As the title says, be prepared for a lot of dialogue. Inside the romance genre, not all stories follow the same pattern neither have the same setting (boy meets girl, girl likes boy) and not always this love will be reciprocate. While the majority of romances have heartwarming kiss scenes, love declarations and a "physical" interaction between characters, this other kind of setting chooses the conversations and thoughts to conduce the story.
From one of the best storytellers of drama/romance anime industry, 'Kotonoha no Niwa' mix a bit of poetry and symbolism with one of those 'summer love' stories. Creating a storyline that is easier to follow when compared to others Makoto Shinkai's movies, but somehow lacks a bit of dept.
Once I saw this interview with Shinkai, it was just after the screen of Hoshi no Koe, back then, he was still working alone with few resources and was doing the animation and storyline by himself. He said he wanted to focus his stories on the people. Their feelings, expectations, thoughts, etc...
I'm glad to see he's still following that path, and this was sure a great movie, however, I still can't compare it to 5cm/s or The Promised Place. It would be easier to relate Kotonoha no Niwa with Hoshi wo ou Kodomo, his latest work before this one, since in both he inverted his way of storytelling. They have a linear progression and the story flows in a way that bring characters together. It's the complete opposite of the plot from his previously movies. Back then, there were two main characters really close and the time and external consequences would trow them far away from each other.
If you haven't watched those movies I mentioned, the paragraph above probably didn't make any sense to you.
Summing up, what I want to explain is that this new concept reduces the drama in general from the whole story, making it look like an average romance. That deep storyline development with a strong focus on characters emotions, which was -seriously- the big difference between his works and Studio Ghibli movies, is suddenly gone.
The story starts with our male protagonist, a 15 years old average high-school boy. He follows a normal routine and commute to school everyday by train. When it rains, he takes the opportunity to unwind a little and make a detour through a park. Where, he will occasionally met the female lead and this is were the story begins. Anything beyond it, would be a spoiler.
And... basically, this is it. Honestly, not the best background for a romance, neither the kind of plot I'd expect from Shinkai. Like that, the symbolism on this movie is minimal when compared to other of his stories -even the symbolism itself been on of his best characteristics-.
No matter how you look at it, it's a very minimalistic plot. One might say this was the intention, to keep things simple, in order to retract "ordinary" people, but if so, why not pick a common situation, not this unusual meeting during a rainy day, in a public park, between two strangers.
Like many others Shinkai movies, the time and space works only as background for the story. The progression of the plot is linear, there are few time marks of it. The focus, like said before, are the characters themselves and the way they interact with the environment will be one way of linking the dots of the plot.
That said, the scenery plays an important role in the movie. The partnership between Shinkai and ComixWave already created beautiful scenarios, and this time it was surprising as always. The amount of details you won't see in other movies and the singular pallet of colors that changes according to the mood of the scene, makes artwork one of this movie best aspects. Even if the story is plain, the artwork manages to transmit a feeling of calmness and even make some scenes more emotional then they would end up being with a normal animation.
Dozens of different styles and techniques allied with the most recent technology makes of Kotonoha no Niwa one of the most beautiful and realistic movie from the recent years, the true definition of "scenery porn".
This is something you need to watch in order to understand. I would write paragraphs and more paragraphs about it and wouldn't be enough. If only every anime were cautious with the little details like this.
Sometimes, music can transform a simple scene into the saddest moment you've ever seen. Lots of producers noticed that already, but unfortunately from times to times you bump with those animes that overuse emotional songs at inappropriate moments, a.k.a. tear jerking stories.
If you ever wondered where is that perfect balance between calm, sad and happy melodies, this movie is a great example of perfection. The OST is strong, beautiful and even nostalgic at times. Arranged with a precision of an concert. Mainly composed by piano pieces, the only vocal piece appears at the end, like a closure for the story before the final scene and the ending credits -Yes, just like 5cm/s, Hoshi no Koe, The Promissed Place....-
In the end, I'd say this is a enjoyable movie.
I give it an 8. In respect of Artwork and Soundtrack, that are indeed outstanding.
It's indeed something I would recommend. Would recommend for those who are new at the genre, or those that dislike deep romances or sad dramas. For Shinkai fans that had huge expectations like me, all I can say is: We shall wait for the next one.
Sadly, this is the same sentence I used to describe Hoshi wo ou Kodomo. I don't know what happened, but I wish Shinkai would return to his path of storytelling, so the day I can tag his movie as a masterpiece comes again.
It's was like eating a tasty cake, but having someone steal your cherry, that you kept for the end.
