Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
hojichai
A movie that's trying so hard to fulfill so many expectations that it ends up meeting none of them.
(Very light spoiler warning for Suzume, Kimi no Na Wa and Tenki no Ko follows)
Shinkai-san's past blockbusters are both popular and generally well received, and I think because of their large scale narrative (natural disaster, natural events that concern a large group of people) he may have felt pressured to repeat something similar. And he does, but what ends up following is a story that feels largely nonsensical to me. From key plot points concerning the main character's (particularly Souta) involvement to the final ending, watching this movie just left me with a lot of question marks and an unsatisfying resolution. Interesting plot devices are neither continued nor explained. The conne…
Read at the sourcedaaphish
*No Spoilers*
This review is for the film Suzume.
Summary:
Suzume is a film written by Makoto Shinkai and incorporates similar art and music, though the story tends to be more focused on adventure than romance. Suzume is an interesting character who is forced into an adventure and gradually grows as the story progresses. The film has excellent art and music. This may be of interest to you if you enjoy adventure stories or romance, although the romance is actually quite forced and detracts from the overall message of the film.
Story: 5/10
The story is generally interesting with some more action than Makoto Shinkai's other films. It explores themes of growing up, death, and grief; however, it also forces romance in a way that detracts from these themes. If this film focused more on the gen…
Read at the sourceSoloNoc
Oh my, what in the world did I just subject myself to? I had heard so much hype about this movie, and against my better judgment, I thought, "Why not give it a shot?" Even though I was skeptical from the get-go, especially after that lackluster trailer. I could sense the generic and boring vibes, and boy, was I right. This marks the first time I've ever skipped through half of a movie.
Honestly, what was with all the silliness and unnecessary political undertones? I yearn for the days of "A Silent Voice" and "Your Name." Those movies were engaging and captivating, but this one felt forced, boring, with unnecessary drama thrown in halfway through. And seriously, why in the world do those cats look as ugly as sin? And don't even get me started on the absurdity of a male character needing sa…
Read at the sourceAeroGunz
“Suzume” is what happens when You have an awesome premise and are not sure what to do with it.
One day a young girl gives directions to a wandering stranger. Enchanted by him, she decides to see his destination for herself. She stumbles upon a lone door, surrounded by water, in the middle of ruins of an old town. Driven by curiosity she opens the door to witness a different place - a beautiful plane with a night sky. Without the means to step into that plane she unwillingly becomes the catalyst for events that could kill thousands of people. Now, with the help of the stranger she met earlier she embarks on a journey to make things right again.
I’m going to say it at the start. This movie has some serious writing problems. Both with pacing and motivations of the characters. Not saying any…
Read at the sourceAkiFosu
The Subversive Effect of Makoto Shinkai's Works
Makoto Shinkai is the antithesis of Hayao Miyazaki, and there will be no synthesis. Because any deviation from the real essence, as captured and expressed, for example, in Miyazaki's works (the original stories of Mononoke Hime and Spirited Away, specifically) leads astray and betrays the roots.
Makoto Shinkai's works are like Western devs taking over a Japanese franchise and developing it based on their understanding of the signs and symbols in that franchise, in their own limited, biased, and disconnected perspective, without profound knowledge what the original meaning and purpose of those signs and symbols were.
This to a lesser, but perhaps to a more damaging, degree happens in the works of Makoto Shinkai, as it requires prior knowled…
Read at the sourceCyrose
Some places on earth are doors to space
This Movie is a mixed bag, but I would prefer to recommend it, especially if you’re a fan of Comix wave movies or just the fan of Makoto Shinkai’s productions as they are all always beautiful to look at. Or else just as well I can’t really recommend it if you prefer well explained events and character writing over fame and image. Nonetheless, one thing is certain.
It is absolutely worth watching regardless.
Either that you have good imagination skills and capable of figuring out yourself how things work and how others could have happened, by solving or fixing its poor writing. Heck even making it a good conversation subject talking through its “problems” with your family members or friends and then making a decision on how good or bad this movi…
Read at the sourcecloudiiyu
Maybe because I went into this movie with high expectations because of Makoto Shinkai's previous works, that I was so goddamn disappointed. It lowkey tilted me at how mediocre the movie is. For a movie directed by such an infamous name, I really did not expect to finish it thinking "Is that it?". Also this review is NOT spoiler free.
Firstly to get it aside, yeah the movie has nice visuals and a good soundtrack. CGI was kinda ass like the worm looked like a huge red c*** sometimes and the cars and the train station background people were goofy, but it is what it is. Just generic comments.
