Was I excited for this movie? Very much!
I find this movie special because of the backgrounds. I had stayed in Japan for almost two years now, and so it was really something to see familiar buildings and locations in animation. As expected from a work by Makoto Shinkai, lots of scenes were just so beautiful I had goosebumps all throughout the movie. RADWIMPS' music made the highlighted scenes a lot more powerful.
I really want to watch the movie again~
SPOLIERS ahead~ (photos are from the trailer)
I find this movie special because of the backgrounds. I had stayed in Japan for almost two years now, and so it was really something to see familiar buildings and locations in animation. As expected from a work by Makoto Shinkai, lots of scenes were just so beautiful I had goosebumps all throughout the movie. RADWIMPS' music made the highlighted scenes a lot more powerful.
I really want to watch the movie again~
SPOLIERS ahead~ (photos are from the trailer)
Taki and Mitsuha are two students who has never met each other until a strange thing happened to their bodies. One day, Taki finds himself in Mitsuha's body and vice versa. Taki lives in the busy city of Tokyo while Mitsuha lives somewhere in the suburbs.
At first, they thought that the body swap was just a dream (Taki!Mitsuha thinking it's okay to touch the girl's body because it's just a dream; Mitsuha!Taki commenting that it's okay to buy expensive pancakes because it's just a dream).
However, the two of them are forced to admit that it's real as the swap happened again and again. There were days when they woke up to find their bodies swapped and they only return to their own bodies after sleeping.
However, the two of them are forced to admit that it's real as the swap happened again and again. There were days when they woke up to find their bodies swapped and they only return to their own bodies after sleeping.
Because the two of them are so different, they are both irked by how each other is trying to live the other's day (ie. Mitsuha!Taki acting all cute, and Taki!Mitsuha acting too boyish). They express their aggravation and complaints through a diary app. Or, when they're really annoyed, they write on each other's faces/arm with markers.
This is how the two of them developed their relationship.
Interestingly enough, their peers find them more interesting with their souls swapped. Taki!Mitsuha gains Mitsuha admirers from girls and boys by being good in basketball and remaining his cool most of the time, while Mitsuha!Taki ends up close with Taki's popular senpai.
This is how the two of them developed their relationship.
Interestingly enough, their peers find them more interesting with their souls swapped. Taki!Mitsuha gains Mitsuha admirers from girls and boys by being good in basketball and remaining his cool most of the time, while Mitsuha!Taki ends up close with Taki's popular senpai.
Soon enough, they learnt a lot about each others lives. Taki spent some of his days with Mitsuha's grandma and sister, Yotsuha. He also made a nice wooden table and chair for Mitsuha's friends. Mitsuha spent her days eating at the cafes in Tokyo and spending time with Miki, and Taki's friends.
Mitsuha finds out that Taki has some crush on the popular senpai, Miki. Because Mitsuha!Taki is close with Miki, she manages to get Taki a date with her. However, the real Taki isn't that close with Miki. He thinks she's beautiful but he had never really talked that much with Miki. So during the date, it was rather quiet between Taki and Miki. Mitsuha left dating advices in the diary app and throughout the date, Taki kept on checking his phones and his mind was filled with Mitsuha. Miki notices this and she ends the date earlier than what Mitsuha has planned for them (she was really cool about how they separated). She concluded that Taki doesn't like her that way and surmises that he already has someone he likes.
When Miki left, Taki thinks about this. FINALLY, he decides to give Mitsuha a phonecall.
BUT.
No answer.
Mitsuha finds out that Taki has some crush on the popular senpai, Miki. Because Mitsuha!Taki is close with Miki, she manages to get Taki a date with her. However, the real Taki isn't that close with Miki. He thinks she's beautiful but he had never really talked that much with Miki. So during the date, it was rather quiet between Taki and Miki. Mitsuha left dating advices in the diary app and throughout the date, Taki kept on checking his phones and his mind was filled with Mitsuha. Miki notices this and she ends the date earlier than what Mitsuha has planned for them (she was really cool about how they separated). She concluded that Taki doesn't like her that way and surmises that he already has someone he likes.
