My Cultural Diet

I haven’t watched Your Name in its entirety since seeing it in the theater back in 2016, which inspired this lengthy post about the movie’s mythology. This time around, I watched it with my daughter, who was thoroughly caught up in the story of a teenage boy and girl who mysteriously begin swapping bodies. As with any Shinkai film, Your Name is gorgeous. Indeed, I think it represents the zenith of his work, with lush backgrounds, highly detailed animation of trivial details (like handwriting) that feels like a total flex, and a particularly inspired surreal moment in the middle of the film. The film’s visuals are so good, in fact, that his character designs seem a bit basic by comparison. Story-wise, it’s all melodrama all the time. I’m still not sure how well it all comes together, especially in the final act with its big revelations about our heroes and their body-swapping, but Shinkai’s wears his heart so plainly on his sleeve that I can’t be mad. It’s easy to see why Your Name became such a cultural groundswell in Japan upon its release.

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