Reports say tickets to How Do You Live are sold out at the box office. It was Hayao Miyazaki who co-founded Studio Ghibli, the famous animation studio, with the late director Isao Takahata. The Studio had announced no trailers or promos for the film.
What is How Do You Live based on?
How Do You Live (Kimitachi wa Do Ikiru ka) is based on the 1937 novel of the same name by Genzaburo Yoshino. The name is the same but the plot is different. In fact, the story is inspired by Hayao Miyazaki’s real life.
So, what is How Do You Live about?
How Do You Live, the movie, has the backdrop of Japan in World War II. The film tells the story of a boy named Mahito, whose mother is shot dead. His father works in a fighter planes factory and marries his late wife’s younger sister Natsuko.As the family moves to the countryside, Mahito begins looking around the area near his new house, where he finds a ‘mysterious tower’ to which entry is prohibited.Strangely, Mahito encounters a gray heron that can speak human language, and it claims that Mahito’s mother is alive and in the tower. Mahito does not pay heed to this information, but when his stepmother Natsuko also disappears into the tower, he enters the place to rescue her.
However, he instead finds himself in a fantasy world and makes new friends and enemies.
How Do You Live showcases Miyazaki’s trademark cinematic key points and themes. The film is as visually beautiful as all his films, with mainly hand-drawn animation work on display.
In effect, How Do You Live is a coming-of-age story of Mahito. Miyazaki’s father also worked for fighter planes’ parts factory, and his family moved to the countryside during the war.
The animator also had a special relationship with his mother, who is said to have inspired the strong female characters in his work.
Despite no trailer or promotions from Studio Ghibli, but only a film poster, How Do You Live sold out tickets on the day of release.
Miyazaki had earlier hinted at retirement, and at 82 years of age, it seems How Do You Live will be his last film, of which Studio Ghibli is aware.
FAQs
Q1:Which is the final film of Hayao Miyazaki?
A film called How Do You Live, released in July 2023 in Japan, is considered Hayao Miyazaki’s final film.
Q2:What book is Hayao Miyazaki’s How Do You Live based on?
Hayao Miyazaki’s 2023 film How Do You Live is based on Genzaburō Yoshino’s novel How Do You Live, a children’s novel which was banned at one point in time. But the film’s story is entirely different from the book.
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