# Talk:The Boy and the Heron

Hayao Miyazaki's next feature film How Do You Live?, already 3․5 years in the making is still just 15% complete.
https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2019-12-17/hayao-miyazaki-next-film-is-15-percent-complete-after-3.5-years/.154489 80.99.111.252 (talk) 10:38, 20 December 2019 (UTC)

The poster was recently revealed, take a look.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BOTkxN2MwNmUtYTQwZC00NmVhLTkxM2ItZjY5ODA4ZDhlYTE4XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTMxODk2OTU@._V1_.jpg  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.132.80.129 (talk) 05:46, 15 May 2020 (UTC) 

@Rhain: But an eponymous novel by Yoshino Genzaburo would be entitled Yoshino Genzaburo, not How Do You Live. --jpgordon𝄢𝄆𝄐𝄇 16:32, 15 September 2022 (UTC)

indeed, but they mean that film and book share a title 2A02:A44E:E127:1:D16A:6CA4:430C:12F7 (talk) 07:29, 12 October 2024 (UTC)

The redirect Soma Santoki has been listed at redirects for discussion to determine whether its use and function meets the redirect guidelines. Readers of this page are welcome to comment on this redirect at Wikipedia:Redirects for discussion/Log/2023 July 20 § Soma Santoki until a consensus is reached.  —TechnoSquirrel69 (sigh) 04:15, 20 July 2023 (UTC)

Should the English language title decided by some lawyers take precedent over the title the film was given by its creator? 2601:702:8100:1360:990:1076:9823:A1E4 (talk) 19:18, 5 September 2023 (UTC)

I believe it's Wikipedia policy to use the English titles (see all other Miyazaki films that have had different English titles like "Spirited Away" and "Kiki's Delivery Service"). There's also no evidence that lawyers chose the title, for all we know Miyazaki may have approved that English title. Basil the Bat Lord (talk) 08:10, 6 September 2023 (UTC)
Studio Ghibli requested GKIDS use this title, so I doubt it was decided by "some lawyers". Link20XX (talk) 01:01, 24 September 2023 (UTC)
for what it's worth, How Do You Live has overtones in English which are quite different from those in Japanese, so a literally translated title would not have been the best choice in this instance. I can sympathise with the grumbling, in that the English title they decided on is rather prosaic and uninspired. 2A02:A44E:E127:1:D16A:6CA4:430C:12F7 (talk) 07:33, 12 October 2024 (UTC)

This part is unclear: 

"Japanese title references the 1937 novel of the same name by Genzaburō Yoshino, which appears in the film, but the film has an original story that is not connected to the novel. "

Just what, or is it the book's author who "appears in the film"?  
Is the film's story completely not the one in the book, or is there also a parallel story in the film?  -- Steve --  (talk) 19:49, 31 December 2023 (UTC)

I think the novel itself is briefly seen? 2A02:A44E:E127:1:D16A:6CA4:430C:12F7 (talk) 07:33, 12 October 2024 (UTC)

Is the birdman a kind of tengu? -- Error (talk) 11:35, 8 January 2024 (UTC)

Should this not be Sororate marriage, which has a separate article? Asking here as someone has already made the effort to add this film in the 'In Popular Culture' section for the corresponding article on levirate marriage (and I'm right now only IP poster). 130.226.236.6 (talk) 16:51, 11 January 2024 (UTC)

 Done. Thanks! —TechnoSquirrel69 (sigh) 05:05, 15 January 2024 (UTC)

As editors watching this article may have noticed, I split out most of § Accolades to List of accolades received by The Boy and the Heron yesterday. I picked a few awards to stay in the main article, but my selection was semi-arbitrary, so I'd appreciate it if another editor could take a look and make sure the section is representative of the film's most notable accolades to date. Thanks! —TechnoSquirrel69 (sigh) 17:03, 18 January 2024 (UTC)

@StrangerThingsFan2000: You've added a mention of the film's score receiving award nominations in the lead for the third time in the last few days after I've reverted you twice. Clearly we disagree on this point, so let's talk about it here. I'm not of the opinion that mentioning those nominations is proportionate to its importance to the subject according to the relevant guideline. Especially considering that the article about the accolades is already linked in that section, I'd prefer to keep the list of accolades brief to avoid placing undue weight on them. Let me know what you think. —TechnoSquirrel69 (sigh) 01:12, 23 March 2024 (UTC)

