To call Shinkai's works the "gold standard" for animation is actually understating how brilliant they are, and it's on full display in this movie. The absolutely stunning and elegant lighting and reflection effects, the graceful, beautiful camera angles, the absolutely enormous, lush color palette... This anime is a visual orgasm.
My sole gripe with the film, and perhaps this is just my personal taste as opposed to an actual flaw, is its length. It's quite short. The story didn't feel rushed or incomplete, which is really impressive given the running time, but for me personally as a viewer I need a little more time with the characters than what I got to really connect with them and get hit in the feels. I feel like with just another 20 to 30 minutes of character development this would have been a 10/10 masterpiece.
The ending of this anime, as is often the case in Shinkai works, is emotionally heavy and impactful. The more I rewatch it the more it hits me. It's truly a touching scene and it's very well acted.
I definitely liked the movie overall and it's a very high quality piece of art. I simply wish it had been a tad longer to really rope me in and tug at my heart strings as opposed to merely making me smile and be appreciative. I'd definitely recommend giving this a watch if you're a Shinkai fan. If you've never watched any of his movies before perhaps I'd start with Your Name and come back to this, but it's a lovely movie all things considered. :)
OBJECTIVE RATING- 8.5-9.5
PERSONAL ENJOYMENT RATING- 9
