(CR) Suzume no Tojimari

[Last Sinner]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

I have a friend who’s in the Academy and gets onto the animation committee almost every year. The animation committee is important because they vote on what gets nominated (for best animated feature and short), before the entire membership votes on the winners (in every category). He’s told me some hilarious horror stories about the level of ignorance when it comes to the members where animation generally (much less anime) is concerned. And these are the members who bothered to volunteer for the animation committee, meaning they’re theoretically at least interested, and have to commit to seeing all the eligible films (though many of them lie about that). The general membership is surely even worse!

There’s a story (I forgot who it was, honestly) of one of the best animated feature winners being approached at a ball afterwards by a well-known producer/exec who asked him if he was looking to “graduate to live-action”. Guy basically told the exec to go eff himself.

1. I have heard stories of membership people literally asking their kids what they should vote for because their kids actually know something compared to them. Doesn't surprise me one bit what you said about them.

2. 'Graduate to live action'....just when I thought I couldn't think any less of Hollywood, you found a way...you have earned the feat of strength 'Be Still My Beating Heart!' for that one!

[Infinite Zenith]

Here's a new trailer:

YouTube

https://youtu.be/F7nQ0VUAOXg

Sorry; dynamic content not loaded. Reload?

[Marina2]

I don't understand what is it really about or what are those characters doing in the PV.

I guess that's a good sign.

[Last Sinner]

I liked it when Shinkai movies trailers gave some idea of what the movie is actually about...this feels like it might be more an art piece than a movie.

[Top Sergeant]

Water is certainly something Shinkai loves to use, and no wonder as its been a common key feature in tales told by humans since as far back as we know. It is something that can resonate with people from all across the globe.

Five Centimeters per Second was quite well made although it is my least favorite of the movies that he has made.

[Ragashingo]

RADWIMPS back for music.

[Guardian Enzo]

Originally Posted by Ragashingo

RADWIMPS back for music.

Hadn’t Shinkai supposedly reunited with Tenmon?

[Last Sinner]

I've got a bad feeling about this...

[Nachtwandler]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

Hadn’t Shinkai supposedly reunited with Tenmon?

Last time I heard about Tenmon making anything was pretty long ago.

[Kakkou]

Originally Posted by Nachtwandler

Last time I heard about Tenmon making anything was pretty long ago.

Link Click is pretty recent.

[Nachtwandler]

Originally Posted by Kakkou

Link Click is pretty recent.

AniDB does not have much regarding staff credits for the series, so I was not aware.

[Magin]

I heard the main theme for this movie, and knew the designs looked familiar...

When it coms to to Shinkai movies, I'm very, very cautious. You'll have to excuse me for liking my "happy ending" movies, probably due to Disney's influence when growing up in the 90's. There was a debate about whether it's a motif or theme a page back, but the fact that Shinkai films seemed to always be about loneliness and separation does not vibe with me. 5 cm per second was the first Shinkai film I was aware of, and as others have pointed out, its themes are up for debate. Garden of Words, as beautiful as the animation is, also has the characters separated at the end. It's only been Your Name and Weathering with you that the main characters were able to be together... so I'll have to wait until after this movie airs and then use my limited Japanese skills to delve through Twitter and find out what the movie verdict for this is.

I mean, the trailer looks good, but unless I have confirmation that "the trailer shows the whole movie", then I have little intention of seeing a movie. Going in blind is too much of a risk for me.

[Infinite Zenith]

Assuming his two previous films set the trend, Suzume no Tojimari will likely have a happy ending. Having said this, it's anybody's guess as to what actually happens, and I can't help but wonder if we'll be in for an eleven to twelve month wait for Suzume no Tojimari: I get the "keep it in theatres to maximise profits" bit, but it does mean we overseas viewers will suffer. Perhaps we'll get to buy the BDs next October or November.

While it's true Shinkai's works always are open to interpretation, I think the 5 Centimeters per Second themes were misconstrued by a review at ANN that was then copy-pasted to Wikipedia, claiming the film was about how people are powerless to shape their circumstances and must endure loneliness and separation as a result (and since Wikipedia is widely read, this became the de facto interpretation people accept of the film). The companion novel and side stories both clarify that the problem Takaki faced was because he felt like everything was always outside his control, from him being forced to separate with Akari, to how his first job had punishing deadlines and occasionally, how management made his tasks more difficult. After he quits his first software job and goes freelance, he's at peace: he's most certainly not pining for Akari, but rather, was frustrated by a lack of agency. So, when he does the walk and thinks he encounters Akari again, he's happy because 1) he was able to fulfil his old promise and 2) he knows it's his call to now turn around and keep moving on in his life. To me, that's a happy ending, although I yield that it's certainly not a Disney-level "happily ever after" ending.

