I found that its quite difficult to review this movie as its more of an experience than anything else, I feel that anything I say about it won’t do the film justice, but I’ll try!
PLOT: The film is divided into three distinct sections each with their own theme and title. Oukashou is the 1st arc and it introduces the two central characters Akari and Touno who are both 13 at this stage, the main theme here is distance and is set in Spring and Winter. Dialogue is minimum as the director prefers to let visuals, thoughts and letters do most of the story-telling – but this arc is seeped in emotion as we watch Akari & Touno deal with their separation, reunion and then their 2nd separation. Its really very touching – the only minor complaint I had was that I felt that perhaps the two were a bit young to be having such complex feelings – but that’s just me nit-picking.
The next arc is entitled Cosmonaut and aptly this segment deals with space and is set mostly in summer. Akari doesn’t feature much in this part and instead a new character called Sumida is introduced. At this stage the characters are in their final year of high school and there is much more dialogue, mainly from Sumida as she relates her perspective on the central relationship of the movie. This part is quite sad but also very uplifting with lots of symbolic imagery and serves as a good bridge between the 1st and 3rd arcs.
The final arc is named for the movie 5cm per second, and is both the shortest arc and the most poignant. Here the characters are adults, but saying much about the content will spoil everything. This arc is almost entirely void of dialogue, instead there its almost like a music video. The setting comes back to winter and ends in Spring and I found this arc very moving and an excellent end to a wonderful film.
ANIMATION: Not a single fault can be found in the animation for this film. Mikoto Shinkai is renowned for his stunning animation and 5cm per Second is a perfect example of this workmanship. Every single frame is a joy to behold, be it the falling snow in Oukashou, the starry skies of Cosmonaut or the cherry blossoms of the final arc – every thing is a visual feast. Character designs are simple and realistic ( no green hair or OTT costumes here ). Nothing I can really say will do the visuals justice, you just have to see for yourself.
MUSIC & VOICE ACTING: The score is beautiful. Full of sweeping piano it enhances the mood of each scene perfectly – its especially noticeable in the final arc where dialogue is trimmed right back in favour of a very pretty and fitting insert song. In terms of voice acting, I’m not familiar with any of the seiyuu but the cast do a great job with their minimal dialogue. Most of the emotion for this movie is derived from the visuals and the music – the actual voice acting is secondary.
Can you tell that I liked this movie yet? I am quite aware that this is not to everyone’s liking as it is extremely slow going if you’re not completely drawn into the characters. The long dramatic silences, the complete absence of action, subtle visual cues and the fact that this is essentially a character study could be off-putting for some. I’m sure that everyone would agree that visually this is a stunning film though, however I would urge anyone to give 5cm per Second a go just for the experience.
