In "5 Centimeters per Second" though, Shinkai takes those same themes and embeds them into a very ordinary premises: two initally close friends growing apart as the physical distance between them became larger and larger due to circumstances beyond their control. There are no fantasy or sci-fi gimmicks here; everything clicks together seamlessly and is for once believable. Because of this, "5 Centimeters per Second" is my favourite out of Shinkai's works. (Because I come from a scientific background, I will now proceed to efficiently express the title of this anime as "5 cm/s" for the remainder of the review.)
5 cm/s is split into three episodes. The first time round, I watched the anime as three separate episodes with breaks in between. I later rewatched it as a continuous movie, and found it worked much better, because the connections between the episodes came out more strongly, and the 3rd episode didn't seem so jarringly short.
The first episode, "Cherry Blossom", is an endearing tale of puppy love, and is the strongest segment of the movie. Not only does it sets up the premise and introduce Takaki and Akari, the main subjects of the story, it also establishes the main theme. It's in this episode that we learn the meaning of 5 cm/s - it's rumoured to be the speed at which cherry blossoms fall, which in turn is a metaphor for people slowly drifting apart, and those delicate, beautiful moments in life that seem to end all too soon.
The story begins with the Takaki and Akari already separated. The narrative interlaces events from the past, when the two were classmates as well as the closest of friends in elementary school, and the present, in which Takaki, who is about to move even further away, gets on the train to visit Akari, possibly for the last time. The entwining narrative is further supplemented by unconventional dialogue made up of Akari's letters to Takaki during their separation, and Takaki's introspective responses and reflections. In this way, the initially fragmented picture becomes increasingly clear as the episode progresses.
When it comes to setting the mood, I generally find the audio to be a more important component than the visuals. However, 5 cm/s showed me this isn't always the case. Though the wistful music and sombre narration did much to enhance the experience, the art plays at least a big a part. The sceneries are magnificent, with ones such as cherry blossom filled spring and desolate, snowy landscapes helping to invoke emotions like the soft glow of nostalgia and feelings of loneliness and despair. Sometimes, less is more; the beauty and sense of poetry may also be prevalent in other Shinkai works that I've seen, but it's only here in this most simplistic of scenarios that the aforementioned qualities truly gain substance. The story may just be about a long and dull train journey, but it's a journey that's charged with anxiety.
The second episode "Cosmonaut" shows Takaki in high school, but the story is actually told from the point of view of a classmate, Kanae, who happens to have a crush on him and is looking for an opportunity to confess.
Perhaps the most remarkable thing about "Cosmonaut" is that it somehow manages to push the visuals up a further notch. The most beautiful of every day scenery - red-gold sunsets, clouds blown across a dazzling blue sky - are selected, and their brilliance captured in the astonishing artwork. Despite the lack of sci-fi/fantasy elements, Shinkai still found a way to lift the restrictions on his imagination, bringing forth flashes of surreal imagery breathtaking in their outlandish colours and unearthly beauty. If the age rating of movies took into account scenery pr0n, then this scenery hentai of an anime would no doubt be classed as an 18.
Though the story of "Cosmonaut" seems like a mostly independent segment, viewing it as part of the whole movie strengthens certain elements within it and helps to give a sense of overarching purpose to the movie. Through this episode, we begin to get a picture of how Takaki lived his life after being separated from Akari, and of his constant pining for something that's beyond his reach.
The picture becomes complete in the final episode which shares the title of the movie. This episode is a lot shorter than the others. It features Takaki and Akari all grown up, and takes a glimpse into their respective lives.
At the heart of the episode is a chance meeting at a railway crossing. There's a montage at the end which rudely kicks in and disrupts the flow of the narrative. The topic of the song used in the montage is very appropriate, but the song's loudness, or at least the relative loudness of its introduction, contrasts poorly with the understated mood. Also, I don't think it added much value, since the movie had already said everything it needed to say up to that point. I think Shinkai REALLY wanted to use the song for its relevant lyrics, and ended up nailing it on as part of an un-needed montage. As the awful montage comes to an end though, we are treated to a most meaningful ending that resolved the earlier scene at the crossing. This scene may look simple, but it's actually representative of the very core of what the whole movie is about, and it's just the perfect ending for 5 cm/s.
Other than the montage, the movie does have a few other issues, mostly to do with the characters. Firstly, the design of the characters are a bit lacking, especially compared to the level of detail found in the scenery. This complaint also extends to the personality of the characters themselves - they can seem a little flat and overly pensive. Takaki, being the central focus of the movie, suffers from this in particular. Apart from his tendency to brood, he seems to be almost devoid of any other personality traits; he feels too much like a plain vessel created soley for the housing of the melancholy feelings in the movie. As a result, rather than being character driven like it should be, 5 cm/s feels more emotionally driven.
Still, these flaws aren't too glaring because of how short the movie is. Taking everything into account, 5 cm/s is still a very fine movie. And that's coming from someone who's not a big fan of Shinkai's works.
