What made classic Studio Ghibli films so great and attractive were the particularly quirky traits within each movie: a moving castle, an aerial broomstick, a hot spring town occupied by living spirits, etc. Miyazaki's passion and imagination, his meticulousness and his tolerance only for perfection burn through the screen to create fiery, inspiring experiences; along with the help of Joe Hisaishi, the final product is an unforgettable, lifelong memory. Makoto Shinkai checked off all the boxes in which a great animated movie might possess with Your Name, his magnum opus, but unfortunately he has struggled to separate his new films from his past. Make no mistake though, this is a self-inflicted wound. Shinkai's films are all much too similar to one another. You cannot step into the shoes that Hayao Miyazaki once occupied by recycling the same ideas over and over and over and over and over... From 5 Centimeters Per Second to Suzume no Tojimari, only minor differences separate these films and the overlapping themes are abundant in number. I can't help but think that Makoto Shinkai is a man obsessed with shots of purple, starry skies, romantic relationships with ethically questionable beginnings, rain, and completely unrelatable teenage characters because quite literally all of his movies each revolve around these things. I forgot about the shots on the subway when the MC travels from a rural area of Japan to an urban area (which is pretty much always Tokyo) after running away from home to go save the person they met and fell in love with just a few days ago. Yeah, all of these things are present in this movie too, btw.
Suzume no Tojimari is a very appealing film aesthetically, oftentimes I would find myself immersed in its beauty: but that was to be expected from a Shinkai film. If I only wanted to admire beautiful art/animation, I can sate that desire by watching one of many other shows with appealing aesthetics. This is not a trait reserved for Shinkai films only, yet this is also Makoto Shinkai's one and only saving grace as a filmmaker. He is a weak writer, which at this point is irremediable because of the clear limits bound to his imagination and passion as a creative mind. There is so much potential and space to grow from the foundations that Shinkai has set but there seems to be no effort to diverge from the norm, which is honestly a rational decision from a business standpoint. I'm sure most people can enjoy watching this movie just because its looks so impressive but from a critical perspective, Suzume no Tojimari was a massive let-down for those of us wanting more from Shinkai.
