Girl Who Leapt Through Time

Alternate Titles: Toki o Kakeru Shōjo (時をかける少女)

Original Japanese Release Date: 2006

Episode Length/Run-time: 98 minutes

Summary:

Makoto, a 17-year old High School student has recently discovered she has the ability to literally leap back through time when she was saved from certain death by leaping unintentionally back in time.  It can be a minute, a day, or even a week.  She begins to use this power and soon discovers the consequences.

Review:

The Girl Who Leapt Through time is an innocent romp through a normal school girl’s life with just the right touch of sci-fi/fantasy.

The director is Mamoru Hosoda who should be familiar to many anime fans these days as he is also the director and original creator of the acclaimed Summer Wars.  The Girl Who Leapt Through time is based off the 1965 serialized novel “Toki o Kakeru Shojo” or “The Girl Who Dashes through Time.”

Makoto is realistic and believable, acting how one would expect a high school girl to act should they discover they have the power to travel back in time.  As a result there’s a good amount of humor as she uses her power to do things like eat her sister’s pudding, set her friends up, and more.

In the end the movie takes a sci-fi/fantasy turn I wasn’t really expecting which worked to solve plot holes better than nothing but it seems a bit thin.  However the twist created an ending that was both touching and satisfying.

The animation is well-done and crisp while still having an authentic feel.  So if you’re not a fan of all those fancy new gizmos and gadgets that people use in anime these days it still retains a hand-drawn charm.

If nothing else the fact that it won a Japanese academy award for the best animated film of the year should be proof enough of its quality.

[starrater]