5cm Per Second is the latest installment in Shinkai’s works, and in no way does it disappoint. The movie excels in nearly all departments. The animation is razor sharp, and at times, literally stunning. One can’t help but ask, “That was drawn?” This beauty no doubt helps the anime, but the characters and plot are enough to stand on their own. The music flows smoothly from scene to scene, especially the movie’s theme, “One More Chance, One More Time” by Yamazaki Masayoshi. This song is also the theme to Moon and Cabbage; Shinkai chose such a famous song because it helped evoke images of everyday occurrences.
Arguably the movies greatest strength is the beauty it captures in everyday objects. The aforementioned animation quality truly shines in both the urban and countryside Japan. The pacing is slow, the dialogue is raw and when they mix with the stunning visuals, the overall portrait is one of beauty. Each distinct sound brings back countless memories of summers long past and romantic interests removed. Seasons flow from one to the next, capturing perfectly the emotions that each carries. The poetic beauty of the internal dialogue is rivaled by few anime.
The story is clearly Realist, with a pinch of Romanticism and its what makes 5cm so extraordinary. Typically, Realism makes me cringe; the images that Realism usually bring forth are not pleasent. 5cm on the other hand, focuses of love and relationships, always allowing for enough symbolism and imagery to lighten the mood. While the movie is clearly realist, it remains a story of deep love and an even deeper hope.
It’s this hope that redeems the movie. Throughout the duration of the movie, there is a looming sense of longing. It’s hard to truly capture with words, but the movie is both painfully sad, but at the same time incredibly comforting to watch if you, as the viewer, have experience what the protagonists have. The pain becomes your pain, the desires become your desires, and each scent actually pervades you. It’s incredibly vicarious and this is what makes Shinkai so successful; he truly has a grasp upon human emotion, experience, and memory. Powerful desires, deep seated memories and cool summer nights long past will flutter back into your mind as watching the film, allowing you to relive past moments of painful bliss.
Regardless of if you watch anime or not, 5cm Per Second is a movie that everyone should witness. Sit down, be patient, absorb each moment, revel in the beauty in each object presented before you, listen to the raw sounds and reflect upon your own life. And maybe, just maybe, the movie will move you enough to notice the beauty around you.
