Your Name

Your Name is the most popular (in terms of box office receipts) anime film ever made. For that reason alone, it was worth watching, even if I’m not as big a fan of anime as Janelle (for her, it was a must-see). 

Your Name is the story of a teenage girl named Mitsuha (voice by Mone Kamishiraishi), who lives in an isolated mountain village in Japan and dreams of living in the big city (Tokyo). Taki  (Ryûnosuke Kamiki) is a teenage boy in Tokyo who works part-time in a restaurant. One morning, Mitsuha and Taki wake up in the other’s body. It lasts only one day, but it’s a day of shock that will prove a huge challenge. When it randomly happens again some days or weeks later, and then again and again, Mitsuha and Taki must find a way to communicate with each other so they don’t ruin each other’s lives. They succeed in this until a comet appears in the sky and they decide to find each other, something that is far more difficult than they could ever imagine. There is much more to the story, and both teenagers have close friends in their lives who will get involved in the mystery, but I will stop there. 

Written and directed by Makoto Shinkai, Your Name is a beautifully-made and intelligently-written romantic sci-fi comedy. Its convoluted plot, which includes creative philosophical and metaphysical ideas, could easily overwhelm (especially with subtitles), but instead the film remains fascinating and enjoyable from start to finish. I did have some problems with the way some of the characters act (a typical complaint I have with anime) and, while I liked the ending, I was hoping for something more logical at that point, but these are fairly minor complaints.

Overall, I was quite impressed by this profound animated film that is mostly worthy of its popularity. Your Name gets ***+. My mug is up. If you have a chance to watch it on the big screen, you should do so.