It’s hard to believe it’s been a year or more since I first watched the first chapter of 5 Centimeters Per Second. I made a pledge at the time not to watch the remaining two chapters until the day I had the entire film on DVD and in my hands. That day finally came today.
It was worth the wait.
I’ve praised the first chapter more than enough already, but I now realize I didn’t really understand the story it was trying to tell when I first watched it a year ago. The film may consist of three distinct parts, but the it’s the sum of those parts that truly matters most. I think it was half way through the “music video” in the final chapter that it finally hit me. It hit me so hard, in fact, that I had to stop myself from hitting the pause button and racing to the computer to write down all my thoughts on the subject. I know that the final chapter rubbed some people the wrong way with its unconventional presentation, but I thought it was absolutely brilliant. To unveil the entire story of the entire film, filling in the missing pieces never seen along the way, all in its final moments… that’s a hell of an ending.
But it’s still the sum of all parts. The second chapter left me the most impressed, actually. It was the most visually expressive of Makoto Shinkai’s work to date. I mean, the wind! And the clouds! Unlike his previous films, the backgrounds weren’t so much eye candy as they were characters within the story itself. And when the rocket blasted off into space at the chapter’s climax, I got to thinking about how all the work I’ve been doing this past month will be worth it when I can look up at the very same sight with my own two eyes and say, “I was part of that.” I really needed to see that, now more than ever.
In all honesty, a lot of Shinkai’s past work has left me nonplussed to the extent that I could never really write about it the way I’m writing right now. That’s always bothered me for some reason. I couldn’t understand how I could be so simultaneously impressed and annoyed by what he does, especially given how quick I am to impress and how slow I am to annoy when watching anime. I suppose he just wasn’t getting through to me. But not this time. He got through to me. He got through to me good.
If you haven’t taken the time yet to watch 5 Centimeters Per Second for yourself yet, you really should. Omo’s advice is good, of course - what I would give to see the film on the big screen - but you should at least consider purchasing it on DVD if it’s available where you live. It’s too pretty a piece of work not to watch in the highest quality attainable, and it’s got too much of Makoto Shinkai’s heart in it not to send a few dollars his and his production team’s way.
Shinkai = genius
I concur, though the film or rather the ending might have been too refined for my immature mind to withstand.
I want the Bluray.
The journey is amazingly beautiful, but the destination always seems to be bleak and depressing. That’s pretty much how I feel about the 3 Shinkai movies I’ve seen so far.
*Sigh*
Ah, it’s out! I’ve definitely gotta pick this up.
I really like the ending as it is since that’s just how life is. I’ve always thought Shinkai’s characters/character design to be plain (compared to the scenery); which I think is a good thing because most people can probably relate to these events in one form or another so it’s easier to empathize with the story.
On another note, I really wish ADV would’ve included the soundtrack like they did with Voices of a Distant Star.
You should also take a look at the “One more time, One more chance” PV for 5cm/s if you can find it. I’m surprised that they didn’t include that with the DVD, as I really enjoyed viewing it after watching the movie.
Jeff nailed it with the moving backgrounds.
I’m not sure how you can see it on the DVD (as I’m absolutely sure the dvd ripped fansub floating around is just as good as the ADV R1 release for all practical purposes), but seeing it on 35mm really brought the background to life.
The scene when Kanae was walking up the grassy hill to find Takaki…took my breath away. And that was the 4th time I’ve seen it!
But I guess there’s not a lot left to say. It’s Shinkai’s most impressive and critically acclaimed work to date. Tons of people commented and make superlongass posts about this back last summer. I just want to own the HD version and call it a day.
Curse you amazon.com for not getting my preorder out yet. Wait, because of how it’s shipped I have to wait until the “Tim and Eric Awesome Show season 1″ DVD it’s coming with is out too…
CURSE YOU SUPER SAVER SHIPPPPPPPPPING!!!
It actually took me about three watches to ‘get’ the ending. At first it seemed too abrupt, but rather than depressing, as Losttek suggested, I now find the conclusion uplifting. Time to move on…
I’m still waiting on a release date for the UK, but I really want to be given the opportunity to buy the four-disc limited version that was produced in Japan, but with English subs.
Yeah, I found it uplifting as well, albeit in a fatalistic sort of way. Very Japanese.
I didn’t choose the title for this post lightly. On one hand, it’s a nod to the fellow Counting Crows fans out there, but I also found a strong connection between the message the film is trying to send and the song from which the phrase originates. It was one of the first things that came to mind, in fact.
That said, I think a “Hey, it’s too early for a big finish,” reaction to the ending from some people is to be expected. I liked the abrupt nature of it, if simply because the sort of realization Takaki had there at the end often comes just as abruptly in real life, but I also recognize that it makes for an awkward finish. If you’re expecting something more conventional, it’ll probably leave an odd taste in your mouth.
I guess it’s time for me to watch this again. I sat through the whole thing last summer/fall– and loved it, but also found it terribly depressing. Having had enough conversations about it, I understand the _idea_ that it should be uplifting… but I haven’t watched it again since that first time to really feel it.
I also think this is Shinkai’s best work by far. I’ve watched the others, and honestly, they’ve never really gripped me either. They’re all outrageously beautiful, without a doubt– he has an artist’s eye–, but I’ve found the characterization a little undynamic and the plotting… unengaging. I don’t know why either, because I loved slow paced stuff like YKK. Perhaps the plots were trying too hard for me, rather than letting stuff happen naturally the way they seem to in 5cm??
But 5cm was amazing– blew me away. For once, he really reminded me of Isao Takahata with the easy pacing that naturally lets characters grow– plus the utterly amazing visuals to really drive so many of the points home. It’s nice to see others who love it too. Despite some of the posts here, I actually feel like this one is almost never talked about on boards– everyone loves his first two works, but sort of poo poo this one, or don’t even mention it at all.
Great post Jeff - reminds me why this is one of my fave anime movies…scratch that, it’s one of my all time favourite movies, animated or otherwise. I guess I was one of those who made the ’superlongass posts’ that Omo mentioned though (I enjoyed reading them all, too) *Laughs*
Certain aspects of movies like this can’t be put into words, even with carefully chosen screencaps - all you can do is persuade people to watch it and hope that it touches them as much as it touched you. Artistically it’s his best yet and even in terms of structure it’s a departure - I think of the ending as ‘closing the chapter of one’s life’ rather than a cinematic ending like Place Promised and, to a lesser degree, Voices. It is retreading similar thematic ground though - I’m hoping Shinkai takes on slightly different subject matter next time around (a more comedic movie, for instance), since he’s covered this one so well.
It took me a rewatch or two to appreciate the ending (I’ve now moved onto trying to learn the guitar part to it) - I also agree that it’s best viewed as a complete ‘chain’ rather than the individual ‘links’ so to speak.
In closing I think this is the one feature that would push me towards buying a blu-ray player. Seeing it in the cinema would be the ideal situation of course, but for subsequent rewatches/conversion of non-anime fan friends back home, hi-def is pretty worthwhile.
“The scene when Kanae was walking up the grassy hill to find Takaki…took my breath away. And that was the 4th time I’ve seen it!”
I’ve only seen it twice, but I felt the same way. The combination of the background, the music (oh the music), and Kanae’s realization made it special for me.
Now thinking about it, I mentioned on another blog that I thought that the second viewing of the ending didn’t work quite as well for me as it first did. I think in this case, instead of just watching, I was watching in projecting my thoughts onto what I was watching, which lead to criticisms of Takaki in my head and what not. Maybe I need to watch it again to see if that could change. :P