Grave, and its catharsis and innocent beauty are profoundly magnified. Seriously one of the best film-watching experiences of my entire life.

I didn't understand the boy and the heron at all so thank you for explaining it. I am a broken person and I don't know how I'll get through the next few days. I feel completely and utterly alone and I can't be brave like all the main characters in miyazaki movies. I've been brave all my life but I'm too tired now. Hearing about the destruction of everything.. seems so small compared to the destruction happening inside myself but it still hurts so much to hear about. I hope I can find a way back to life.

“We did not choose this world but we must live in it” is so true even now, especially now. I know a lot of people are despairing over not being able to make our elected officials listen to us crying out for needed change in so many ways (especially a currently ongoing massacre that a plurality of people do not want). But even so, I find myself frustrated by people who are so insistent we can’t do anything except talk abt this one single issue going on. And it is hard, I know it is, and I’m doing what I can. But I also can’t stop doing my hobbies either and spreading joy with those, bc then I would fall into a deep despair and not be able to do anything at all, be less than useless as I already am. Idk, I’m just. Very tired from a lot recently and trying desperately to avoid burning out. Thank you for this, bc the need to live is such a good reminder. I can’t bury my head in the sand for my conscience would never let me, but I also need balance in order to keep going.

I have to say, in the middle of this I thought I was going to cry, but there really is such a view of hope and wonder in all Ghibli films and I'm so glad that you brought that out.

I actually considered giving up living last year. I purchased a book on how to do it, with available methods, without pain and practical. But I did not find the energy to actually act the steps out. And I knew, if I really wanted it, I would just do it. So I concluded, that something in me wanted to live. Even with everything being so screwed up, disappointed to my core and so full of pain and helpless. With so, so much lost. So I took the steps necessary to take care of myself.

This video brought me nearly to tears. I've struggled with my chronic pain and PTSD for years, and it's so hard to find hope in it sometimes. Your breakdown of this movie really speaks to my love for Studio Ghibli, and I can't wait to see this movie.

I've been trying to write an article on this all day. You've articulated perfectly (and beautifuly) some of what I've been trying to say- That this is a film not just about grief and loss, but of overcoming that and moving on. I've got a few new ideas about where to take my piece now, so thank you.

HOW DID YOU KNOW I LITERALLY WATCHED PRINCESS MONONOKE FOR THE FIRST TIME LAST WEEK??? (I commented this before I watched the video, I meant in the sense that you posted a video about Ghibli movies right after I watched a Ghibli movie for the first time)

This director always pulls my heartstrings 😭

Excited to watch this (later, once I have seen the movie lol hopefully I'm seeing it this evening)

I hope you see many more squirrels in your adventures

I'm going to be real, I saw this movie a week ago and I enjoyed it, but it also went right over my head. I walked out of the theater wondering what the themes were, and just couldn't figure out what it was trying to say. This video definitely helped me out! A really interesting analysis!

your videos keep getting better and better. every single one in the past couple of months (i think a year now) has resonated so deeply with me that i keep coming back to them over and over again. i feel like they all have a much more personal touch (or maybe i hadn’t been paying attention before) but whatever it is thank you for all these amazing videos. ❤️

Hi Tim! I think that fighting against the onset of paralysis and cynicism - which honestly might feel absolutely predetermined and inescapable sometimes - is one of our most important tasks as people trying to live together in this overwhelmingly complex world. We have to constantly remind ourselves, just like Myazaki seems to be doing in his art, that the gloom of the world does not imply a single way of reacting to it; that we have choices, spaces of expression and freedom, and different perspectives to share with one another that shed light on what truly is. And we need each other to remind us of this, because alone, we are stuck with the single story of our own perception. I also think that you are doing exactly this in this video, and in a time that desperately seeks new perspectives on dealing with crisis after crisis. Thank you for that! I hope you don't worry too much about this video not seeming to do too good in the initial hours. It's a great video!

Beautifully spoken, Tim.

