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Before I get into the review, this review may be difficult to understand as I am not a native English speaker. Please understand.

Studio Ghibli's new film, "Kimitachi wa Dou Ikiru ka" ("How Do You Live?"), directed by Hayao Miyazaki, takes its title from Genzaburo Yoshino's novel "Kimitachi wa Dou Ikiru ka" ("How Do You Live?") published in 2017. But the story is completely original by Miyazaki. Studio Ghibli's official website describes the film as an adventure fantasy. This is the first film by director Hayao Miyazaki in 10 years since "The Wind Rises," which was released in 2013.

The odd thing about this film is that ... only the release date, title, and key visuals have been announced. Producer Toshio Suzuki of Studio Ghibli has stated that no TV commercials or advertisements, let alone trailers, will be released prior to its release. Also, unusually for an anime film in recent years, the film is being produced under Ghibli's sole financing. This means there is no problem even if the film is creating a deficit due to the drastic strategy of not using advertisements or promotions.

Referring to the production staff, the original story, director, and screenplay (storyboard) are by Hayao Miyazaki, and the music is by Joe Hisaishi. So far, this is no different from the usual Ghibli productions, but the animation director is Takeshi Honda. He is a veteran animator who has worked on "Evangelion" "Millennium Actress," "Dennou Coil," and many others. The tag team of Miyazaki and Honda, who has worked on so many films, is exciting and gives us a glimpse of how important Ghibli considers this film to be.

Although I am writing this review after watching the film, I will try to minimize spoilers, given Ghibli's strategy of not promoting the movie this way, i.e., they want people to watch it 'in its entirety' with no prior information.

I went to the cinema on July 14, 2023, the first day of the film's release. I had only limited prior information, as I mentioned earlier.
My first impression was that I had no idea what was going on. There was so much information and abstraction that I never fully understood. Undoubtedly, this is the most difficult film ever made by director Hayao Miyazaki.

Let's take a brief look at the storyline.

The main character is a boy named Mahito, who is estimated to be in his early teens. He lost his mother in a hospital during an air raid during the Pacific War and left Tokyo with his father for the countryside. There, he is met by his father's second marriage. Unable to accept her as his new mother, Mato transfers to a new school and begins to have problems with his classmates. Around the mansion he moves to, there are strange entities, such as the presence of a grey heron (the bird in the key visual) that speaks the language and a mysterious building.

At one point, Mahito chases after his new mother, who disappears into the woods, and when he enters the mysterious building, he faces a grey heron, which leads him on a journey into the 'world below.' This, the 'world below,' is not only a place of death but also a clean and beautiful fictional world where people turn away from reality. It is a world built on a perilous balance, and only those who inherit their great-uncle's blood are qualified to maintain it. Mahito is qualified and can rule the 'world below,' but what choice does he have to make?

Hayao Miyazaki leaves us with a certain message in this work by putting reality and fiction in opposition. When living in the real world, we may want to cling to the past or keep to our own world. We may also do bad things or lose hope because of the ugliness that pervades the world. But we must be honest with ourselves and move forward.

This film is the culmination of Miyazaki's work, and he has projected himself into this film. Hayao Miyazaki experienced an air raid in Utsunomiya when he was a child. He also lost his mother when he was a child. His father works for an aircraft company, which Mahito and Hayao Miyazaki have in common. Miyazaki may want to convey to his childhood self the importance of looking forward to life despite the hardships, ugliness, and evil that exist in this world.

Finally, I have probably only been able to present about 10 percent of this work. So please bring yourself to the theater and enjoy the many elements I could not tell you. To fully appreciate this work, you need to discover its hidden meanings and understand its symbolism. Therefore, I will likely discover different and new interpretations of this work as I rewatch it in the future. Accordingly, my evaluation of this work will also change, so please keep this review only as a reference.

Thank you for reading.

*On July 17, I rewatched the film and added a new interpretation to its notes.. Please take a look. I may update my review and interpretation in the notes hereafter. Please note that there is a possibility of spoilers.