Byousoku 5 Centimeter

Title: Byousoku 5 Centimeter 5 Centimeters per Second B5C ~a chain of short stories about their distance~ Byousoku 5CM 秒速5センチメートル (Japanese) Overall: Watch Keywords: 2007, Modern, Movie, Romance, Slice of Life Notables: R1 License - ADV A movie consisting of three parts, basically telling the story of two people, Tohno Takaki and Shinohara Akari, who were close friends but gradually grow farther and farther apart as time moves on. Takaki and Akari become separated because of their families yet continue to exchange contact in the form of eMails. Yet as time continues to trudge on, their contact with one another begins to cease. Years pass and the rift between them grows ever larger. However, Takaki remembers the times they have shared together, but as life continues to unfold for him, he wonders if he would be given the chance to meet Akari again as the tale embarks on Takaki's realization of the world and people around him. Part 1 - The Chosen Cherry Blossoms (26 min): Because of family movement, Shinohara Akari had leave Tokyo upon graduation from elementary school. The deep feelings between Takaki and Akari for each other keep them in contact, but they worry they may not meet again. Then, one day, Takaki learns that his familiy will move from Tokyo to an island in the far south of Japan, so he decides to use this last opportunity visit Akari by train... Part 2 - Cosmonaut (21 min): Years have passed, and Takaki still writes eMails aimed at Akari, only to never send them to her. Meanwhile Sumita Kanae, his classmate, has special feelings for Takaki, but she does not have the courage to express her love to him... Part 3 - 5 Centimeters per Second (16 min, more of a music clip than anime): Takaki is working as computer programmer now, occasionally remembering his former life - and love. And then, at a railroad crossing he suddenly passes by a woman who looks familiar to him... [3-part Movie, 2007, 63 min; Animation by CoMix Wave & Shinkai Makoto; reported as being licensed by ADV Films, but there might be issues. ANN reports that the DVD release of this title has been discontinued by ADV, effective July 11th, ’08.] From the same animation team who worked on Hoshizora Kiseki, Hoshi no Koe and Kumo no Mukou, Yakusoku no Basho 1:39min Movie Trailer (Eng-sub) - YouTube Video

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Overall	Art	Animation	Character Design	Music	Series Story	Episode Story	Reviewer
Watch 4	10	9	5	7	6	3	Devil Doll	#
Byousoku 5 Centimeter [Score: 63%] Absolutely stunning Art and Animation, probably the best Makoto Shinkai has done to date... and that's quite something, given his record of previous works. Yet I deducted 1 point from Animation because of the video clip nature of the final part which is too far away from what I expect "anime" to be. That's more like an AMV, actually. Once again, "long distance relationships suck" is the message of this anime (this time extended to "and it sucks so hard that it can destroy a person"). And that's not enough for me, watching the potential couple(s) suffer and sob through this movie. Few dialogs, long flashbacks and soliloquies; less actual story than even in Hoshi no Koe. The events boil down to all characters feeling unable to do anything against their fate (without actually trying, that is); never before have I watched an anime that was so frustrating. And I do like drama and even tragedy stories... but suffering for no particular reason, where's the point in watching this show? "Such is life" isn't sufficient for me as an answer. I guess Makoto Shinkai's works are just not my cup of tea. I want character development, not three painful momentary snapshots of epic dimensions each. The high ratings for all the technical aspects didn't allow me to give an "Avoid" rating here but it was a close call. Last updated Thursday, January 31 2008.
Unevaluated 4							chibi	#
Byousoku 5 Centimeter Right away the first episode reminded me strongly of "Voices of a Distant Star", and, sure enough, when I checked it was by the same team. Beautiful artwork -- if this is computer-generated, it's a clear jump in the use of the technology. The story is also about a boy and girl separated by distance, but connected by messages they send each other and their feelings. Only 3 half-hour episodes in the series? It will be interesting to see how they're used. Last updated Thursday, March 01 2007.

Other Sites

Name	URL
Japanese Language Web Site	http://5cm.yahoo.co.jp/
Wikipedia entry for "5 centimeters per second"	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/5_Centimeters_Per_Second
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