Wow...the meanings hit me deep in the soul. We create art to overcome our own sorrows and we can always change ourselves and our mindset

This is a deeply beautiful analysis of our tendencies as humans to make art, negotiate with the troubles of our world, and that's exactly what I've been doing as I graduate college soon into a world that pushes me into make art for profit, or give up on it, and needing to figure out what my future can be. I've been watching a lot of videos about the boy and the heron and Miyazaki's own work recently, and it's made me think about my future so much deeper, and this video coming out when it did feels really meaningful. Thanks for making art that can act as another point of reflection for me in my journey, may your own work continue to bring you to deep places.

I thought that was Shinji Ikari in the beginning at first and I nearly had a full on trauma flashback

You're amazing 😊😊. This film is THE BEST

Thank you. My girlfriend and I just broke up. We've been together for 7 years and she is all I know. The best word to describe it is "despair". I needed this video, thank you.

Studio Ghibli films are so wholesome and amazing.

The only time I visibly saw myself crying was with Ghibli's take of the story "Tale of the Bamboo Cutter". The ending was heartbreaking, and it left me the cliffhanger of what happens to the protagonist. Zero spoilers, but ever since I watched Spirited Away + Kiki's Delivery Service, Ghibli was one of my inspirations. I am yet to watch "The Boy and the Heron", but it might be as heartbreaking as Tale of the Bamboo Cutter.

I have enjoyed your channel for a long time, utilizing it in my own writing journey, but I find with this video that there instead should be a shift in discussion from how to write, to why we write. It brings up deeper questions about what narrative is and how interlocking stories, both written and lived, from all sources create the large narrative we live in. A sense of despair is something that one gets from seeing the modern narrative, from looking at where things are, rather were we are told they are, and feeling small, and yet if we chose instead to zoom out further, to see our narrative as one of many, as one tied to and through history, there is an irony in how we can feel much larger. To look at a problem and say, we can't do it alone, but also to look back and say, but someone did; it gives a sense of hope that perhaps there is a lot more to our own abilities than we give credit for. There is a fact that should be stated most obviously, history sucks. We create engaging fictional worlds of immense immersion, relatability, and engagement, and yet we are trained on dates and fact. It's borderline comical how poorly those that made the decision of how to postulate that we would best understand the world through something that goes against what we have classically engaged with, but the rant aside, there is a lot of narrative within history and it teaches us one thing above all else; for good or for ill, it is one person who can change the world. And yet, if we truly could see their lives, to know the connecting and conflicting beats that created that change, we would know everyone really is a part of the catalyst that creates the change, even if the name is not attached to the event that is considered the catalyst. You and I probably believe different things, and I would assume righteousness due to the fact that through narrative I see a bigger picture, and yet there is a question asked here, if we are not miserable, are we being empathetic? If it not just to do so? And yet I believe this really is part of an answer about the original question: what is narrative? You ask a question: how do you live? It seems as if there are so many different answers: for oneself, for the larger story, as someone passive, and these reflect of someone who sees the events, the story, or the narrative. So as you write, and you ask yourself how do you live, perhaps when you write each aspect, you can wonder how many other unwritten stories created that moment, both in the fiction, but also in terms of the reality that inspired that fiction, and it should point to two factors. The first factor is a realization that each story that created change, both for good and for ill, everything we have seen in the grand narrative, was from an individual like you. And it wasn't that they were smarter or stronger than you, it is merely that what they were able to do, they decided for it not to be the story, but to be apart of the narrative. They decided that what they could do, what they could give us, deserved not just a story of how it came to be, but a story of what it means going forward. This is something that brand narrative takes advantage of. It is the story of how the past creates a future that adds a positive effect on people's lives. The second factor is the knowledge that stories and people maintain individual, but also universal qualities that mean that you are not only not alone, but also interlocked. The impact this channel has on someone's life is absolutely essential in what is to come. And there are others channels like yours that you can interlock with as you explore your story within the narrative. It is a breath of fresh air to know that you are an essential cog in a machine that adds to people's lives, and yet you steer one way, while others steer another way, leading to a stall, but if through collaboration, the direction was to be the same, movement would be far more desired. It is easy to feel like everyone is fighting, and yet I know that most people are all fighting for the same thing under a different name. That is the power of narrative, to create a language so many can get under, to provide connection, understanding, and empathy, and through that to move forward as a group, a group whose actions couldn't be possible without the individual. Perhaps that is why we live.

