You'll be happy to know the spirit of great Japanese animation lives on. The animation is beautiful, the script manages to avoid typical Japanese cliche, and the story takes some shocking turns without relying on trite misery or emotional manipulation. You may balk at the thought, but the paths of Shoya and Shoko are explored in their later high school lives, both being treated sympathetically. Instead of showing the bullied person's return to strength, it shows the traumatised bully (and his cohorts) as he seeks to recover from the horror he put Shoko through. A Silent Voice is a sensitive film which tackles themes of disability, bullying and mental health in young people with compassion and understanding. This movie then takes a different approach. Perceived to be receiving special treatment, and being different (a crime in Japanese society), Shoko is fair game for any number of cruelties. Egged on by his school mates, Shoya bullies the newly arrived Shoko, who happens to be deaf. At times life affirming in its quieter moments, at other times shocking in its depiction of Japanese teen life. A Silent Voice (or "The Shape of a Voice") is a great addition to the "slice of life" anime of modern times.
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