It's been exactly 12 years since the Tôhoku earthquake and tsunami and I can hardly imagine how devastating a tragedy that has been. I can also only imagine how it would've been seeing this movie in a Japanese cinema all these years later, maybe even with ppl that were the age of Suzume when all this happened back then...

As someone not from Japan that was not involved in the catastrophe 12 years ago, this is a beautifully moving work that tries to express and process a national trauma in its own way and I think it succeeded at that. One of Shinkai's best work and very well worth a watch.

This was a really beautiful story that was able to keep me intrigued throughout, and you don't fully understand the entire story until the very end of this movie. This movie has so many intertwining plotlines playing simultaneously, and every character is so fleshed out no matter how little screen time they get. I highly recommend this to anyone who is a fan of Makoto Shinkai's other movies as this is another great example of his amazing creativity.

Makoto Shinkai’s visuals pleasuring masterpiece and the soundtrack is :fire::heart_eyes:

Japanese anime movies are like cat videos: every time I see one, I realize I like them less than I thought I did.

This movie was done by the same team that did that one about the Weather and that one about the Name, so if you liked those you'll probably like this one about as much as I didn't care for any of them.

This story about a girl who falls in love with a kiddie chair that comes to life (I'm not even kidding, at first he won't let her sit on him but then he comes around) while they chase an influencer cat feels more like an anthology series of shorts that goes off the rails at the end.

I’m sure this movie was trying to say some other interesting things, but I don’t think it did a good job at it.

The fantasy adventure parts were enjoyable but the road trip and the quiet parts were a chore to get through. I was seriously bored at times (pretty much the whole middle part). I wish they focused more on the adventure and fantasy elements. So many unnecessary characters too, they just stall the adventure. Although, because of all that fooling around Suzume really feels like a fleshed out character. Beautiful score and even more beautiful animation. The cat was cool. The chair was unnecessary but memorable. Way too long. The sheer thought of the real life catastrophe had me shed a tear but it was completely unrelated to the story, more the song that played at the end.

With Shinkai's last two movies (Weathering with You, and this one), I got this uncomfortable feeling that there was some intention to recreate the _Your Name_ success formula. In this case, the main character, Suzume, feels like a little plain character from the very beginning, falling in love with some strange guy on the street (?) and making weird decisions like following him to a ruins outside the town (???). In my country, at most, this plot could end very, very badly, and doesn't make sense to include this kind of dangerous situation in a movie that could influence teenagers to put themselves in such danger.
Also, we have this weird cliché of the director to make relationships between underage teenagers and a mature partner.
Having said that, the love (and the drama) that develops between the two characters feels a bit forced, not natural, as it flows in the Miyazaki's movies (in general). Don't get me wrong, it's a good movie (in general) with impressive scenes and with interesting lore, but it could be more if the director got away from repeating himself.

This movie is all over the place. There are so many tonal swings that don’t feel cohesive, it feels like a bunch of different movies slapped together. One moment it wants to be an epic action/adventure film, other parts feel specifically targeted at children or melodramatic teens. The pacing of this movie would be vastly improved by making a more focussed story. I also don’t like how this incorporates the overused ‘let’s turn people into an animal/object’ trope, the way it’s used here feels unnecessary to the plot. These characters are good enough by themselves, so there’s no need to add a gimmick like that. The story is a metaphor for the disaster that struck Japan on 3/11, it works decently on an emotional level while sometimes going a little too much into cheesy territory. It’s not a movie where the story alone carries it to the finish line. Luckily the set pieces are pretty great, and the animation is unquestionably attention grabbing, so that often gets the job done. The score is also pretty fantastic, despite musically being as all over the place as the story. It’s a mild recommendation, but not a must see.

5.5/10

Nooo Daijin!!! I can't T_T

A beautiful film about loss and resistance that has ramifications for the impact that the 2011 earthquake had on Japanese society, but is so rich in themes and representations that it provides different layers of readings. It is an attractive story with excellently executed animation, typical of director Makoto Shinkai, which has a depth in the characters and plot that elevates it above the good level of animated cinema. And it is already part of a trilogy of great films directed by Shinkai that demonstrate his abilities, not only formal, but also narrative.

Makoto Shinkai doesn't disappoint, as always.
while i was a bit sad about the fact that Souta spent the entire movie as a chair, i'll ignore that and still give this movie a 10/10, because the animation carries it as always, & with each movie they find a way to outdo themselves;
i really liked the road-trip aspect of this one, that was fun
the ending RADWIMPS song into the other one was beautiful, it was so worth the wait

Very high expectations on this, which were not fulfilled. It belongs of that kind of Japanese movies which looks for an explanation of natural disasters. The overall result is very pretentious and cumbersome, it does not deal with the background topic well, and leaves more questions than the ones it answers.

An amazing story - created by one amazing amazing person 'Makoto Shinkai'.

Well written just outstanding film - beautiful animation and colours.

Kept you in suspense and amaze throughout the entire movie - 10/10 Will most definitely watch again.

Also amazing music soundtrack

National and personal trauma needs healing. Makoto Shinkai guides us to find it through art.

Possibly Makoto Shinkai’s masterpiece, and he already had a couple films in contention.

Absolutely gorgeous and quite touching.

What a wonderful movie and so amazing to see it in the cinema, an amazing tribute to 3/11 and such a tragic story.

I can't believe I was able to see this in the cinema. First time I've seen a Japanese and even anime movie shown here. Easy 10 for me. Great story, beautiful animation, and music. Likable characters. The story is quite different from what I expected after the trailers and is like many other Japanese movies rooted in tragedies. There is a lot of sadness, but also a lot of beauty.