Always happy to see new video from the worldbuilding master analyst.

This video was the best analysis turned tribute to Miyazaki that I have ever seen. Thank you so much for making content like this and sharing it with the world!

"It's cynicism disguised as wisdom." That's it... that's the line I've been looking for for years. Thank you.

This was beautiful Tim, you already made me cry in the first few minutes, which is absolutely perfect because I'm finally starting to understand the film (I was so dejected I didn't understand the point of it when I saw it for the first time). Thank you!!

Love your analysis of Ghibli stuff, keep up the good work!

As someone who's currently struggling to find the energy, feeling like everything is slowly slipping from my hands, I gotta say this was a great video. Keep it up dude. Cause you just gave me a few things to think about

I've been watching your videos for... a really long time now. This one in particular really shows off what I love about you as a content creator. Thank you Tim.

thank you for making this video. it is encouraging and lovely. i recommend strongly that anyone who loves "The Boy and the Heron" also reads "How Do You Live". they are companion pieces.

Hey mate, I’m commenting for the algorithm because your passion for the arts has spoken to me for seven years now and this video doesn’t deserve to die yet. Keep up the great work and don’t let this discourage you!

I watched a few Ghibli movies here and there, but I think I finally have to get myself to sit down and watch them all...

Great video Tim! Keep up the amazing work.

I cant get over the reacrion to the squirrel. That was wonderful, brightened my day

Great video! I've been really struggling with puzzling out why I love this film & the book so much - I just lack the words to really express what I mean when I talk about it - going to be forwarding this to some people since it more or less sums up exactly what I didn't have the words to say

Always a tremendous insight, Tim, and a great delight to be here watching and listening. Be well.

Thank you for this video. I have someone very close to me who is going through a deep depression, and as someone who also grapples with these things, this video gave me a little hope to keep moving on. You are the best at video essays because everything you touch upon hits on how at least I feel and think about life, the world, and my connection to them.

It's amazing how these type of films balance entertainment with deep meaning. And they change with you as you grow. I understand different lessons as I get older, and relate to the themes in a new way.

For the algorithm! (Will watch the vid in full when I’ve got some time!)

I recently read How Do You Live? And I just was floored by the book and how timeless it is, how much what it discusses is relevant to this day nearly ninety years later. Now that I've read it I can see the influence it has had on Miyazaki's work. It's rare that a book drives me to tears, especially one so full of philosophy. I know it won't be for everyone but if it might hit you like it hit me, it's worth trying it out. I found it utterly inspiring and I hope that I can draw strength from it as Miyazaki himself seems to have. I have to also give kudos to the book's translation as well which is incredible, vivid, and visceral. It was clearly translated with great care.

Thanks for the analysis!

I loved the new movie! I didn't know what to expect but it surprised me in many ways and reminded me of many other ghibli movies while being completely new

Fantastic video, well done!

Howl's Moving Castle was my first Studio Ghibli movie, and my favourite. It's a beautiful mess, and I love it all the more for it. Thank you for making this video, Tim.

this came to me at a time when i truly needed it. i don’t know how i can really say how much your words meant to me, but thank you. never stop creating art. it doesn’t just make life rafts, you teach people how to swim.

You are one of the better things in my life, you are so kind it's cathartic to watch your videos it's a literal aura

Thank you for this beautiful video. You have given voice to some things I’ve been pondering for while but couldn’t quite articulate. Plus, you have given me quite a lot of food for thought. Will be returning to this video regularly!