Relatedly, 172.88.18.134 has been adding a mention of the PG-13 rating to the lead in relation to the accolades. This is much more clearly excessive detail, and would be better placed in a footnote, if at all. However, 172.88.18.134, I'd like to hear from you as well. —TechnoSquirrel69 (sigh) 14:57, 23 March 2024 (UTC)
I've added a footnote to the article about the accolades. —TechnoSquirrel69 (sigh) 15:06, 23 March 2024 (UTC)
Hi. I understand that. Sorry for any inconvenience. Have a great day. StrangerThingsFan2000 (talk) 22:11, 23 March 2024 (UTC)
No inconvenience at all! I just wanted to discuss the change with you before we inadvertently cause an edit-war. I'll assume from your message that you're fine with me reverting to the previous version. Hope you have a nice day as well. —TechnoSquirrel69 (sigh) 22:16, 23 March 2024 (UTC)
Hi. Yeah I’m fine with that. I was adding the nomination for people to recognise that it was nominated for other awards but I completely see your point and am fine with you taking it away and will not attempt to add it again. Have a great day! StrangerThingsFan2000 (talk) 01:21, 24 March 2024 (UTC)

This review is transcluded from Talk:The Boy and the Heron/GA1. The edit link for this section can be used to add comments to the review.
Nominator: Nyxaros (talk · contribs)
Reviewer: AryKun (talk · contribs) 18:20, 24 March 2024 (UTC)

Nice article on a skim through. Will drop by with comments after a more detailed read-through soon. AryKun (talk) 18:20, 24 March 2024 (UTC)
"by Studio Ghibli, the Japanese title" to "by Studio Ghibli, the movies's the Japanese title"?
'Described as a "big fantastical film",' cite after quote.
"Mahito Maki during the Pacific War who moves to the countryside after his mother's death" Reads weird, the "during the Pacific War" interrupts the rest of the clause.
"most expensive film ever produced in Japan" Including live-action?
 Comment: According to what is written and what Suzuki said, yes. That's why "most expensive film ever produced". --ภץאคгöร 00:52, 28 March 2024 (UTC)

"The protagonist[...]is modeled after Miyazaki's childhood" Character can't be modeled after childhood.
"similar to Mahito's father" to "like Mahito's father"?
Note b doesn't make sense where it's placed; it'd be better after "has autobiographical features"
"film evokes...his mother" to "film evokes personal parallels Miyazaki's loss of his mother"
"The hospital fire...love for his mother" Run-on sentence, split into two.
"Suzuki spoke" Haven't mentioned who Suzuki yet, should be full name and link.
"between the two" Not clear exactly which two people this refers to.
"the grandson of Genzaburō Yoshino" Haven't mentioned who Genzaburō Yoshino is in the body yet.
"acknowledged his past works" Acknowledged doesn't seem like quite the right word.
"approach in contrast to the book centered on the moral development of adolescent boys." to "approach, in contrast to the book, which is centered on the moral development of adolescent boys."
"to his progeny" Mahito is not the granduncle's progeny.
 Comment: He is though? The character Granduncle "requests Mahito, possessing the power of his bloodline, to succeed to custodianship of this world." --ภץאคгöร 00:52, 28 March 2024 (UTC)

