Josee to Tora to Sakana-tachi

Equipped with his passion for diving and admiration for marine biology, university student Tsuneo Suzukawa tries his best to juggle several part-time jobs to earn enough money to study abroad. But one night, in a fateful accident, he meets a girl in a wheelchair, driving his current path into a detour.

The girl, Kumiko—who prefers to be called "Josee"—initially comes off as rude. Tsuneo, however, is then convinced by Josee's grandmother to take on the paid job to be Josee's caretaker. Despite being annoyed with her bossy demeanor, Tsuneo sees the opportunity to save more funds to support his academic dream. Nonetheless, after putting up with Josee's behavior for some time, Tsuneo tries to quit, only to discover Josee's dreams of traversing the outside world—to experience a life free from her crippling condition.

Changing his mind, Tsuneo decides to accompany Josee in exploring the wonders that the world has to offer. Through their time together, the two begin to realize that the traits that bind them may be vital toward fulfilling their respective aspirations.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Josee Main

Kiyohara, Kaya Japanese

Suzukawa, Tsuneo Main

Nakagawa, Taishi Japanese

Ninomiya, Mai Supporting

Miyamoto, Yume Japanese

Matsuura, Hayato Supporting

Okitsu, Kazuyuki Japanese

Kishimoto, Kana Supporting

Lynn Japanese

Yamamura, Chizu Supporting

Matsutera, Chiemi Japanese

Kondou Supporting

Obana, Kanji Japanese

Mizushima Supporting

Uchida, Yuuya Japanese

Manager Nishida Supporting

Moriyama, Shintarou Japanese

Fujita Supporting

Urayama, Jin Japanese

Cook, Justin Producer

Suzuki, Mari Producer

Mukai, Kouichirou Producer

Kasahara, Shuuzou Producer

Reviews

Apr 18, 2025

morriganiii

Recommended

This might be the nicest movie I’ve ever watched.

It’s not necessarily the kind of story that stays with you for years (looking at you, Kimi no Na wa), but there’s something about it that really stood out.

The plot isn’t unique per se. It follows a familiar romance/drama setup, with moments you might see coming. Still, it’s one of the most moving portrayals of human emotion I’ve ever seen. It feels incredibly genuine in a way that’s rare. It kind of makes you feel good about the world. The characters are charming and enjoyable to watch, the music is nice, and the movie is generally beautiful.

Reviewer’s Rating: 10

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Mar 23, 2025

Bee-ku

Mixed Feelings

Honestly I didn't like it, I thought when I was half way through the movie I was going to get caught up in the story and they just made me angry with what happened to Tsuneo. Personally I hate characters with “tsundere” personalities and I really tried to empathize with the main character, but I failed, I hated her until I saw that there were changes in her, I think the only character I liked was Tsuneo's friend, he was the only one that never made me angry and I liked that he proved to be a good friend despite his questionable personality. Despite hating ... the characters, I must admit that Bones never disappoints me in terms of character design and drawing style.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Mar 27, 2025

GTORI

Not Recommended

Josee to Tora to Sakana-tachi is an extremely underwhelming experience. The uninspiring narrative, plain characters, and absolute spam of clichés all culminate in sheer mundanity. After 90 minutes of watching absolutely nothing happen, the movie ends in an incredibly abrupt manner—just to really drive home the fact that it completely wasted the viewer's time. Plot-wise, it's predictable enough to make you feel like a prophet, while simultaneously managing to get you as emotionally attached to the story as Buddha is to worldly desires.

I usually praise shows when the dialogue feels realistic, but in this movie, the trick to its realism is sheer awkwardness—not in an ... entertaining way, but in an... odd way. If I wanted to watch people feeling awkward, I'd just go make small talk with a gas station employee. There's literally no incentive to be invested in what the characters talk about. You're given very little reason to care about their circumstances, and any dramatic effect mostly comes from the fact that there's a girl in a wheelchair.

Studio Bones did a phenomenal job; the movie is undeniably pleasant to look at—but that’s literally the only thing worth noting. It feels like the writers sketched out a rough timeline during a brainstorming session and, instead of fleshing it out with actual depth, just skipped that step entirely and went straight to production with an unfinished manuscript.

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

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	Poll: Josee to Tora to Sakana-tachi Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ) Whateverlife - Apr 12, 2021	232 replies	by Niveen_Sleem »» Mar 3, 2:47 PM
	Please Help me find this manga which I don't know the name but it has a wheelchair girl Hickykissy - Nov 7, 2024	28 replies	by ShadowIsKool97 »» Nov 14, 2024 10:08 AM
	Reason behind josee disability apexvoid - Aug 21, 2024	13 replies	by polnalyubvi »» Aug 24, 2024 2:19 AM
	Poll: Which version of the story is better? Old_School_Akira - Jun 18, 2021	17 replies	by CLModerno »» Aug 1, 2024 8:18 PM
	Question about the ending mechian - Dec 24, 2020	29 replies	by RobertBobert »» Jun 17, 2024 12:00 AM