Weathering with You (2019)

[steve jaros]

Title: Weathering with You

Tagline: A story about the secret of this world that only I and she know.

Genre: Animation, Romance, Fantasy, Drama

Director: Makoto Shinkai

Cast: Kotaro Daigo, Nana Mori, Shun Oguri, Tsubasa Honda, Sakura Kiryu, Chieko Baishô, Sumi Shimamoto, Sei Hiraizumi, Yuuki Kaji, Ryohei Kimura, Kana Hanazawa, Ayane Sakura, Kana Ichinose, Masako Nozawa, Hidekatsu Shibata, Ryunosuke Kamiki, Mone Kamishiraishi, Ryou Narita, Aoi Yuki, Tani Kanon

Release: 2019-07-19

Runtime: 114

Plot: High school student Hodaka leaves his home on an isolated island and moves to Tokyo, but he immediately becomes broke. He lives his days in isolation, but finally finds a job as a writer for a shady occult magazine. After he starts his job, the weather has been rainy day after day. In a corner of the crowded and busy city, Hodaka meets a young woman named Hina. Due to certain circumstances, Hina and her younger brother live together, but have a cheerful and sturdy life. Hina also has a certain power: the power to stop the rain and clear the sky.

 

[steve jaros]

Saw this beautifully animated story yesterday. Big hit in Japan, do not miss it.

A

 

[Jake Lipson]

I am a big fan of Makoto Shinkai's previous film, Your Name, which I think is one of the best films of this century so far, and I wanted to like this so much. But I didn't.

It feels like the crew of Your Name sat down and said, "How can we replicate the success of Your Name again?" and went from there, instead of having cool new idea to equal it. This one is about new characters in different situations, but all of the elements of Your Name are there. Teenage protagonists in a star-crossed romance that involves some Japanese mythology and a similar surprise twist. I just sat there thinking, "I see what you're doing, movie," but none of it was as effective as last time.

The characters are not as richly drawn, which makes them difficult to invest in, and their adventure, if you could call it that, just kept getting more and more ridiculous. I could see the twist coming a mile away, and instead of making me drop my jaw like the one in Your Name did, it made me groan.

The whole enterprise all felt so perfunctory, even down to the score and included pop songs, which are provided by the same Japanese pop band who sang on the Your Name soundtrack, and they sing in the same style. Now, I liked the Your Name soundtrack and bought it, and I even like the Japanese-language songs which I have no idea what they're singing when I listen to them, so I'm not knocking the choice to have the same group do this one. But they made no attempt to make this one sound any different than what they did before. If I didn't know better, you could've convinced me that the soundtrack to this one was just inferior outtakes from Your Name.

On a positive note, it looks beautiful. Japan still has a thriving industry that works with traditional hand-drawn animation, and it was a visual feast in that regard. It's easily the prettiest-looking, most eye-popping bad movie I've ever seen. So, there's that. Except that Your Name is pretty and eye-popping too, and I just sat there wishing I was watching that again instead. By the time this got to the insane third act, I wondered if it would ever stop.

This is a surprisingly early contender for the most disappointing film of 2020 for me.

Belated edit only to fix a typo.

 

[steve jaros]

I am a big fan of Makoto Shinkai's Your Name, which I think is one of the best films of this century so far, and I wanted to like this so much. But I didn't.

It feels like the crew of Your Name sat down and said, "How can we replicate the success of Your Name again?" and went from there, instead of having cool new new idea to equal it. .

Interesting. Not having seen "Your Name" I don't have that basis for comparison.

I would say that I liked the movie less as it went on. The first half was IMO beautiful in all respects, arguably A+ to me. One reason is that for the first hour or so, it seemed like Tokyo itself was a character in the movie, and that moved me, as one of my best life experiences was a 12-day visit to Tokyo I once had. Not only did the technical details of the city seem accurate, the filmmakers captured its soul, much as was done in "Lost in Translation". The second half of the movie was still good, but much more of a pedestrian teenagers on the run love story. B to B+, bringing the overall score to an A.

 

[Jake Lipson]

Interesting. Not having seen "Your Name" I don't have that basis for comparison.

I'm glad you liked this one more than I did. I really wanted to, but it just didn't work for me. Being such a fan of Your Name absolutely influenced my viewing of this film, but even if I hadn't seen that one, I don't think I would like this one more. I just found the characters annoying and couldn't invest in what they were doing, which pretty much killed the film for me.

That being said, you should definitely rent Your Name. Since you liked this one, I think the chances are very high that you'll like that one as well.

 

[benbess]

I liked this movie! B+

 

[Lord Dalek]

This is a surprisingly early contender for the most disappointing film of 2020 for me.

Conglaturation. You have just learned what millions of people who watched 5 Centimeters Per Second and The Garden of Words have known for years. Shinkai only knows how to make one movie.

 

[Jake Lipson]

I'm bumping this thread because anyone who liked this more than I did should note what's going on with the Blu-ray release. A standard Blu-ray+DVD as well as a slightly more expensive steelbook will be released on September 15. Then, a special edition will release on November 17, which has the Blu-ray, another Blu-ray of bonus features, a 4K disc and the soundtrack. This one is a lot more expensive with a $79.99 price at the moment on Amazon, but it is the most elaborate edition available.

I do not feel the need to own this film at all. But if I really liked it, I would hold off and wait for the big set.