A Silent Voice: The Movie
Parents say
Based on 3 reviews
Kids say
Based on 30 reviews
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A Silent Voice: The Movie
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A Lot or a Little?
The parents' guide to what's in this movie.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that A Silent Voice: The Movie is a 2016 coming-of-age anime in which a teen boy who mercilessly bullied a deaf girl when they were tweens tries to make amends. There are many scenes of bullying throughout the movie. Shoko, the deaf girl, is physically and verbally bullied until her mother transfers her to another school. Kids punch and kick her, call her names, and even repeatedly pull the hearing aid out of her ear (some blood) and break them. Other kids are physically and verbally bullied as well. There's an attempted suicide that results in a coma. Talk of suicide. Scenes of mourning during the funeral of one of the character's grandmothers. Occasional profanity from tweens and teens includes "a--hole," "s--tty," "bulls--t," "crap," "dumbass," "hell," and "douchebag."
Community Reviews
A great movie.
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What's the Story?
In A SILENT VOICE: THE MOVIE, a new girl has arrived in a sixth grade Japanese classroom. Her name is Shoko, she's deaf, and can only communicate with others by writing sentences in a notepad. Some of the students begin to bully and torment her, especially Shoya, the leader of a group of bullies. Shoya and the others do things like scream when they're directly behind her, make fun of how she talks, and steal and destory her hearing aids. Eventually, Shoko's mother transfers her to another school. Soon, Shoya becomes ostracized due to his bullying, and he finds that he can no longer look anyone in the eye. Mature enough to understand what he did to Shoko, Shoya seeks her out to try and make amends and befriend her. While they do become friends, Shoya finds that the journey to redemption is a rocky one. When things come to a potentially tragic point, Shoya must learn to regain his self respect, as Shoya, Shoko, and their friends grow every closer to adulthood.
Is It Any Good?
This is a beautiful anime that fearlessly explores uncomfortable topics. A Silent Voice: The Movie is a coming-of-age story in which a tween boy grows into adolescence trying to make amends for the hurt he caused a deaf girl due to his merciless bullying. Bullying, suicide, not fitting in, redemption -- these are all topics that the movie explores through this relatively (for anime) straightforward story. Of course, because it's anime, there's a healthy amount of sentimentality and melodrama, but these are more than offset by the stories of these young characters as they navigate the perils of fitting in, growing up, and learning from past mistakes.
It's a long movie, but, again, it does maintain a mostly straightforward story, unlike the "kitchen sink" story threads and knots that are a part of so many other anime movies. There are also so many gorgeous moments of animation, moments of lovely imagery. For those new to anime, this is a great place to start, and for those who are familiar, this belongs among the best of the genre. Overall, it strikes a near perfect balance of story, character, and visual style.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how bullying is conveyed in A Silent Voice: The Movie. Did it seem realistic? What does Shoya learn after he takes his bullying too far?
What does the movie say about redemption, of trying to make amends for the bad things someone has done in their past?
Does the movie's depiction of a deaf tween and teen seem realistic to you? Why or why not?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming: September 17, 2016
- Cast: Miya Irino, Sayori Hayami, Aoi Yûki
- Director: Naoko Yamada
- Studio: Shout! Factory
- Genre: Drama
- Topics: Brothers and Sisters, Friendship, High School, Middle School
- Run time: 130 minutes
- MPAA rating: NR
- Last updated: March 31, 2022
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