I watched this film twice in theatres and each time I took away something different. I’ve always loved princess mononoke, but this may become a new favourite. Like the works of Tolkien, the message of living with hope against all hope is something so important to Miyazaki’s films - and to our lives. Thank you for such a beautiful analysis

I needed this video so very much. I think in my early twenties I was more easily able to find and consume messages about finding a measure of a just and joyful life in a world worth despairing over. It broke through the black hole of my teens. Happiness brushed with melancholy has always reached me more naturally than pure joy, but somewhere in the last decade, cynicism toward sincerity, goodness has become hallmark of major pieces of cultural content. People are grappling with a looming meaningless that feels disingenuous to do anything but be overwhelmed or numbed by, and less children are buying the message that they have the power to change the world as the world fails them in ways even I cannot wrap my head around. "How do I live in this world?" has been a question I cannot answer for myself or children, some of whom despair and others who become apathetic. If I let myself hold space for that question, the day wastes around me as I am paralyzed with grief. In the end, I swallow it and try to get a better paying job, buy some toast I like, make a child laugh, and call my mom. I can only make my pocket of the world a bit more bearable, even as broken democracies, microplastics and oppression are part of both my reality and the world's. In the end, I must live in this world and find some way to make it worthwhile. Sometimes I can face the grocery bill, sometimes I can't. Sometimes I need to remember goodness can exist in crushing despair, so I reread The Hunger Games epilogue. Sometimes I need the hope that young people will find a way to have joyful lives even as they struggle, and I rewatch the Spiderverse films. I do not have anything to cope with being complicit in horrific war just by paying taxes, but perhaps it's time to rewatch The Wind Rises. Maybe that's why I watched Howl's Moving Castle religiously throughout the pandemic. I am not ready to watch The Boy and the Heron, but this commentary has filled me with the tools for when I do. Hopefully the cycle turns once more and we as a collective find our hope again, even if brushed with melancholy

You pretty much summed up why I love this film! When I first saw this film, it hit me in a way I didn't expect. I wasn't expecting to relate to Mahito the way I did. I almost lost my mom and had to deal with the changes from her disability, so stories about parental loss or illness always hit me differently, but I wasn't expecting to feel seen the way I was. Like, 13-14 year old me had to grow and learn to accept my mom with her disabilities the same way Mahito had to accept Natsuko. This film has such a beautiful grasp on portraying trauma and coping with it but also showing the beauty of life. Showing that we have to move on and grow no matter what. Also, this is such a brief but beautiful moment at the end of the film but the moment when Himi tells Mahito that fire doesn't scare her and that she's so happy to be his mom always gets me.

Love Ghibli thanks for making analysis videos about these stories!!

Tim, this might be my favorite video you’ve ever made. You capably articulate so much of what Miyazaki communicates through his art, and the nature of grappling with the question “How do you live?” in which we’re constantly engaged. The segment about being aware of the ugliness that humanity perpetuates, and how being more affected by this than others can encourage this sense of moral superiority, really connected with me. This is a weakness I’ve been wrestling with and working through quite a lot recently. My love of experiencing and sharing art with others has been the jolt that’s shocked me out of the paralysis in which I’d so often find myself. Being aware of the grotesque side of humanity, doesn’t make you any less human yourself. It isn’t permission to submit. It’s a call to action. Engaging in seemingly futile struggles is what makes humanity beautiful. Changing my frame of mind so as to be an active participant in this struggle against our inherent ugliness has helped tremendously. Thanks for sharing your art and your love for the art others create with all of us. It means the world :)

At the end of The Boy and The Heron I stayed until the music of the credits was finished and started to cry. The movie spoke so loudly for me about death, about grief, of how a child can be consumed by guilt and a world that, apparently, does not care. It was a punch in the gut. I love your videos, they have helped me a lot to see other perspective in my writing, in how I see the narrative of the world even. I am glad that you can keep up with it. Take care, mate

It‘s fascinating and inspiring to hear someone talking so passionately about melancholy. Thanks for this amazing content 🙏🥰

Thank you Tim, This was really helpful, I've had it rough at times, and right now I was feeling a little lost, even though it seems like my life is great right now. this really helped. i love you and your content

This is amazing, always on point with your insightful analysis Tim, thank you for this and many other videos through the years, you've helped me gain a much fuller understanding and appreciation of so many works of fiction I could hardly list them all right now, hope this helps your video's reach

Really love your videos mate.

