Mesmerising Personification Of Beauty

<a>Before you decide to watch Your name, read my review </a>

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Your name grabs at the strings of your heart and pulls you in on a journey that’ll throw you on a rollercoaster of emotion. From sadness to joy to shock to satisfaction, Your name also known as ‘Kimi no Na wa’ is a supernatural movie about 2 people far apart finding each other in each other’s arms. This story revolves around Mitsuha Miyamizu, a high-schooler who wishes to live a different life, a Tokyo life as a handsome boy and Taki Tachibana, a passionate also high-schooler wishing to pursue a career in architecture while juggling his busy city life.

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~Mitsuha and Taki from left to right~

Mitsuha Miyamizu is granted her wish when she body swaps with Taki Tachibana and vice versa. Both interpret it as a dream but only with time do they come to realise the messages they have been sharing are real, the moments they lived are real. This is where Your name kicks off. I’ll admit, the start was a tad slow and felt exhaustive as I had to keep up with the hyper-realistic and brilliant animation, however, my opinion on Your name being draining changed dramatically. Primarily because of the plot twist. The plot twist is just brilliant, it clears everything up but adds such an intense element that you just sit there in shock. I refuse to spoil the movie for you.

Every eventful conversation is very meaningful. They lead you somewhere to guide the story and dictate the direction of the story which I find to be very clever writing. Things happen very suddenly but they aren’t jarring, quite realistic in my opinion because often the most unexpected things are the most realistic. Part of Your name being so good is because complex characteristics are presented in such a simple manner that it’s easy to comprehend.

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The contrast of the lives they lead may seem like a common troupe but it was handled very well. They weren’t dense, nor were they straying away from their feelings, just had a hard time conveying them. Simply said, they are ordinary kids. Their thoughts are parallel, way of thinking is similar as well (you’ll see why in the movie) however they have different beliefs concerning the way of life.

Here, I’ll talk a little more about characters. Mitsuha Miyamizu and Taki Tachibana and other side characters have a purpose, they speak about matters or have skills that are of importance to the story and so aren’t left hanging as irrelevant characters. They make a lot of sense, they aren’t completely random and have their place in the world of Your name. So the exposition of the characters is perfect. Some act as emotional support, some act as a random character to add that effect of realism and the rest are there to help in the rising action and falling action of the plot. Their actions funnily fit not only their personality as well as their face. You could claim as the creator being judgmental but being judgmental is what makes the characters so fitting. Like Toshiki Miyamizu, Mitsuha’s father has that stern look and acts as a strict father which speaks a lot about the tension in the family or Tsukasa Fujii who supports Taki as much as possible in his pursuit of finding Mitsuha.

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~A turning point for Mitsuha~

Animation is one of the biggest reasons to watch Your Name. Such crystal clear, the smooth cumulation of frames with insane detail for both background and foreground is a treat for the eyes. The animation is so good that at one point it felt like CGI, especially at the Miko dance scenes. Never in my entire life have I ever thought hand-drawn frames would be so immensely detailed, so immensely smooth, that they would mimic CGI. I’m not saying the animation looked bad (quite the opposite), I’m just implying it had all the good points of CGI mixed in with hand-drawn frames. That’s the most desirable animation in the animation industry. 10/10, it impressed me far too much. Many people claim that animation should not weigh in on how good an anime is but here, the animation is far too splendid to ignore.

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~Some crisp animation~

Combined with music in Your name, it adds an emotional punch to the movie. The music sways your heart, moves you and fits very appropriately. I nearly cried once when the music hit. Just goes to show you how intense it can be.

Foreshadowing is another aspect of writing but it was done so well, I wanted to add another paragraph on it. I’ve read a couple of other reviews and none of them highlighted one aspect. Which are the red threads or red strings of fate. Legend states that 2 people connected by this thread will never be torn apart, they will be connected regardless of any external force such as time, place or circumstance which is exactly what happens in Your name. 2 people connected by the strings of fate, come together bound by fate. It’s been foreshadowed in the opening and presented throughout the movie, only if you possess such knowledge will you get to the deeper meaning behind it. Not to mention, it is a very famous Japanese legend. You can read about it here.

~Watch video~
~Red string of fate connecting Mitusha and Taki~

You consistently see red threads, even the braided cord on Mitsuha’s hair and Taki’s wrist is made of red threads(strings if you want to), they are symbolic of red threads of fate. Honestly, one of the best implications of symbolism I have seen. It’s obvious yet beautiful, I love it. Even Itomori itself is an aspect of foreshadowing but that takes a very intuitive person to read into. Only after finishing the movie will you understand its significance.

Your name is a Drama you will love. The story is one to fall in love with.
Mitsuha and Taki are both at such great distances, indifferent to each other if they were strangers but they meet regardless of their circumstances as if it was a twist of fate unbound by time, unbound by space. Such a simple tale tells such a wonderful story, You'll be completely absorbed and lost in the tale it tells. Your name is stunningly beautiful and a must-watch.

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Writer's note - You can skip over this if you want to. For those of you who didn't, thanks for taking the time and reading my review. If you have any criticism, please give me your feedback on my personal profile while referring to the review. I would highly appreciate so I can increase the quality of my content. Btw, I had an unusually difficult time writing this review. Writer's block is excruciatingly painful.