Now moving on. Most of the cast besides Suzume is pretty one dimensional, with Souta (the chair), pretty much just being the token hot guy, who doesn't really do anything but chase a cat and parkour as…
Read at the sourceEmpireDeLuna
Far gone the days when Makoto Shinkai gave birth to a work that was not compliant with the norm. Not desperate trying to satisfy the taste of contemporary. Not dependent too much in the quality of animation spectacle, but rather giving full attention to the character-driven story, which will not force the matter of self-projections. Makoto Shinkai who is loyal to his distinctive theme of "distance": 5 cm Per Second, Gardens of Words, Voices of a Distance Star, and specifically Children Who Chase Lost Voices. The old Shinkai's movie that's basically the perfect version of Suzume
While the animation is still pretty much a miraculous works, it somehow feels inferior to the level of immersion that is Gardens Of Word or Your Name
Suzume No Tojimari, on paper has an interesting idea for a sub…
Read at the sourceZNoteTaku
I was still very young when my family told me that portions of my Armenian family tree were murdered in the Armenian genocide. I understood that it was a terrible thing, but it was only when I was older and I heard my grandmother and grandfather talk more about who these people were that it dawned on me that there was an entire element of my ancestral life that I would never know. It dawned on me that it wasn’t just names of people, or the desert that they were forced to march through to their deaths from heat or into early concentration camps; there was a distance that time had created, and given my young age, it would only grow more pronounced with each passing day. As a friend of mine once so eloquently said, it is “forever past tense,” regardless of how present it is for my own ancestr…
Read at the sourcespaxuko
this movie was expectedly underwhelming. The visuals were amazing and the music was great, but that did nothing to save the confusing, hole filled plot. the main character, suzume, was your typical highschool girl. and the guy just looked like a knockoff howl.
the side characters suzume crossed paths with didnt really have an impact to the main story and just felt like checkpoints. and the romance felt uncomfortable and forced. i didnt feel any chemistry between the two main characters and how the second half of the movie was driven by suzume’s love for this stranger she meets on a whim feels forced.
this was probably more of a dub problem (yes i watched the dub im sorry i didnt buy the tickets😞), but the cat was so insufferable. it sounded annoying, and i could not understand it’s mot…
Read at the sourcepsuedonymph
Suzume is modern Shinkai's third work after Your Name and Weathering with You. A common criticism shared by other reviewers is that Suzume's plot is a rehash of the previous two. I think this interpretation has validity, but to write off this movie because of that would be tragic. If you've enjoyed modern Shinkai's other works, you'll enjoy this one too.
I think Suzume is best interpreted as Shinkai exploring the themes raised in his older works, The Place Promised in our Early Days, 5 Centimeters per Second and Garden of Words. Without spoilers, these films had a heavy emphasis on the ubiquitous struggle and stagnation faced by those who've lost a loved one. A common criticism of Shinkai's older films before the commercial success of Your Name is that the plots are incomplete, and the e…
Read at the sourceMarinate1016
Here I am after viewing Shinkai Makoto’s latest masterclass and wondering just how high he can continue to push the bar. As soon as I think he’s peaked he just shifts into a new gear and elevates this medium.
Suzume is the best Shinkai project since Kimi no na wa and it may be the closest he’ll ever get to that type of magic again. While it may not be as strongly written as Kimi no na wa, I do think it’s quite a bit better than his last work, Tenki no Ko. And I believe Suzume is an improvement over its predecessors in many regards. Particularly the fact that it gripped me from the very beginning of the film. I think one criticism you could make about his last works is that they take a while to get going and then hit that emotional climax with a RADWIMPS banger and kinda slowly burn out as…
Read at the sourcen1saki
I'm as much of a Shinkai fan as the next guy, but I have to admit his latest work is also his weakest to date. Shinkai's writing has always been a point of criticism in his previous works, but in Suzume, even the relative strength of its visuals and music do little to rescue its struggling storyline.
Shinkai makes no attempt to push the boundaries in Suzume, and viewers will find that the story follows pretty much the same formula as his previous two works. Unfortunately, there's just a bit too much crammed into its 2 hour long runtime for anything to be resolved in a satisfying manner. There's that slightly forced, slightly awkward romance subplot; there's a coming-of-age/self-discovery segment; not to mention some familial angst and trauma thrown into the mix. None of these threads are…
Read at the sourceSaternates
Makoto did it again
My respect for Makoto will never go as long as he created this kind of masterpiece at the same time, yes, it's about something so simple, something that people may just never think about it, something about opening a door and about someone you dear. Yet he created those simple things and turn it into some kind of unimaginable things that we aren't able to comprehend casually, here's why Makoto is top tier even in 2023.