When Miki left, Taki thinks about this. FINALLY, he decides to give Mitsuha a phonecall.
BUT.
No answer.
Thinking about how Taki's date with Miki is going, Mitsuha finds herself crying. She cuts her hair and meets her friends for the festival. That night, they watched the comets flying on the sky. This was really beautiful, until part of the comet comes crashing down.
Days passed and no body swaps happened. Taki wonders about what happened with Mitsuha and in his desire to meet her, he starts searching for the place where she lives. He sketches the different spots from Mitsuha's village that he remembers and compares them to actual photos. (I'm a bit befuddled on this part, but I think he remembers how the village look but he doesn't remember the name). Thankfully, he's very good in drawing and he has good visual memory. He soon decides that the mountains he saw are located in Hida, Gifu. Miki and Takagi blocks him in Tokyo station and tells him that they're gonna accompany him.
It turns out that searching for the village with just his sketch as reference was difficult. While they were eating ramen, he was about to give up when the cook's wife notices his drawing. She comments how it looks just like Itomori Town (fictional town). YAY! With new found hope, Taki asks them how to go to Itomori town but the old couple just gave him an odd look, asking him if he doesn't know what happened to Itomori town. But Taki doesn't remember any town by that name. Miki and Takagi remembers though and they tell Taki that it was the town that got destroyed by the meteor three years ago and all the townspeople died in it.
Three years ago. All dead.
THREE YEARS AGO. ALL DEAD.
It turns out that searching for the village with just his sketch as reference was difficult. While they were eating ramen, he was about to give up when the cook's wife notices his drawing. She comments how it looks just like Itomori Town (fictional town). YAY! With new found hope, Taki asks them how to go to Itomori town but the old couple just gave him an odd look, asking him if he doesn't know what happened to Itomori town. But Taki doesn't remember any town by that name. Miki and Takagi remembers though and they tell Taki that it was the town that got destroyed by the meteor three years ago and all the townspeople died in it.
Three years ago. All dead.
THREE YEARS AGO. ALL DEAD.
Taki finds this difficult to accept because Mitsuha is real. Isn't she? They swapped bodies. He remembers all these. She even made entries in the diary app in his phone! He pulls out his phone to show the entries but when he opened the app, all her entries started to be deleted.
That night, Taki starts to forget about Mitsuha's name. He wonders if maybe the person in his memory was a ghost? Miki points out the bracelet that Taki has always been wearing and asked him where he got it.
But Taki doesn't remember how he got the bracelet. He just knew he had been wearing it for years.
Miki and Takagi goes to sleep, but Taki stays awake to look over his sketch. He cannot remember the person in his memory but he was sure he had already been in that place in the sketch. He slightly remembers somebody tossing him a braided ribbon which he was now using as his bracelet.
Miki wakes up to find that Taki has gone. He had left them a note and some money for their expenses.
The ramen cook drove Taki to where Itomori town used to be and gives him a bento for his journey. It starts to rain but Taki was unfazed by the weather.
TO BE CONTINUED
That night, Taki starts to forget about Mitsuha's name. He wonders if maybe the person in his memory was a ghost? Miki points out the bracelet that Taki has always been wearing and asked him where he got it.
But Taki doesn't remember how he got the bracelet. He just knew he had been wearing it for years.
Miki and Takagi goes to sleep, but Taki stays awake to look over his sketch. He cannot remember the person in his memory but he was sure he had already been in that place in the sketch. He slightly remembers somebody tossing him a braided ribbon which he was now using as his bracelet.
Miki wakes up to find that Taki has gone. He had left them a note and some money for their expenses.
The ramen cook drove Taki to where Itomori town used to be and gives him a bento for his journey. It starts to rain but Taki was unfazed by the weather.
TO BE CONTINUED