A Silent Voice (Blu-ray) (Normal Edition) (Japan Version) Blu-ray Region All

A Silent Voice is a thought-provoking tale about a bully who finds meaning in life through his journey of redemption. Elementary schooler Ishida Shoya finds some fun in his boring life by bullying hearing-impaired classmate Nishimiya Shoko. When Shoko transfers to another school, his brutish behavior comes to light and all his friends and classmates become hostile to him. Getting the taste of being bullied, Shoya comes to realize Shoko's hopelessness and desperation. After years of isolation at school, Shoya decides to apologize to Shoko and make amends for what he did in the past.

Shoko is a strong character who always faces hardships with a positive attitude. Well aware of what others think of her, the sensitive girl tries her best to befriend her classmates. However, no one understands the sorrow and loneliness behind her big smile. Shoko doesn't have many lines but she perfectly embodies the power of non-verbal communication with her meaningful facial expressions and body language. Though she seldom talks about her thoughts, her inner world is more or less reflected in Shoya's growth journey, which provides a refreshing perspective on the much talked-about social problem from a bully-turned-victim's point of view.

Rather than using the Japanese kanji character for "sound" (声), the author wisely adopts the traditional Chinese character (聲) – which includes radicals meaning "ear" (耳) and "hand" (又) – in the self-explanatory Japanese title "The Shape of Sound" (聲の形) to highlight the importance of listening and non-verbal language such as gestures in effective communication. Sound is the main medium of communication. However, suffering from hearing impairment, Shoko experiences sound in a different way: sound not only can be heard, but also can be seen and felt. Apart from blindly believing in what others say, people should learn to feel from the bottom of heart.

Feeling rejected by society, the two desperate lonely souls eventually realize the real meaning of life when they find love and care from each other. Though the seven-volume manga is drastically cut into a two-hour anime film, with its painfully realistic portrayal of teenage life, the adaptation sticks closely to the original's core messages about self-discovery and redemption, and raises awareness of youth mental health.