Storyline
Mitsuha is the daughter of the mayor of a small mountain town. She's a straightforward high school girl who lives with her sister and her grandmother and has no qualms about letting it be known that she's uninterested in Shinto rituals or helping her father's electoral campaign. Instead she dreams of leaving the boring town and trying her luck in Tokyo. Taki is a high school boy in Tokyo who works part-time in an Italian restaurant and aspires to become an architect or an artist. Every night he has a strange dream where he becomes...a high school girl in a small mountain town.
Trivia:
The first anime film not made by Studio Ghibli or Hayao Miyazaki to gross 10 Billion Yen at the Japanese box office (about US$98 million). See more »
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User Review
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Rating: 10/10
Kimi no Nawa is up there with the quality of work Studio Ghibli makes.
It's a journey in a world breathing with atmosphere, mystery, and
visual wonder. A journey about growth and resilience in the face of
overwhelming odds. A journey about human emotion that transcends space
and time, as we watch our two protagonists struggle relentlessly
against fate. A journey that might just be one of the most captivating
anime movie experiences I've had in years.
Director Makoto Shinkai's artistry is something people tend to love or
hate, but this film is solid proof to all of his disdainful critics
that his movies were never "just eye candy". They explore the nature of
life and relationships in quiet ways rarely seen or discussed, which is
why most of them are not fast-paced or action packed...and why they are
so beautiful. But even if you're not a fan of this kind of style with
its major use of metaphorical imagery and mixture of subtle and
explosive emotions, definitely give Kimi no Nawa a chance. This is by
far his most ambitious, original movie in many ways. For instance,
there's an actual mystical element to the story apart from his previous
films that are set purely on realism. The pacing is a lot faster and
intense. There's a surprising amount of humor in the script, making the
chemistry between the characters more light-hearted and comically
entertaining than expected. All of this is done through a narrative
vision so emotional, so brilliantly realized, that I'm pretty sure
everyone at the Anime Expo world premiere screening was tearing up,
including me.
Without spoiling, what mainly drives this film's story is the dynamics
of our main characters' relationship. The way these two interact is
just so unique and lovable. The premise itself allows them to bond on a
more personal level, far more intriguing than the usual teenage love
story where boy meets girl, boy likes girl, boy gets girl. Eventually,
you become so invested in their strange relationship, that when all the
action goes down, it's no longer just suspenseful - it's almost
heartbreaking.
Editing and sound design play a HUGE role in this immersion. There's
rarely a single dull moment because of how gripping and emotionally
driven the timing of every cut is. The sound design combined with a
beautiful music score is outstanding - subtle and moving when creating
atmosphere, powerful at times of dramatic conflict. In fact, the same
can be said for pretty much all of the visual aesthetics - which if I
haven't already mentioned, are amazing. This is a prime example of
astonishingly jaw-dropping animation combined with powerful
storytelling.
Kimi no Nawa is not just any anime movie. It has the potential to be
viewed and studied as art cinema. It's so beautifully crafted and
meticulously detailed, I feel like I didn't even cover 80% of its
greatness in this review. To do that, I would have to make a spoiler
analysis review, and to do that, I would probably have to see the movie
again, maybe a couple more times before I can fully appreciate this
nearly flawless masterpiece.
I know I sound like I'm fanboying, but as a film student and anime fan
for many years, I'm being fully honest here - if Director Makoto
Shinkai keeps this kind of quality up, he is going to be an even bigger
name in the anime industry for years to come. Remember Your Name long
enough until it's available in your country, if you're not seeing it in
Japan theaters. Because trust me, you're not going to forget it. 10/10
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