Story: 9
Art: 10
Sound: 9
Character: 8
Enjoyment: 9
Overall: 9-9.5
Story: Going into this without knowing anything about the movie; not even the trailer, I was kind of confused from the first 10-20 minutes until it became clear what was going on with their bodies. Both the MC’s come from different backgrounds, girl from a village/ small town and boy from the big city of Tokyo. Without spoiling the movie entirely, the film takes a huge turn somewhere around the middle where it becomes more than just an animated Freaky Friday.
Art: Even while watching this on medium-low quality I was amazed by how immersive the art-style is. The amount of great overhead shots of the busy city of Tokyo to the large crater-esque shrine was gorgeous sight to behold. There is one scene in particular, with the comet, that completely made me forget that I was watching something animated and not a laser light show in a planetarium.
Sound: There are several songs from this movie that are a must-have for me. Normally I don’t compliment an animated movie for its music but Kimi no Na wa did a smashing job. I found the montage/ recap style music to be great and helped summarize what was going on and in addition to that the editing to the music was phenomenal to go along with what was going on in the screen.
Character: I won’t include character design in art because the atmosphere and world-building in its own deserved a 10/10. Now for character design I will say that some of the characters look a bit generic and halfway through I thought to myself Taki kind of looks like the MC from Konosubarashi. Out of everything in this film I will say that the characters are the weakest point but their traits, friends and personalities make them relatable and appeal to viewers. For the better half of the movie, the MC’s are mostly doing regular student or after-school part time worker activates that most anime watchers have seen in other shows.
Enjoyment: As someone who is not big on the school/ drama genres, I was a bit hesitant to give this movie a shot. However, the school tag is not so relevant and aside from the main characters being in school/ around it; it has no huge implications to the story. As for drama, the family ties each character had, to their respective families, played a huge part in getting the viewer invested. I found myself feeling both happy and sad whenever a character was being pelted with bad news/ going through tough times. I also enjoyed all the small chit-chat and conversations Mitsuha had with her sister or grandmother.
Overall I found the film to blow-away any expectations I had from the first few minutes of viewing. It will make you laugh/ giggle, cry, feel happy, cry, then sad, cry some more.
Should you watch it?
Do you enjoy sad romance movies?
Do you enjoy movies about time/ space?
Look for relatable characters in movies?
Is art style and sound something you look for in a move?
Looking for a movie you can’t explain to friends without having them see it with you?
Enjoy crying?
If any of these were yes/ maybe, then please take a seat, get some popcorn, tissues and maybe some friends to enjoy it with. This is certainly a film you don’t just watch once.
Despite coming out recently, as I write this review, I’d consider it my favorite if not top contender for favorite anime movie.
Remembering names can be difficult.
