Garden of Words is an amazing step forward for Shinkai in terms of artistic quality; if you’ve sampled his previous works you should notice how the animation quality of characters are not as breathtaking as the backgrounds because the processes are not similar. Byosoku had some weaknesses in that regard and while there are some animation flaws here and there, most of the issue is resolved in Garden of Words. And Shinkai’s work on the backgrounds is more beautiful than basically anything else this medium has to offer. That much should say something.
Unfortunately, art/animation is the only thing Garden of Words does better than Byosoku.
The story started out well; the narration was interesting, sort of analytic and ponderous as it was with Byosoku. It kept that way for the majority of the film and it was smooth sailing. There’s nothing extraordinary with the story and that’s where the beauty is at. The story presented age and societal perception on professional relationships as a barrier towards feelings. It was refined, laid back and it did not use any of the anime clichés when it comes to presentation. I was set to give the story at least an 8 until the unfortunately “forced drama” that began with the confrontation scene. I thought that was it and for a while, returned to a state of happiness; that didn’t last long.
The climatic scene was heart-breaking for me, not because it was beautiful, but rather because I was disappointed. It was shallow, immature and unimaginative; the polar opposite of what I thought Shinkai is (minus Children Who Chase Lost Voices). I felt that the tone of the scene was so in contrast and against the tone in the rest of the movie; it felt unnatural and out-of-place. Although this is a mere few minutes in comparison, it was a big deal because it was the conclusion.
Music in whole was also a step back from Byosoku. Understandably, Tenmon did not compose for this one. Some of the piano scores felt in-your-face when they should have been a subtle mood device. I also feel that, the song chosen to follow the conclusion (Rain) was somewhat cheesy; added with the frustration of forced drama I was bound to not like it.
There are other aspects that felt close to Byosoku. I liked the characters and their portrayal by their VA’s. It wasn’t as good as Byosoku, but I find no reasons to complain. The length of the movie is also matching; Shinkai’s message was simple and pushing the runtime would risk delving into unnecessary issues. None of the side characters were explored into and this is a good decision.
Overall, I enjoyed Garden of Words. It’s definitely a great piece of work in comparison with what this year has to offer. However, waiting so long for something I expected to be at least as good took a toll on me. If you’ve never seen Byosoku, I suggest you watch this first.