Progeny means offspring or children; as a granduncle is your grandfather's brother, you can't be his progeny because that requires you being a direct descendent. "bloodline" doesn't have the same connotation of being a direct descendent, just related. AryKun (talk) 15:24, 28 March 2024 (UTC)
I think that's incorrect. In addition to the cited source stating the exact word, synonyms for progeny include "descendants", "product", and "offspring", so you're also your grandparents' and great-grandparents' progeny. ภץאคгöร 23:53, 28 March 2024 (UTC)
You are your grandparents' and great-grandparents' progeny, but you can't be your granduncle's progeny because you aren't his direct descendent. AryKun (talk) 09:24, 29 March 2024 (UTC)
As I wrote above, the source directly mentions the term, and you are still a descendant of your maternal grandmother's side. --ภץאคгöร 11:48, 29 March 2024 (UTC)
"Mahito's father marries his mother's sister" Could be parsed as Mahito's father's mother's sister, which is Freudian alright.
"referred Mahito" to "referred to Mahito"
"included a children's novel" to "included the children's novel"
"adapt Earwig and the Witch (2020) during development" to "direct Earwig and the Witch (2020)"
"he didn't have an answer [to the question Kimitachi wa Dō Ikiru ka]," Remove the single brackets, this sin't a quote.
"in Japan, and titled "Spinning Globe" internationally." to "in Japan and "Spinning Globe" internationally."
"no trailers nor promotional" to "no trailers or promotional" or "neither trailers nor promotional"
"but said that he trusts the work" Who does he refer to here, Miyazaki or Suzuki?
"Japan reached to $61 million" to "Japan reached $61 million"
What's Friday Road Show?
 Comment: It's a show, a long-running weekly TV segment that began in 1985, where full-length, family-friendly films are broadcast every Friday evening on Nippon TV. --ภץאคгöร 00:52, 28 March 2024 (UTC)

"As of March 24, 2024" Does this really need to be so specific? The film's theatrical run has ended, we aren't going to be posting day-by-day updates here.
 Comment: For now yes I guess, because it did not end. The film is still in theaters, including Japan and America. --ภץאคгöร 00:52, 28 March 2024 (UTC)

"while the volumes were in large quantities on Mercari marketplace app." What's this supposed to mean?
Will check refs later. AryKun (talk) 07:14, 27 March 2024 (UTC)
All  Done. --ภץאคгöร 00:52, 28 March 2024 (UTC)
Spot-checks: Refs checked verify all claims made unless otherwise noted.
Roxborough, Scott (August 17, 2023). "Hayao Miyazaki's 'The Boy and the Heron' to Open San Sebastian Film Festival". The Hollywood Reporter.
Wise, Damon (February 18, 2024). "BAFTAs: Hayao Miyazaki's 'The Boy And The Heron' Breaks Hollywood's Hold On Animation Category". Deadline.
Strusiewicz, Cezary Jan (July 17, 2023). "Hayao Miyazaki's How Do You Live? is a gloriously demented farewell". Polygon.
The Boy and the Heron First Reviews: Masterfully Animated Fantasy on Par with Miyazaki's Best". Rotten Tomatoes.
Steen, Emma (September 11, 2023). "Studio Ghibli's latest film 'The Boy and the Heron' finally gets a trailer". Time Out Tokyo.
How does this confirm critical acclaim in Japan? The only time it talks about reception is discussing the TIFF.
 Comment: I think it's referring to the praise from Japan and TIFF. I can move the source to the TIFF sentence in the release section, or remove "in Japan" from the reception. ภץאคгöร 00:28, 29 March 2024 (UTC)

Hayao Miyazaki's "The Boy and the Heron" finally gets its U.S. premiere". Hindustan Times.
Lang, Jamie (September 11, 2023). "'The Boy And The Heron' Reviews Roundup: Hayao Miyazaki's Latest Gets Unanimous Praise After International Premiere". Cartoon Brew.
Loo, Egan (December 17, 2019). "Hayao Miyazaki's Next Film Is 15% Complete After 3.5 Years". Anime News Network.
Verifies claims made, but I'd change "produce 10 minutes" in the article to "produce 7–10 minutes" to be more accurate to the source.
Romano, Nick (May 13, 2020). "Studio Ghibli co-founder teases Hayao Miyazaki's next 'big, fantastical' film". Entertainment Weekly.

Nyxaros, everything looks good, just one comment on the progeny thing and a couple notes on the refs. AryKun (talk) 15:24, 28 March 2024 (UTC)
Thank you again for reviewing. I'm going to add this to the article, maybe something like "In February 2024, Paste ranked the film third in its list of "The 100 Best Anime Movies of All Time." I'd appreciate it if you could check it before this closes. ภץאคгöร 00:28, 29 March 2024 (UTC)
Okay, I don't see any other problems (besides my pedantry), so will be passing. Paste doesn't seem to be particularly known for reviewing anime, but it seems like a decent enough source, so no harm in mentioning it. AryKun (talk) 08:47, 30 March 2024 (UTC)

