Your Name (2016)

Your Name is an anime film about two teenagers, Mitsuha and Taki. In their dreams, they swap lives for a day — they take complete control of the other person. After a while, they decide to set some rules, and they even start to help each other out. However, they cannot seem to make any contact, and so they cannot meet in reality. The reason why is shocking: Mitsuha died three years prior when a meteorite hit her town. Taki is distraught… the one person he loved has been torn away from him. Strap in for a compelling and different story that I am sure will keep you on the edge of your seat!!

Now, what did I like about this film? I would say all of it (which is no lie), but that doesn’t show how truly tremendous this film is. Firstly, I love the concept. I, personally, haven’t seen a film where two people swap bodies before, so I think that’s it is quite interesting. It was really well executed and it is explained well during the film (as in why it happens, this is thoroughly explained). Furthermore, it is just so aesthetically pleasing. The anime style is well known for including so much detail. Though the characters look slightly ‘cartoon-ish’ the backgrounds are almost photorealistic and it is evident that hours of work have been put into them. Also, the animation is stunning. Realistic. Fluid. Natural. All while staying true to the iconic elements of the anime style! Now, I may be biased because I am already a lover of anime, but I assure you that I could watch this movie every day because of its beauty. The voice acting was vey good as well! The two main characters displayed so much emotion, through looks and sound alike (especially Taki when he comes to the realisation that he might not be able to meet Mitsuha). The plot includes many turns, and this kept me on edge during the entire film, and also made me need to watch it right up until the end.

However, there was only one problem for me, and though it was a small one, I’m sure many other viewers would find that they had the same problem. That being it was slightly confusing. When they first started to switch places, I couldn’t tell who was on who’s body or if they were in the correct one. However, once you find the attributes of each character and start to grasp their personalities, it becomes quite clear. That’s the only problem I found!!

In conclusion, this heartwarming film is fantastic to watch… for anyone! I would certainly recommend to anime lovers, or simply those who want to bring some happiness into their mundane day… even if its just a little. Four our of five stars from me, simply because of that one minor problem!