Alternate Titles: The Children who Chase lost voices from deep below

Original Japanese Release Date: May 2011

Episode Length/Run-time: 100 Minutes

Summary:

Asuna lost her father at a young age and has lived an independent lifestyle with her loving, yet absent often due to work, since.  One day, she meets a boy whose sudden death triggers a series of events that pulls Asuna with unlikely companions into a mysterious world beneath the earth that holds the secrets of life and death.

Review:

This movie is made by Makoto Shinkai, if that doesn’t tell you some things about it then you have clearly not seen his other works or listened to the show much before.

But! If you are such a person I shall elaborate for your benefit.

Unlike Shinkai’s past works this one really hits the ground running.  Asuna is an uncertain yet strong character and we first meet her listening to a mysterious song on a crystal radio.  Her father passed when she was young and she lives just with her mother, making her a fairly independent young woman.  One day, heading out to her special place she runs into a strange, large, and violent creature, a mysterious boy saves her from this creature and as theynspend time together for the rest of the day she develops a clear strong admiration/love for him. But as mysteriously as he comes he disappears from her life, dead. Now Asuna is drug literally to the bottom of the earth lead by Shun’s (the boy) brother and her new teacher Ryuji.  The world they find themselves is defended by large ancient beasts known walrus quetzacotl, for this world holds the powers of life and death.

All this in the first 25 minutes, I told you it moved fast.  And that’s the first, and really only criticism for this show. Shinkai moves so quickly in his storytelling that you barely have enough time to stop and absorb things before you’re already three steps further.  The world that he creates I such a short time is so rich and vast that you are literally yearning for more time there, but if he stopped to do it the movie would be 3 hours long… Though I wouldn’t complain.

Another thing that Shinkai does not fail on is the execution. In his normal fashion it is beautifully animation with an attention to detail that could make a grown man weep its so lovely. It suits the fantasy world and his storytelling well.  Compared to his previous films he still pays close attention to light and dark but seems to have a new kind of restraint that adds additional sophistication and refinement to his work.

The music is simple but well fitting and really helps the overall package.

In all, this movie won’t disappoint and I cannot recommend it enough.

[starrater]