Your Name
2.5/4
Starring (voices): Michael Sinterniklaas, Stephanie Sheh, Laura Post, Glynnis Ellis, Kyle Hebert, Cassandra Morris
Rated PG for Thematic Elements, Suggestive Content, Brief Language, and Smoking
One thing I appreciate about anime is that filmmakers who use this medium understand that animation has a power that live action does not. For example, movies like "Grave of the Fireflies," "Whisper of the Heart" or "Only Yesterday" could feasibly be filmed using live actors and sets (actually, "Grave of the Fireflies" has gotten that treatment twice in Japan). But the filmmakers knew that using animation gives the story a different life and energy that cannot be achieved using flesh and blood actors. "Your Name" is similar in that regard. With the help of a little CGI, it could be filmed with cameras. By animating it, "Your Name" gains a tone that is simultaneously otherworldly and nostalgic. Perfect for the material.
Mitsuha (Sheh) hates being a high school student in her small town, finding it boring and aimless. She wishes that in her next life she'll be a handsome boy from Tokyo, but instead she wakes up in the body of a boy from Tokyo. His name is Taki (Sinterniklaas), and he's horrified to learn that his life has turned upside down so suddenly (although having breasts is a definite plus). The two try to survive in their new situation as best they can, establishing ground rules for what they can and cannot do in each other's body and so on. But they soon discover that there is more to this strange turn of events, and unless they can solve the mystery, doom will soon come to Mitsuha's hometown.
"Your Name" is certainly ambitious. It covers a lot of ground, with the issues being addressed including fate, identity, and other weighty material. The problem is that Makoto Shinkai, who adapted the story from his own novel, never finds a way to convey all of his ideas. Another rewrite of the screenplay and a more focused direction would have helped things immeasurably.
The voice acting is solid, if unspectacular. This isn't Studio Ghibli, after all. However, where the film really shines is in its animation. While not as inventive or imaginative as, say, Hayao Miyazaki, it is gorgeous to look at. Simply put, Japan has never looked this good. You get a sense of place in every one of the images in this movie. And, despite being set in a realistic Japan, I still wished I could touch my TV and jump into the anime.
"Your Name" was well received upon its release. It beat out "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" in Japan, for example, and was critically acclaimed in the US. I'd say that this surprises me, but now I'm not so sure. This might be a movie that would do better upon a second viewing. I reserve the right to change my rating or write a new review if I feel the need.
Regardless, as of this viewing, I can't recommend "Your Name." While there are definitely some elements that work and are entirely worthy of praise, the film as a whole feels like it's about to fall apart. And by second half of the movie, it does. But at least it's never boring.
Starring (voices): Michael Sinterniklaas, Stephanie Sheh, Laura Post, Glynnis Ellis, Kyle Hebert, Cassandra Morris
Rated PG for Thematic Elements, Suggestive Content, Brief Language, and Smoking
One thing I appreciate about anime is that filmmakers who use this medium understand that animation has a power that live action does not. For example, movies like "Grave of the Fireflies," "Whisper of the Heart" or "Only Yesterday" could feasibly be filmed using live actors and sets (actually, "Grave of the Fireflies" has gotten that treatment twice in Japan). But the filmmakers knew that using animation gives the story a different life and energy that cannot be achieved using flesh and blood actors. "Your Name" is similar in that regard. With the help of a little CGI, it could be filmed with cameras. By animating it, "Your Name" gains a tone that is simultaneously otherworldly and nostalgic. Perfect for the material.
Mitsuha (Sheh) hates being a high school student in her small town, finding it boring and aimless. She wishes that in her next life she'll be a handsome boy from Tokyo, but instead she wakes up in the body of a boy from Tokyo. His name is Taki (Sinterniklaas), and he's horrified to learn that his life has turned upside down so suddenly (although having breasts is a definite plus). The two try to survive in their new situation as best they can, establishing ground rules for what they can and cannot do in each other's body and so on. But they soon discover that there is more to this strange turn of events, and unless they can solve the mystery, doom will soon come to Mitsuha's hometown.
"Your Name" is certainly ambitious. It covers a lot of ground, with the issues being addressed including fate, identity, and other weighty material. The problem is that Makoto Shinkai, who adapted the story from his own novel, never finds a way to convey all of his ideas. Another rewrite of the screenplay and a more focused direction would have helped things immeasurably.
The voice acting is solid, if unspectacular. This isn't Studio Ghibli, after all. However, where the film really shines is in its animation. While not as inventive or imaginative as, say, Hayao Miyazaki, it is gorgeous to look at. Simply put, Japan has never looked this good. You get a sense of place in every one of the images in this movie. And, despite being set in a realistic Japan, I still wished I could touch my TV and jump into the anime.
"Your Name" was well received upon its release. It beat out "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" in Japan, for example, and was critically acclaimed in the US. I'd say that this surprises me, but now I'm not so sure. This might be a movie that would do better upon a second viewing. I reserve the right to change my rating or write a new review if I feel the need.
Regardless, as of this viewing, I can't recommend "Your Name." While there are definitely some elements that work and are entirely worthy of praise, the film as a whole feels like it's about to fall apart. And by second half of the movie, it does. But at least it's never boring.
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