The STORY within this movie is seemingly well-paced and continued time and time again (Pun intended) to make me believe I understood something, only to be proven wrong. That is a good trait and means that the movie was not predicatble, yet still entertaining. Althought not as 'familyish' as most of Mamoru Hosoda's work, it is still an easy watch. The only quabble I had with it is just before the ending. I would've liked the anime to end with the same complication as it started off with. It too, could've been plausible, and a ten-fold more moving then it's current ending, however, it would've detracted even further from a 'family' anime :)
The ART, like in most of Mr. Hosuda's anime(s), is beautiful to look at. He continues to utilise seemingly normal-looking characters (Like in Summer Wars) to get away from the usual Anime-staple of stupid hair and aircraft-carrier sized swords. The background art almost looks like photoshopped real images which is good. There is no shortage of quality overall.
Throughtout the anime, the SOUND was enjoyable. Voice-acting flowed well with the animation and always seemed to convey the mood they were in with flawless modulations of voice and volume. It may have been my version though (A fansubbed version of the Blu-Ray edition) but I did get the occasional high-pitched whine during the voices. Although not a deal-breaker, it was noticeable, but again, I'll let it slide. The soundtrack also illustrated the emotions and feelings of those involved through it's joyour overtones and slow ballads, that really captivate the moment, and further enable the viewer to see what type of mood the scene is in.
CHARACTERs, is something that Mr. Hosuda's films builds heavily on, and works on character development throughout the movie. Makoto at the beginning of the movie, has a far different outlook at the end of the movie. The cast within the school, her auntie and her family really demonstrate the dissenting views on what they can understand of what's going on. There is a really moving moment when Makoto's little sister sees Makoto about to Time Leap, which she interprets to be Makoto commiting suicide because she ate her pudding. I could really feel the emotion as illustrated through the sound and animation.
I've been really into Anime-Movies lately, as they generally have a more definiative ending, and this movie follows through with that idea. The story was conclusive, and I found it very easy to watch, (although I still prefer "Summer Wars" for ease-of-watch.). The animation, characters and sound work together to make for an immersive experience and I highly recommend this.
I recommend you watch this now, because "Time Stops for No One."
