A Silent Voice (2017) Review

Naoko Yamada is the director of A Silent Voice, a movie that is based off a Japanese manga series written by Yoshitoki Oima in 2011. It tells the story of a grade school bully, Shoya Ishida, who torments a young girl, Shoko Nishimiya, that has a hearing disability. After trying to befriend the bully, she eventually decides to transfer to another school to avoid Shoya’s relentless pestering. The kids at school start to look at Shoya in a negative way and he becomes a victim of his own crime. People begin to pick on him instead and he is unable to connect with anybody on a personal level outside of his family. Years later, he decides to learn sign language, track Shoko down, and apologize for his contemptible actions.

A Silent Voice is a redemptive, coming-of-age story for a bully whose past is tenaciously haunting him. This story decides to break the norm and follow the bully’s point of view rather than his victim. It is so elegant in its presentation as the audience sides with Shoko through the entire film, yet we slowly begin to digest Shoya’s character and understand how compassionate he really is.

Following Shoya’s decision to make amends with Shoko, a glaring blue ‘X’ is visible on faces of those he is not close with. He finds it impossible to look people in the eye while conversing with him as he feels unworthy of an interaction with them. Shoya admits that he pushes people away, because he feels like he deserves punishment for his past actions. Yamada made an excellent decision to incorporate those X’s. It is a visual representation of what the characters are feeling and matches the tone of the story. It appears like what depression feels like. The slightest task such as talking with someone seems impossible.

For a feature that reaches a 129-minute runtime, there is never a dull moment. Sure, there are a few conversations between side characters that do not contribute immensely to the plot, but these interactions are consequential in some way. While a brisk pace allows the introduction of characters to be seamless and the audience to avoid boredom, it suffers at times to let heavy emotions settle properly. For example, scenes that feature hysterical crying strike the audience profoundly, yet it immediately transitions into the next scene. Sacrifices like quick pacing were necessary to capture the entire story, yet the movie does not suffer when it comes to building depth to side characters.

Yuzuru, Shoko’s sister, and Nagatsuka, Shoya’s friend, bring humor to the story in a way that supplements the luminous animation well. Yuzuru’s identity is in question as she initially tells Shoya that she is Shoko’s boyfriend. While it is initially a defense mechanism to push Shoya out of Shoko’s new life, it allows Shoya to level with her, build a close friendship, and get closer to Shoko. Nagatsuka did not know Shoya back in grade school, so his impressions of him are fresh and unbiased. Nagatsuka does not know that Shoya was capable of bulling someone with a hearing impairment, but his appreciation for Shoya stands for how far Shoya has evolved over the past few years.

One of my favorite aspects of this story was that it avoids falling into the “happy ending for everyone” pitfall. There are a few characters that are set in their ways and do not change their behavior regardless of the tragedy and conflict that surrounds them. It makes the story feel more genuine considering every character is purposefully not likeable.

A Silent Voice offers more thematically then what appears on the surface. This is a redemption story, but it touches on the importance of accepting yourself regardless of what you have done in the past. It is difficult to apologize but it is infinitely harder to forgive yourself. No matter how trivial or mundane life appears, the most important thing is to love who you are. The film approaches themes of social anxiety, suicide, and grief unashamedly as they are integral to tragedies humans face in real life. That embracing attitude gives this movie value and an identity of its own.

This movie tackles several sensitive themes and it successfully glues the plot together because of it. In fact, this story is so intuitive that it does not require dialogue. Its relatable themes, stunning visuals, and graceful music would make A Silent Voice an equally effective silent film. Facial expressions are powerful and never too euphoric or ambivalent. The settings at family homes and schools feel authentically inhabited, which adds to that realistic factor.

A Silent Voice persuades its audience to reflect upon how we treat those who are different than us through marvelous animation and recognizable themes. There are a few scenes that accurately depict suicide and bullying, which may upset those who have dealt with that. This movie takes those topics seriously, but it delivers hope to those who watch via a fresh and inventive way. It is a unique viewing experience that tugs at your heartstrings, but it is a visual life lesson that should motivate its audience to share love, not disdain.

Final Score: 8.5/10

A Silent Voice is currently streaming on Netflix.