[Dextro]

Originally Posted by Infinite Zenith

Assuming his two previous films set the trend, Suzume no Tojimari will likely have a happy ending. Having said this, it's anybody's guess as to what actually happens, and I can't help but wonder if we'll be in for an eleven to twelve month wait for Suzume no Tojimari: I get the "keep it in theatres to maximise profits" bit, but it does mean we overseas viewers will suffer. Perhaps we'll get to buy the BDs next October or November.

To be fair, Shinkai's movies are now popular enough that even my little corner of southern europe gets cinema releases for them. Sure, it takes a few months after Markets like the US or UK, but it still gets here so it's not as inaccessible as it used to be.

[Infinite Zenith]

Over here in North America, the big cities get them in a reasonably timely fashion, but I'm not driving three hours to the nearest large theatre to watch the movie! It's why I tend to wait for BDs.

[Guardian Enzo]

Shinkai seems primarily driven to deliver what will be seen as on-brand at this point, so it would be very surprising to see another bittersweet ending like 5CM. I think those are a relic of the past for him now.

[Magin]

Originally Posted by Infinite Zenith

While it's true Shinkai's works always are open to interpretation, I think the 5 Centimeters per Second themes were misconstrued by a review at ANN that was then copy-pasted to Wikipedia, claiming the film was about how people are powerless to shape their circumstances and must endure loneliness and separation as a result (and since Wikipedia is widely read, this became the de facto interpretation people accept of the film). The companion novel and side stories both clarify that the problem Takaki faced was because he felt like everything was always outside his control, from him being forced to separate with Akari, to how his first job had punishing deadlines and occasionally, how management made his tasks more difficult. After he quits his first software job and goes freelance, he's at peace: he's most certainly not pining for Akari, but rather, was frustrated by a lack of agency. So, when he does the walk and thinks he encounters Akari again, he's happy because 1) he was able to fulfil his old promise and 2) he knows it's his call to now turn around and keep moving on in his life. To me, that's a happy ending, although I yield that it's certainly not a Disney-level "happily ever after" ending.

I probably should attempt to dig up the old 5 cm thread (I'm sure one exists), but I understand the basic idea of 5cm is based on what happens with cherry blossoms: 5cm per second is the rate at which the petals separate when they fall. So unless that was also part of the error in the original article, it does make sense if it's named after the cherry blossom process: separation and loneliness (which run throughout Shinkai's works) are inevitable (the bit specific to 5cm)

[Infinite Zenith]

The original article was made based on a flawed assumption, that separation and loneliness equates realism. In the novels, Takaki likens the slow rate of falling, and the fluttering path each petals take, to how easily the petals' trajectory is changed by things like the wind. It symbolised how little control the petals had in which path they take to hit the ground, paralleling how little control Takaki feels he had in his life.

We do recall that even in his earlier works, separation is a part of the journey, rather than the endgame. Voices of a Distant Star has Mikako promising to reunite with Noboru, who'd joined UNSA to follow her path. After circumstances separates Sayuri from Takuya and Hiroki in The Place Promised in Our Early Days, Hiroku flies a plane up to the tower and rescues Sayuri, promising they'll start over again.

A lot of online articles claim Shinkai means to suggest that separation is final, but what's shown is that while it is an inevitable part of life, people find different ways of addressing it, whether redoubling their efforts to close the distance, or otherwise, as with 5 Centimeters per Second, make peace with it. As such, I find that thematically, Shinkai's been quite consistent, and the key difference between works is that, prior to Your Name, his films were more open-ended, and his newer works are more direct in what the characters' outcomes are.

[Magin]

Which raises the question that can apply to ANY artistic endeavor: when telling a story, should the ending be able to be open to interpretation, or should the author say "X definitely happens/does not happen."

This is a question that has no answer, because everyone has a different opinion. What we can say though, is that Shinkai's latest works aren't so open-ended (Your name and Weathering with You)... and they've also made more money. I'm tempted to argue that means people prefer a closed-style ending, if they're voting with their wallets... but this gets into artistic snobbery that I hate getting into.

[Last Sinner]

Welp, there's the guy...so there's probably young love involved. And she's in high school. And there's a wacky looking cat and a chair that acts like a robot...and the sky is either on fire or drowning in pasta sauce...

Um...what the actual hell is going on...