Studio Ghibli: A Retrospective, Part Eleven - Whisper of the Heart

The meta-narrative of Whisper of the Heart is the story of the film's director, Yoshifumi Kondo. Kondo served as much a key part of the Studio Ghibli narrative as Miyazaki, Takahata or Suzuki. Born in 1950, Kondo became associated with Miyazaki and Takahata early on, working on TV projects such as Future Boy Conan and Anne of Green Gables. He was eventually promoted to character designer on the TV series Sherlock Hound in 1980. Following a spate of inactivity in the mid-1980s, due to recovering from pneumonia, Kondo re-joined his former animation comrades at Studio Ghibli in 1987 where he was quickly promoted to animation director on Kiki's Delivery Service, Only Yesterday and, eventually, Princess Mononoke. While a huge chunk of the gorgeous animation can be attributed to the visions of Miyazaki and Takahata, Kondo had to actually execute this vision. A hugely important role. The studio's faith was so strong in Kondo, that they gave him a project of his own to direct, Whisper of the Heart, released in 1995. The 1990s was period when Ghibli really began to consider their legacy for the first time. Kondo was expected to become one of the top directors at Studio Ghibli and, eventually, Miyazaki and Takahata's successor. However, following the conclusion of production on Princess Mononoke in 1997, Kondo died the following year of aortic dissection. His death is said to have been caused by excessive work and contributed in part to Miyazaki deciding to retire from filmmaking in the late 90s. While he would eventually return to the studio for Spirited Away, Kondo's death was the catalyst to work at a more relaxed pace at Ghibli. This leaves Whisper of the Heart as the only film in Kondo's filmography, a bittersweet epitaph to a clear animation genius. 

Yoshifumi Kondo 1950-1998

So how does Kondo's only film hold? Pretty well actually. While it's a bit slight in places and takes a while to get going, Whisper of the Heart slowly builds into a lovely film about the teenage experience, yearning, learning to take responsibility, overcoming depression and, ultimately, working towards attaining one's aspirations. Based on the manga series Mimi o Sumaseba, by noted shojo author Aoi Hiiragi, it is a great encapsulation of  where Studio Ghibli were in the 1990s, telling a subtle story placed very much in the real world, with only hints of the fantasy elements that distinguish their previous works, along with a very mature art design and approach to the animation.

Shizuku is a sullen 14 year old struggling with many of the usual teenage problems - family life is a bore, with both parents busy pursuing a career in education and a sister away at college, the pressures of school life and exams encroaching with her every step, hanging out with her friends and trying to avoid that one really obnoxious boy she can't stand. Hormones have hit Shizuku hard and her only solace is her books. She also seems to enjoy writing. Her school friends take great delight in her translated version of the John Denver classic Take Me Home, Country Roads, which is reinterpreted to be about her feelings being, basically, depressed (she has, however, done a more comical version called Concrete Roads, poking fun at the urban diaspora of Tokyo). But there's something ... missing in her life. She admits that even reading doesn't make as happy as it once did. Hrm. 

Honestly, what saves the slow moving first act of Whisper of the Heart is the characterisation of Shizuku. She might be the most nuanced of all the Ghibli heroines. She's a bit lazy, unambitious and is battling with her hormones but she is kind, understanding and sweet. She can be somewhat selfish at times but she is ultimately more intelligent than she realises. Shizuku eventually uses her daydreaming to her advantage, when she starts to draw this into her writing. It does soon become apparent that Shizuku has some form of depression that comes from a yearning to complete ... something. 

Whisper of the Heart is a great addition to the Ghibli canon. Whilst not a personal favourite, it has so much going for it  that it definitely warrants multiple watches

