THE PLOT THUS FAR
A young girl finds that all the books she chooses in the library have been previously checked out by the same boy. Later she meets a very infuriating fellow… could it be her “friend” from the library? The boy’s grandfather has a violin sales and service shop. The boy wants to be a violin maker like his grandfather.
WHAT WE THOUGHT
“Whisper of the Heart” follows Shizuku, a girl in her mid-teens, who lives for her love of books and writing. During her numerous visits to the library, she become aware that all the books she has taken out have been previously checked out by a boy named ‘Seiji Amasawa’. It doesn’t take long to realise that this Seiji is, in fact, a fellow classmate at her school who she finds infuriatingly arrogant. But as she comes to know him properly, discovering he is a boy with firm ambitions to be a great violin maker, he leaves her yearning to find her own path in life as well as tasting love for the first time.
The beauty of the film lies not in the mythical worlds or the fantastic creatures from the fairy tales. It is in the little film’s universal appeal, in the way all viewers, the children and their parents, can relate to one girl’s search for place in life, for her determination to follow the dream , and for support, guidance, and approval she so desperately needs and receives from her busy but loving and understanding parents. My favorite scene in the film is the conversation 15-year-old Shizuku has with her mother and father at the kitchen table about her future. It was so realistic, filled with the warmth, love, and understanding that children need from their parents.
The Blu-Ray comes with a bonus DVD copy. There’s also a ton of featurettes, trailers, original Japanese storyboards and looks at the voice talent. The A/V Quality is pretty strong with a DTS-HD 5.1 master audio track and 1080p transfer. While it’s not one of the major Studio Ghibli films, it’s still an impressive tale about growing up and finding your place in a family. In the end, I’d recommend a purchase.
RELEASE DATE: 05/22/2012
