Review of Your Name. (2016) by Philip H — 09 Apr 2017

Shinkai reminds me of Ozu in that they both like to repeat themes throughout their filmography, exploring them in various ways. This develops a sense of familiarity and comfort with a director that I appreciate, while also discovering their new ways of probing those themes.

Shinkai in particular likes to delve into the idea of distance between people, and how it affects them as individuals, and the way they relate to one another. That distance may take the form of time, space, geography, or age, but feels real and places practical obstacles between his characters.

To date, I think this is Shinkai's masterpiece, and the more you've experienced his prior works, I think the more satisfying this will be for you. Your Name is probably his most gorgeous film, and definitely the funniest and emotionally engaging.

It's a shame the film didn't get more exposure and land it an Oscar nomination. As good as Zootopia is, and as much as I like Kubo and the Two Strings, I think this outshines them both. This is not to say that Your Name needs the affirmation of the Academy to find it's proper place in the animated films of 2016, but it would have been nice to see it reach a wider audience.