Things start to change when Shizuku notices that every book she borrows from the library has the same name on the check-out card - Seiji Omasawa. Getting swept up in one of her fantasies, she almost imagines this idealised young man in her head. Her yearning for adventure leads her to following a cat across town she seemingly seems to be egging her on (almost lie Alice following the White Rabbit). The trail eventually finishes at an old antique shop. She meets the shop proprietor, an old man, who owns a variety of trinkets including a statue of a cat character named the Baron. She eventually realises that the old man's grandson, the obnoxious boy she keeps running into who I mentioned earlier, is in fact Seiji Omasawa. To be brutally honest, I do find the opening 45 mins or so painfully slow. There doesn't seem to be any clear goal, at least not until our lock in with the story. When it's revealed who Seiji Omasawa is, the film peaks up in interest. Seiji, as it turns out, has a rather unconventional hobby - he builds violins and dreams of studying with the greats in Italy. The revitalised narrative begins with Seiji showing off his violin playing skills by playing Country Roads. She fumbles along, trying to sing the lyrics and they are soon joined by Seiji's grandfather and friends, which turns into a musical extravaganza. Honestly, this might be one of my all-time favourite Ghibli scenes. 

The famous Country Roads scene - easily in my top 10 favourite Ghibli scenes

However, things take a sad turn. Just as Shizuku and Seiji begin to defrost their previously icy relationship and become very close, the violin maker announces that he is moving to Italy for a year to study with the masters of the craft. After finally finding the One, Shizuku faces the prospect of being alone once again. Shizuku decides to funnel her depression and loneliness into writing a novel. Seiji and his grandfather provided her with the inspiration to write a story, now she just has to complete it. This is where the wonderful fantasy sequences come into play. Shizuku imagines herself as the heroine in a wind-swept realm, accompanying the Baron on a grand adventure, as a visualisation of her laying about the narrative framework for her novel. Shizuku decides to turn the statue of the Baron into the main hero of her story, much to the delight of Seiji's grandfather, who actually has something of a sad backstory of how it fell into his posession. These fantasy sequences are just stunning, especially in the sophisticated world building and how they reflect what is happening in Shizuku's life. Invariably, her new focus takes her away from her studies and her grades at school begin to slip. Her parents offer an ultimatum - get on with your studies or finish the book. 

The brilliant fantasy sequences help to visual Shizuku laying out the track for the narrative of her novel and experience her emotions

The conclusion is sweet. On a foggy Tokyo morning, after finishing the first draft of her book, Seiji, out of the blue, returns to Japan and goes to see Shizuku. The two rush up to the top of a nearby hill to watch the dawn break. The realism of the animation here is truly breath-taking. Shizuku admits that she is not a perfect person and that there's a lot she needs to do to make her into the best version of her. The two ultimately make an unbreakable bond to support each in all their future endevours. Thus caps off Whisper of the Heart. It's not a perfect film and I certainly wouldn't recommend it for those just getting acquainted with Ghibli. However, there is a profound sense of maturity to the story-telling and animation. It's stripped back, for sure, and the first act is very slow moving but Whisper of the Heart manages to pull it back with a very emotionally gripping narrative arc. I think it's the honest sentimentality of the teenage experience that really holds it all together. Shizuku is a great addition to the pantheon of Ghibli heroes and her struggles navigating teenage life are all too relatable. At the end of the day, the film is subtle and quietly moving. As usual, every aspect of the art design and animation is perfect, with the animators clearly pouring their real life experiences of living in Tokyo and similar urban diaspora into every frame. Basically, this is the film that Ocean Waves should have been. The underrated score by Yuji Nomi is also fairly wonderfully, lending a fairy tale like sense of wonder to the proceedings. And as a debut film, it is incredibly assured. It just makes me a bit sad that Kondo was never able to follow up on this film. He was certainly a great talent and had the spark of an animation genius. 

Some quick notes on the dub and it's just a-ok. Brittany Snow is spot on as Shizuku adding a vulnerability whilst retaining her slightly more brattish but ultimately sweet tendencies. David Gallagher voices Seiji in his trademark Riku voice (yes, that's Riku of Kingdom Hearts fame, making this something of a mini reunion for the voice actors of this video game series, as Snow voiced Namine in the second instalment). Cary Elwes voices the Baron in the fantasy sequences and the rest of the cast is rounded off by established and respected TV actors, such as Jean Smart; plus Ashley Tisdale as Shizuku's best friend - because this was a dub produced by Disney in the mid-2000s!  

After four years away, Miyazaki finally unleashes her magnum opus - next time we talk about what is probably my all-time favourite film - Princess Mononoke.