[germanturkey]

i agree that this is probably my least favorite Shinkai work, probably because i've watched it the least, though its not to say i don't like it. the fact that you only watched half of it is probably the reason why you don't like it. the first half is a flash back with Hiroki remembering his childhood with Sayuri and how they separated. the second half is in the present and deals with them trying to overcome the problem with the tower. needless to say, the second half is much better than the first half.

All of Shinkai's movies have the same overall theme: separation. he just does it in different ways every time. In Byousoku it was separation by time, in Voices, it was separation by distant, and in Promised Place, it was emotion. if you don't enjoy watching him tell his story in different ways, you probably won't enjoy watching any other of his movies. his animation style is also love it or hate it. the vast majority of people love it. its very aesthetically pleasing and spawned a whole bunch of imitators. though if you don't like it, its your loss.