Tiny may it be, but no means miserable. There are souls who'll feel your sorrow, for you are the world

Wednesday 13 May 2020

Weathering With You 天気の子(Tenki no Ko) - MakotoShinkai




During these lockdown time I have taken my time to re-watch 君の名は Your Name (Kimi No Na Wa) and wanted to write something about Makoto Shinkai latest works - 天気の子 Weathering With You (Tenki No Ko) which watched last year. Im no critics or rotten tomatoes sort, I just simply want to write down what i think of these films plus if you are reading this i am assumed that you have watch them both and know the plot. If somehow you have not watch them both, please spoilers alert, although not going to discuss a lot of plot details, but still.. spoiler alert.

君の名は Your Name is the number one grossing animation film in the world which it came out on 2016, best works of Makoto Shinkai and Your Name has brought a lot of attention to him, and when his new film comes out - Weathering with You a lot of people is comparing his latest works with Your Name, like he has created a best film how can he topped it off. while some people is actually disappointed that din't meet the level of Your Name, but for me i think its kind of unfair, both are definitely great films, its just like comparing your who is your favorite child, of course you might have one, but you definitely love them both.

Stories climax on Weathering With You is indeed slower than Your Name, where it happen almost at the end of the film where Hina(female protagonist) disappear and Hodaka(male protagonist) is looking for her through the shrine on top the building. Your Name climax point on other hand is at the middle of the film. Perhaps this is why some people dislike it because it has a slower development compare to Your Name. While it has the slower pace but for me, to see the Hodaka's character development that trying to find his place or himself in an unfamiliar city while develop his relationship with Hina and others is indeed a good sight to see. But overall, comparing to Your Name, Weathering with you have a much straight forward storyline, unlike Your Name where it has tons of "cipher" moment where you have to think why it happens, like the explanation of "誰そ彼" (Tasokare) the twilight time where you might see something you usually don't or the "結び" where it describe as how time is entangle, twisted all together. While Weathering with You has the very similar theme set, like shrine, god, blessing of god. Although it has a plainer story line but the character development is really great, especially it heavily indicate how much you can fight for love, like how Hodaka do all the things necessary to bring back Hina, of course Your Name has all these element as well, but its not as heavily shows than in Weathering with You, you would definitely know what i am talking about especially at the ending of the film. 
To sacrifice one to save millions, but what if the sacrifice is your loved one? Just like how Hodaka statement he made to Hina while they falling from the sky "Who cares if we don't see the sunshine again? i want you more than any blue sky, the weather can stay crazy" simply saying fuck the rest of the world, i only want you. See how a 16 years old is so much braver than a lot of adults when fight for their love, i know its  fiction but still...

Visual
Don't doubt it, its Makoto Shinkai's works, the visual is STUNNING just like his previous works. He really likes to animate rain, like in most his previous works sure that is a rain screen like, The Garden of Words, Your Name etc, and of course Weathering with You whole plot is about rain. All these details from rain drops, bubbles, the reflection of the puddle, food details, ray of lights, fireworks, and more have been animated to best details as possible, sharp and almost perfectly real. 

Music
Again, all of the music including the 5 vocal songs is all composed by Radwimps like previously in Your Name, but this time they are featuring a lady singer Toko Miura, singing 2 of the 5 vocal song. 
For me personally, songs for Weathering with You has more feel and fuse better with the movie with the lyrics almost like an explanation to the movie itself, but don't get me wrong, i really really like the songs in Your Name
Like the song "We'll be alright" playing in the end for their reunion, the lyrics the melody, fit right in, or at where they are falling from the sky and "Grand Escape" is playing, my god it gave me chills.
For the ending song Radwimps composed this after reading the scripts and present Makoto Shinkai this song "is that anything that love can do", in Weathering with You, this will be my favorite song, but in both of the films, my favorite still is "Nandemonaiya" ending song from Your Name.



I read a comment previously which fitly describe both Your Name and Weathering with you.
He said
"Your Name is finding love in fate
And Weathering with You is fighting fate for love"

While this post only saying these 2 films, but i do recommend you watch his other works, the very first Makoto Shinkai's works i watch was "The place promised in our early days" and second will be "5 centimetre per second", and for "5 centimetre per second" if you have a soft heart dont watch it, it just have too much heart piercing moment and ending. its a definitely an awesomely good film but i hate it, because its too real and sad. From all his works exclude the Your Name and Weathering with You, the one i like the most will be "
星を追う子ども" literal translation will be the "children who chase stars" but in English films title has changed to "Children Who Chase Lost Voices" not sure why they did that, well if you have time you definitely should check this films, it interpret death, and good music especially the ending song "Hello goodbye and Hello" might make you shed tears. Good storyline. But for this into details maybe another time


PS:
I did not proof read or re-read the whole post, so any mistake please forgive me






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