What the Heart Actually Whispers
This is Whisper of the Heart. Original title Mimi O Sumaseba or If You Listen Closely was a Japanese animated film released in 1995, based on a manga with the same name. This movie was directed by Yoshifumi Kondo and in fact his only movie as a film director before his death in 1998. This movie was also the first to be directed by someone that was not Miyazaki or Takahata, the two founders of Ghibli Studio.
A quite underrated animation movie. My theory is because when Ghibli is known for its world of diversity, magic, strange creatures and the odd but beautiful landscapes, Whisper of the Heart doesn’t have any of those. It’s just a story of a normal girl in a busy town who finds her first love and her passion along the way.
There’s nothing so interesting about this story. Why would you want a story about our life when the whole premise of Ghibli films is to escape reality?
No magic, no adventures, no mystical creatures — nothing. However, even though this film doesn’t show any magic in it, or the fantastical world building, it still gives us the feeling of wonder — not by the beasts, or the castles, but the wonder of life. The one that we’re living in right now.
This life.
It not only shows the good parts of our lives or the intense turning point that changes our lives completely. No. It shows us the reality of things. Sometimes life can be boring. It can be painful, and filled with nothing but gloom. Or, some other times it could also be the happiest, where you jump around like there’s no tomorrow; where you laugh until tears start to form in your eyes. Whisper of the Heart shows that life is not that simple to be categorized only into sadness/joy or despair/peace.
When we’re talking about Ghibli animations, we can never leave out the iconic technique called Ma (間) that is constantly used in many of the films. Ma basically refers to the space between one moment and another — a pause. This technique is used with the main purpose of giving the audience a time to breathe. I think this is what makes them so unique and so real, because they capture the realism of life.
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The realistic portrayal of the city, and the little scenes of the characters eat, walk, read, and study in a complete silence make Whisper of the Heart so alive. It even feels like you’re actually there. It’s the pause of a moment, and it does happen to us. When we’re just so deep in thoughts, or quite the opposite, not thinking a single thing.
Now let’s get into the beautiful plot.
Whisper of the Heart follows a young girl named Shizuku and her journey growing up. She likes reading and enjoys writing poems and stories. One day, she meets a boy, Seiji, who reads the same books as her and that’s how she starts to discover what she really likes and enjoys doing.
I feel so connected to our main character right away, probably because we both like the same things, but also because she feels so human. She’s confused of her future, of what she should be one day (I mean, I relate to that…). Because unlike Seiji who already knows his passion in crafting violins, Shizuku still hasn’t find her thing yet. The spark she would chase without hesitation.
Writing, is what ended up being hers.
Her writing is not perfect. There are still so much more she should learn. And that’s what great about it. The movie doesn’t end with Shizuku being this famous writer who outsells all her books. Instead, it ends with her, her imperfect writings, and her will to grow.
Heart speaks in a whisper. It’s the excitement of living. And you can hear them, only If You Listen Closely.