Story: 9/10
Makoto premises about character never fails to amuse many watchers around the world, they are easily loveable and at the same time there are characters that are hate able so easily that we just get along with it without knowing that we are HATING into those characters, Makoto magic works again in Suzume no Tojimari as we grew fond into the st…
Read at the sourceYuu_Kanzaki
I finally had the chance to watch Suzume no Tojimari and it was quite the experience. After watching it I can say with a high certainty that it's... good. Let's just jump right into it. This review doesn't contain spoiler, so you can relax.
If you're wondering about the story, just watch the trailer and you basically get the gist of things. Following his previous work, Suzume no Tojimari also tells a story about our protagonists (Suzume and Souta) save Japan from imminent danger. Already this plot made me roll my eyes when the movie started. I'm sorry to say this, I want to like Shinkai Makoto's movies, I really do, but he's making it very hard for me. In fact, I really like Kotonoha no Niwa due to its simple premise yet deep character interaction and development. I enjoyed Kimi no Na Wa…
Read at the sourceMinamichi
The graphics are fantastic, but the plot and soundtrack feel ordinary. After watching it, I felt something was missing but it's hard to explain. I also feel that the quality of Makoto Shinkai's work has declined after Kimi No Nawa. If I were to rate it, Kimi No Nawa would get a 10, Tenki No Ko would get a 9, and Suzume would only get an 8 overall. That’s why Suzume didn’t have much euphoria as Tenki No Ko had.
I hope he won't use the repetitive story's disaster setting and a teenager who running away from home as the main characters for his next work.
Read at the sourcequynh_a
I've been kind of worried about Makoto Shinkai's works since Tenki no ko as it's apparent in which direction he aims at with each new movie. Same concepts, new setting. They're becoming repetitive.
So if you're really looking for something completely new and fresh you won't find it here but if you're okay with knowing what's going to await you and are just here because you're a huge fan of his or want to immerse yourself in a beautiful world that has a touch of Shinkai's charme, you're good!
While still extremely beautiful visually with awesome direction, I just can‘t fully enjoy his movies as I always thought something was missing in his movies which are missing explanations to why these supernatural things happen and where they come from. It‘s about cause and effect for me. It especial…
Read at the sourcekumajoi
My first impression and summary.
A movie that captures the current Japan. Human warmth and strength. It was a movie that gave me the little courage to walk in life. Of course, there are many comical elements, and I enjoyed it. And, I've been a fan of the director for a long time and I'm glad he wrote a fantasy with less ads!
- Movie that captures the current Japan.
Shinkai is good at cutting out Japanese landscapes and putting them in movies. Last time, he focused on Tokyo. This time in various regions of Japan. Train (A nostalgic train comes out. It's been scrapped little by little, but I was happy that he captured it in the movie.), Ports, tangerine fields, highways, rural shopping districts, and cities.
Landscapes are not just pictures. He's great at capturing the atmosphere of Japan.…
Read at the sourceHaiKaneDesu
***SPOILER FREE***
Suzume no Tojimari is a soothing yet mysterious story. A young country girl is on an adventure of self-discovery, exploring urban cities of Japan for the first time to lock these so-called 'doors' - a journey that tests her bravery, love and willpower in order to achieve her goal.
The animation immediately immerses you into its incredible world: from delipidated yet exquisite ruins to the mythical luminous land behind the magical 'doors'... Each scene is so incredibly detailed that it has its own story to tell! Almost feels like a trip that you can look back in years and still reminisce.
All the interactions between Suzume and the characters felt genuinely real, making it incredibly wholesome and heartwarming to watch as she grows as a person. The music really helped…
Read at the sourceWhipdash
Revolutionary animation with a great story that takes us through south Japan to the north!
Makoto Shinkai makes another stunning anime, but this time the story felt way more fulfilling than his previous works.
Absolutely stunning animation, but I still can't put my finger on what they did, but the smoothness felt way nicer. You might not notice it or even care about it for all that matters but it did feel different, and in my opinion, in a good way!
How come the story is more fulfilling?
The story starts off with a flashback that gets explained, the character development is great, and you feel like you learn a lot about the protagonists and antagonists.
(I realized half-through writing this part that I don't want to spoil anything from this movie, and it's almost impossible to not spoil…
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