Whisper of the Heart
Mimi wo sumaseba
Japan
1995
105 Min
Color
1.85:1
Japanese
Synopsis
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. —IMDb
Director
Yoshifumi Kondô
Yoshifumi Kondō (近藤 喜文 Kondō Yoshifumi?, March 31, 1950 – January 21, 1998) was a Japanese animator who worked for Studio Ghibli in his last years. He was born in Gosen, Niigata Prefecture, Japan. He worked as an animation director on Anne of Green Gables, Sherlock Hound, Kiki’s Delivery Service, Only Yesterday and Princess Mononoke. Kondō directed the animated film Whisper of the Heart, and was expected to become one of the top directors at Studio Ghibli, alongside Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata, and to become their eventual successor.
Kondō died of an aneurysm in 1998. His death is said to have been caused by excess work, and seems to be the main reason for Hayao Miyazaki’s announcement of retirement in 1998. Although in the end Miyazaki didn’t retire, Kondō’s death seems to have influenced Miyazaki to work at a more relaxed pace. —Wikipedia
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MGeo
30Jan12
This is both one of my favorite Ghibli and all time favorite films. Unlike many Ghibli films, this is a simple film with a hint of magic. It touches me personally because it is the story of a writer trying to find her voice in writing her first actual story, which is relevant to my life. Many scenes will melt your heart or make it soar. Sadly, this was Kondo's only film as he died soon after. Highly recommended!
Fifa Atm
4Dec11
this is a 'coming of age' romance, honest, pure, fresh, brave, careless first love that i'm sure many of us experienced it when we're younger. I mainly enjoy very detailed pictures that flooding this movie (or every ghibli's movie) scene by scene, that keep me wondering how can they make such a marvellous image like those.
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Articles
Our roundup of essays and articles on this film.
Ghibli Retrospective: The Kids Talk WHISPER OF THE HEART
By Twitchfilm.com on March 16, 2012
Twitch is certainly not the youngest of movie websites, and a number of the writing staff have children that are old enough to understand and consume media in a way that is both raw and fresh, but also
WHISPER OF THE HEART UK BluRay review
By Twitchfilm.com on January 10, 2012
Yoshifumi Kondō’s Whisper of the Heart is undeniably a magical film, despite there being maybe ten minutes of anything fantastical on screen throughout the entire running time (none of which is actually
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Utterly pedestrian
By josiahduke on April 3, 2010
I’d heard many good things about this film from friends and others and I finally decided to give it a look. And quite frankly, I don’t see much to love here. If someone could enlighten me beyond vague… read review
Untitled
By Acerk21 on July 8, 2009
“Whisper of the Heart” is without a doubt my favorite film from Studio Ghibli and one of my personal favs as well. Produced by the great Hayao Miyazaki and directed by his apprentice Yoshifumi Kondo… read review
Untitled
By Josh Tierney on June 20, 2009
Well, it’s finally on theauteurs — what I personally consider the greatest film ever made. Every single aspect of it is perfect, from the animation that mimics human behaviour more realistically than… read review
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