Art makes this world worth living in, even if it is often heartbreaking. Kia Ora from a fellow Kiwi. Hope your OE is going good so far, stay safe Mate. Aroha nui

Thank you for your continuous hard work, research, and sharing your videos. I always feel creatively refreshed after watching your content.

I was lucky to be able to watch this film on cinema and not only that but with the original voices, it's such an amazing work and it literally takes things from every single film ever made by him, either parts of the story, places or character styles, and it goes really deep, you can even think of ebery major character as a part of Miyazaki himself. This masterpiece will be analyzed over and over probable for decades.

I've been writing a fanfiction series of roughly 7 books in the past 8 years. It's been taking a while, so I'm not that far in, but recently I understood why I was so intent on giving the characters a happy ending. I write this story specifically to learn how to be happy. The characters are confronted with my flaws and my dilemmas and they learn to work through them. They find solutions to their problems - and through them, I find solutions to mine. There's one character I was unable to save - the one character that had completely given up, and that I didn't know how to save at the time, and so she didn't know how to save herself, and decided to end it. But for all my other characters, I refuse to give up. I'll give them a happy ending, no matter what.

Fantastic video! The Boy and the Heron is an unbelievably beautiful movie

Hello Future Me, I am really glad you made a video like this, especially considering that I have also personally struggled with being a pessimistic doomer for years. There's a really important and relevant word to describe the melancholy and sorrow about the state of the world: "Weltschmerz", which literally is German for "world pain". As unpleasant as it is for me to say this, I'm going to confess that for the past several years or so, I've been an angsty, cynical, and nihilistic edgelord who has lost faith in humanity, believing that real life is a crapsack world that is unfathomably cruel and hopeless beyond saving. This has led to a depression so horrific that it led to self-harm and suicidal ideation. I can relate to a lot of what you have said in this video about how we should not give into despair no matter how horrible the world is. None of us, not even myself, ever chose to live in a world so badly contaminated by inherently unjust and fucked up things about the human condition, such as sexism, racism, abuse, trauma, mental health stigma, oppression, the list goes on and on. Having to live with all of these horrific realities and accept how powerless we are to stop them feels like an inhumane grimdark dystopian nightmare in which there is no escape. I once believed it would be "woke" and morally responsible to face the harsh, gritty and unpleasant dark truths about the world head-on and go deep into those disturbing facts just to understand how fucked up the world is. But now, for the past few years, I have realized that it had become a self-destructive addiction that trapped me in an endless cycle of misery, and I'm sure you mentioned in this video how cynicism and despair can be really addictive. While I have taken major steps for rehab from this nihilism addiction, and to recover from depression, I will continue to rebel against the harsh realities of our existence, even if we are totally powerless to do so, because accepting these harsh realities is like submitting to the dystopian regime of a totalitarian dictatorship and licking the disgusting filth off the bottom of its oppressive jackboots that trample over our human rights and freedoms like they mean nothing. It brings me a sense of escapism imagining a world in which seriously fucked up things about the human condition, like trauma and abuse, are too unrealistic to ever possibly exist at all. Trauma has never done anything to human existence except to thoroughly destroy, ruin and corrupt everything meaningful about the human experience. It is nothing but pure evil, and that is why it must be not just overcome, but completely overthrown so that we can be truly free. I hope that we can all eventually live in a world where unspeakably traumatic horrors like the Holocaust or whatever atrocities Unit 731 did (which you made an entire video about) not only can never happen again, but also never even got to happen at all to begin with. Thank you for not only making this video about why it is important to never give up to rebel against evil and suffering even if we are powerless to do anything about it, and for being a mental health and suicide counselor to those who have been tortured by the suffering of the world.

This one has brought me to tears! Artists like Miyazaki and Tolkien, with such deep-seated antitheses in their philosophies, really get to me. Enjoying their work and seeing how their stories pendulum between melancholy and pure joy is fascinating. This is a great video about Miyazaki and his work!

