During my free time last Saturday, a movie on Netflix caught my eye. I wasn’t in the mood of hesitating so I just decided to take a look at it. Just before the ending song came on, I started to realize how astonished I was by the plots and conclusion. It was so brilliantly made that my heart was warmed up by it in seconds when it started. The movie was able to successfully drag me into different scenes and feel the emotions the characters are feeling. It was also able to make me relate to my childhood memories and how they shaped my current identity.
“A Silent Voice”
The movie is called “A Silent Voice”, made by the Japanese director Naoko Yamada. It takes you through a short journey between 2 characters who’re fighting against the deadly force of being diagnosed with mental health disorders. “A Silent Voice” captures a vivid image of a coming of age story that relates to social anxiety, uncontrolled fear and guilt/regret in the past.
This movie takes place in Ogaki, a small city located in the center of Japan. This is the hometown of the 2 main characters, Shouko Nishimiya and Shoyo Ishida. Ishida first met Nishimiya in grade 6, but his thoughts back then were naïve and couldn’t make relevant choices which caused many negative problems to her.
Nishimiya was born with a disability in the ear, which made it difficult for her to hear. Her disability made many students in her grade 6 class take advantage of the issue and started to treat her unfairly. 6th grade was also the beginning to their unforgettable past as for, Ishida’s choices effected both of them negatively. From stealing and wrecking her hearing aids to physically injuring her, Ishida’s action made Nishimiya have a really hard time at school. This also forced her to transfer away into a different school, and this serious act of abonnement made Ishida truly recognize his mistake.
“I intended to listen to your voice, but it really was nothing but intentions” – Shoya Ishida
Not only Ishida recognized his mistake, all his friends and family did too. And this act of recognition led to disagreements, accusations and broken friendships. As these negative problems all entered Ishida’s life without a warning, he slowly started to become diagnosed with depression without realizing it. His mind couldn’t take in existence of others and in his perspective, everyone around him has the letter “X” marked on their faces. Indicating that they were not important to his life. This caused a form of negative isolation to Ishida and he was detached to the social crowd.
“Things would have been so much better back then… If we had heard each other’s voices” – Shouya Ishida
It wasn’t until high school when they were able to meet again and Ishida wanted to truly apologize to Nishimiya as for, he was able to recognize his mistake. But life is unfair and not everything goes as planned. Worst problems started to arise and Ishida didn’t have the ability to stop or control it. This dragged Ishida deeper down into the dark hole of depression. But luckily, with the help of close friends and family, Ishida was able to climb back onto his feet to face reality again. And Ishida was also able to change his current lifestyle into something more comfortable for him and others, as well as making different amendments to life and changing the way he acted in front of others.
“There is nobody to give your life meaning! You must grasp it yourself.” – Yoshitoki Ōima,
Overall, I think that this movie is able to help many teenagers and young adults overcome and recognize their true value in life. Not everything will go perfectly and everyone will face their own obstacles. But what’s most important is how to overcome these issues in the best and most appropriate way. Even if it requires scarification of certain important things.
This is such a good post! as a fan of the anime/movie this is a very well summed up!! can’t wait to see more of your writing