Recently, The Boy and the Heron was released in China, and its actually doing really well there, gaining a lot in terms of box office. Do you think we can mention it in the article or not? (source given)
(https://variety.com/2024/film/news/china-box-office-the-boy-and-the-heron-midweek-holiday-debut-1235960221/) Blue Jay (talk) 10:09, 6 April 2024 (UTC)

 Done, with another source to boot. I'm sure my single sentence could be revised or expanded as more Chinese box office information comes out. Thanks! —TechnoSquirrel69 (sigh) 00:38, 7 April 2024 (UTC)
Can anyone change the overall box office takings? Comscore reports that the film has grossed $273,175,118 worldwide including China as of the 11th of April, 2024.
https://www.comscore.com/Insights/Rankings
You can find the worldwide box office if you click on 'movies' on this page 
and then 'worldwide box office'. 

Can anyone add this and edit the article?
Thanks Samryan23 (talk) 15:37, 11 April 2024 (UTC)

Given that they are the spirits of unborn humans and the Japanese word wareware  (我々日本人) marks the first person plural, isn't this worth commenting on? 2A02:A44E:E127:1:D16A:6CA4:430C:12F7 (talk) 07:28, 12 October 2024 (UTC)

Thanks for your comment, but I'm not quite sure what you're asking to be changed. Why is the first-person plural form relevant to this article? —TechnoSquirrel69 (sigh) 21:19, 12 October 2024 (UTC)

The following Wikimedia Commons file used on this page or its Wikidata item has been nominated for speedy deletion:

Hayao Miyazaki 201211.jpg
You can see the reason for deletion at the file description page linked above. —Community Tech bot (talk) 13:52, 6 July 2025 (UTC)

Hi - I have tagged this article as likely AI generated, based on the edits by Nyxaros. Here is a sampling; they display many strong signs of LLM output. (Please see the "Superficial analyses" and "AI vocabulary" sections in particular there.) This should have been flagged during GA review but was not, and so it needs thorough review -- not just a spot check -- for accuracy, hallucinations, source-to-text integrity problems (skimming the edit summary list suggests that some of those were introduced/caught), original research, tone issues, close paraphrasing, and all the other problems that can arise with AI.
Doing my own spot check, I have already found two issues within minutes: 

Caryn James of the BBC, who rated it 5 out of 5 stars, felt the film is the culmination of Miyazaki's career and therefore may require multiple viewings to fully absorb the narrative's unwavering pace and the rich tapestry of imagery. She opined that the film presents a narrative blending wartime tragedy and supernatural exploration through the character Mahito, characterized by Miyazaki's meticulous attention to detail, a vibrant palette, and the seamless interplay between reality and the otherworldly, with characters assuming dreamlike forms that exemplify Miyazaki's innovative storytelling and visual prowess. - Not only is this pure uncut AI puffery, but it is largely not backed up by the actual review; for instance the "multiple viewings" is probably referencing the quote "The pace of all this never slows, and there is too much coming at Mahito for anyone to absorb in a single viewing," which mentions nothing about imagery nor any cause-and-effect relationship between the "culmination of his career" and requiring multiple viewings.
A lot of close paraphrasing; in particular the Hollywood Reporter mention is practically verbatim.
Apropos of nothing, Miyazaki has called generative AI an "insult to life itself." Gnomingstuff (talk) 21:52, 5 November 2025 (UTC)