In case anybody hadn't mentioned it yet. I am reminded of another great work. ^_^ “I wish it need not have happened in my time," said Frodo. "So do I," said Gandalf, "and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.” ― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring Really appreciated this video. The Boy and the Heron came to theaters as I was readying to return home after living aboard for a little over half a decade. It was a big change and there was so much going on. Seeing this film in a theatre, separated from all of it, was something else. Sometimes you find art you need when you need it and this was one of those times.

15:45 - 15:57 Wow, I just felt that!

God this analysis hits so hard. Beautifully said. Thank you for this, I needed it this week

This was really well done. How will you live indeed.

I was hoping you'd make a video on this! You recording this outside creates the perfect vibe 🌺

Awesome video as always!

Wow i watched the movie in theatres but i didn't know why i felt so conflicted during it and you explained it so well. Reslly glad this video popped up in my feed. Subscribed..

The funny thing is about the world. Is that even though the world is an absolutely rough place to live in,and hard to do so. Is that where there is beauty there is always something that will try to tarnish it. Just due to the fact that if someone something or anything see's something beautiful there is always envy and someone who wants it for themselves. Which is why these films resonate with people. They know there's hardships but you must see reasons to live in those hardships because they are there.

I really enjoyed this! I hope you cover more animated movies 👍

I initially was very put off when the movie just suddenly 'ended'. And I'm pretty sure that intention went over many heads. But as the credits rolled and I reflected on the abruptness, I thought back on the heron's final words earlier: "You will forget all about this eventually." Mahito's last words of the film simply denote that he and his new family are moving on, yet there is no sentimental indication of Mahito looking back at his house. There is so much ambiguity that can be ultimately interpreted in two ways: the heron was right, and Mahito did eventually forget. We often forget pieces of our childhood as we grow older after all, and sometimes we lose the archived evidence of our memories, like our diaries, journals, sketchbooks, photographs, etc. Perhaps in the end, it was all in fact a fever dream he had while recovering from his head scar. Or, it's just simply a fargone adventure he once had. Or maybe Mahito never forgot, but he already chose to leave that past behind. He's grown past the lost boy he started out as, and he chooses not to carry the sentiment with him. As seen with spending time with his mother's younger self, he has made peace with letting go. He has learned to release his heartache so that he could make room for joy and love for his new family. It could even be a mix of the two, or a completely different interpretation altogether. My take on it goes back to the film's original title: How do you live? Will you allow yourself to leave behind the broken parts of your past and regrow differently, or will you take them with you to nuture as compassion? Will you look back and reflect on what sheltered you for so long, or keep your eyes ahead as you march towards a new horizon? What will you lose, how will you remember, and what will you do to preserve them?

Wow. One of your best videos, I'd say (and that's saying A LOT). Made me cry (which was the last thing I expected from a movie review/video essay...). Thank you.

Okay. I wasn't prepared for this... I'll to come back to this video because it's a lot to take in. I feel like touch upon points we should talk about more often. Thanks, Tim!

A wonderful video about a wonderful film. Thank you.

When I was little I didn’t understand and appreciate Spirited Away. Now I have a growing collection of golden films made by Hayao Miyazaki, Joe Hisaishi, and Studio Ghibli. They are timeless

Good to see you as always man.

I recently turned 20 and for the last two months I've reached the lowest point of my entire life. The existential dread of age, the realization that time moves fast when you aren't looking, it's unbelievably overwhelming. It's the first time I've realized that I get older in a sense. This fear has also been accompanied by the fear of death, and the age-old question of what comes after. Because of that, this video truly spoke to me. The idea that we can never escape the reality we've joined, and how we never even asked to join is depressing. But the idea that we can overcome these fears, live a good life, and leave behind something that can change others (no matter how large) is unbelievably comforting. Life doesn't have to be this miserable ticking time bomb for me, it can be a journey worth living, because why be miserable the whole time you're here? We can make art that convinces us (and others) of a greater reality. Thank you for this video ❤