Makoto Shinkai's most recent work is something quite new for him. The main criticisms of his works has as far as I can tell been the character designs being to simplistic and rough, as well as all his three longer works being quite similar. Though I would contend the latter point, it's certain that Hoshi wo Ou Kodomo is different, in both aspects. It would seem that Shinkai has moved away from his tragic love stories with sci-fi elements and to something more Miyazaki-inspired. But does he succeed? (OK, I guess this isn't much of a cliffhanger considering my scores.)
Story: Our heroine, Asuna, lives a relatively normal, albeit busy life somewhere on the countryside, until she one day gets attacked by a strange beast and saved by a mysterious boy. This leads to an amazing adventure in the strange underworld Agartha. Sure, this doesn't sound like anything new, but the progression of the story is quite interesting, unpredictable and exciting. All the characters have their own stories and agendas, and the film manages to involve us in all of them without losing focus. The climax is extremely moving in the way only Shinkai can manage, and nothing ever feels unnecessary or forced.
Art: Art is certainly one aspect where one have high expectations of Shinkai, but he delivers anything one could want and more. Takayo Nishimura, the man behind the character designs in 5 cm/Second is back, but Hoshi wo Ou Kodomo looks distinctly different. The designs are still relatively simple, but bursting with life and charm. I would compare them to the designs found in Hayao Miyazaki's films, which certainly seems a plausible influence. In this way, Shinkai has ridden himself of what some people thought to be the weak point in his aesthetic, while still keeping true to the relatively simple designs he's always used.
The rest of the art is amazing. The backgrounds, whether they're clouds and stars or forests and plains, are breathtakingly beautiful, and what's particularly interesting about Hoshi wo Ou Kodomo compared to Shinkai's other works is the setting. While he certainly has used nature before, there has usually been more focus on cities or space. In this film, both the Japanese countryside with mountains and forests, as well as the fantastic world of Agartha with its plains and ruins, are brought to life splendidly.
Animation-wise there is nothing to criticize. The animation flows smoothly and beautifully, and Shinkai certainly knows how to work the angles and perspectives to get the most out of the scenes. This is very evident in many of the action scenes, and I was particularly impressed by a swordfight during sunset, the amazing colors of the background framing an intense burst of life with the "camera" flying all over the place, creating an incredible impression.
Sound: Tenmon is back, and he's better than ever. Utilizing a range of instruments including his famous piano pieces as well as some wonderful violins, his music set the mood for the film perfectly. What struck me the most was the way the music could change mood in a heartbeat without seeming out of place, particularily evident in a scene where you first get the "hero riding out to save the princess" mood, and when the scene shifts to the damsel in distress, as it were, it seamlessly changes to an intense "our friends are in great peril" theme.
On the voice actor side, Shinkai has managed to score some very talented people. All the three main characters are quite big names, and Kazuhiko Inoue's role as Asura's teacher, as well as Hisako Kanemoto as Asura herself both excel, and really do their part in making their respective characters believable. Miyu Irino as Shin and Shun is also a very fitting choice. However, one of the most impressive voice actors was Rina Hidaka as Mana, a character who doesn't use words, but conveys all her feelings with random sounds. A challenging role to get right, but Mana's character turned out perfect.
Character: Asuna, our main character, is a very busy girl. She lost her father at a young age, and her mother is very busy at work, so she does a lot of chores, while at the same time keeping up her perfect grades and finding time to climb the nearby mountain to listen to the radio her father left her. As the story progresses, she is faced with quite a lot of hardships, and one can see her progress through dealing with them. She is not quite sure why she's on the journey she ends up on, and seeing her discovering more about herself as she faces new challenges is quite moving.
Morisaki is Asuna's new teacher, and one of the main catalysts of the adventure. He starts out mysterious, but one quickly learns of his goal and the lengths he will go to reach it. He's cold and blunt, but though he will not give up on his goal, he is also considerate of others, and his relationship with Asuna develops in quite interesting ways.
Shun is a mysterious boy from Agaruta who, like Morisaki, starts out mysterious and cold. We learn that he's a conflicted and confused boy trying to find his place in the world, and he develops greatly during the course of the movie, finding great courage within himself.
There's also a great supporting cast, such as Asuna's mother, who's very busy, but still manages to care a great deal about Asuna even after her husband's death. The previously mentioned Mana, as well as Shin, are also great characters for their purpose, but the one that really sticks out is Mimi, Asuna's cat, who follows her through the journey and whose vivid personality really makes one attached to it.
Overall: Though I'm a huge fan of his other works, it's great seeing Shinkai going in a new direction, this time aiming at a much larger group of people, from children to adults. The similarity to Miyazaki's adventure films is certainly present, in particular there were quite a few parallels to Mononoke-hime, but he still manages to keep his own unique style, including the extremely emotional scenes that he excels at. I certainly look forward to more Shinkai works, and would recommend Hoshi wo Ou Kodomo to anyone, regardless of whether or not you liked his earlier works.