@Gnomingstuff: Thanks for bringing this up. I agree that these two examples have issues; I'm not as certain how indicative they are of LLM output, but I'm not that experienced with identifying it. A GPTZero scan returned a high likelihood of the text being human-written, for what it's worth. When I have some more time on my hands, I might be willing to take on a detailed source–text integrity/close paraphrasing review. Courtesy ping for Nyxaros, the primary author of this article. —TechnoSquirrel69 (sigh) 22:45, 5 November 2025 (UTC)
In this case the main tell is the verbiage -- "seamless interplay," "rich tapestry of imagery," etc. Whenever I see that kind of language it's a red flag to go see whether the source actually says or implies that.
I will say that the other sources I spot-checked weren't as immediately problematic -- the main issues are close paraphrasing and a lot of opinions being stated in wikivoice rather than attributed to a critic. Some of the sources here are paywalled and/or in Japanese so I didn't check those. Gnomingstuff (talk) 22:55, 5 November 2025 (UTC)
This was one and a half years ago. Surely anyone would have a better time to do something else besides stating one review and "suspecting" it to be written by AI, Gnome. It's hilarious that most of the text in the article actually uses direct quotes from sources and clearly mentions them ("According to The Japan Times", "IndieWire's analysis argues that", "A review on RogerEbert.com", "For Nikkei Asia"...). Anyways, I've changed the suspected text...
P.S. Miyazaki wasn't criticizing generative AI as an "insult to life itself", but if you had actually watched Never-Ending Man: Hayao Miyazaki (i.e., checked the source), you would've known that. Oh well... ภץאคгöร 01:37, 6 November 2025 (UTC)
Nyxaros, you can respond to criticism without insulting your fellow editors in edit summaries or insinuating about what they do with their volunteer time, which is neither called for nor collegial. As I mentioned, I'm also not seeing the AI markers as strongly as Gnomingstuff seems to be, and I'm willing to assume good faith when you say that wasn't what you did. However, the concerns about tone and close paraphrasing are valid, and need to be looked at, so I've tagged the article accordingly. —TechnoSquirrel69 (sigh) 02:25, 6 November 2025 (UTC)
I restored the tag. I have also noted that you didn't even bother to address the factual errors I pointed out. Just writing "a review on RogerEbert.com" or whatever isn't enough, the review has to actually claim what you say it does.
As far as AI markers, I have looked at literally thousands of examples and millions of words' worth of AI writing. This is not a particularly unusual example of AI output; it sounds like all of the rest of it. There is empirical research backing this up, much of which can be found in the studies cited in the WP:AISIGNS page refs. Gnomingstuff (talk) 11:53, 6 November 2025 (UTC)
You did not point "any factual errors" nor you did you properly verify the sources, including the BBC one and even what Miyazaki said (which I mentioned above). Since I changed the BBC text, let us actually know if there's anything you spot this time. ภץאคгöร 00:56, 7 November 2025 (UTC)
I just restored the tag again. --Gurkubondinn (talk) 22:36, 6 November 2025 (UTC)
Then point out which is "AI" and what is "close paraphrasing"? Instead of just complaining about baseless things? ภץאคгöร 00:10, 7 November 2025 (UTC)
Will you reply to my question here instead of sending random templates @Gurkubondinn: you added yourself to the discussion just to do nothing? It's been almost three days. ภץאคгöร 21:56, 9 November 2025 (UTC)
The WP:ONUS is on you to explain your edits and how they were made. I have no interest whatsoever in the arguments that you seem so eager to start. The contemptuous attitude that you have displayed towards others here and on your talk page are also rather off-putting to me. --Gurkubondinn (talk) 22:04, 9 November 2025 (UTC)
Do you see the discussion? I already explained my edits and addressed the issue (the BBC and Hollywood Reporter sentences, and then rewrote several things even though they were not the "issue"). You think I would be interested in an editor who didn't read the discussions they participated in, made no contributions, constantly reverted edits without a valid reason and commented on another editor instead of the issue? No one cares about what you think of me or any other person and you are the only one reverting here. It's been four days. ภץאคгöร 21:04, 10 November 2025 (UTC)
I've started my review of the article, and I'm fairly confident the text up to the end of § Production no longer has any of the issues that have been discussed here. For the most part, the prose was solid, but I identified and fixed a couple of cases of close paraphrasing and things not verified by the references. Let's keep the tags up until I or another editor can finish checking the rest of the article. —TechnoSquirrel69 (sigh) 04:15, 11 November 2025 (UTC)
All info is verified by sources, as checked during the good article review process. I think you meant something else. Anyway, I noticed you removed some information here and there, and I don't know why, so I'll add it back when I have time. ภץאคгöร 17:42, 13 November 2025 (UTC)
Things can slip through spot-checks — that's neither your fault nor the reviewer's, it just happens. I did make some cuts where I felt it was getting into extraneous detail, but other removals were to fix close paraphrasing issues, so I'd ask you to talk to me before restoring any of it. —TechnoSquirrel69 (sigh) 02:20, 14 November 2025 (UTC)