Well for starters this might well be the most beautiful animation I’ve ever seen. A truly breathtaking piece of hyper-real art. It tells the fantastic story of Hodaka and Hina, as they meet in a rain soaked Tokyo. Hina is no ordinary girl though and can control the sun, banishing the rain from the city, momentarily making everyone happy. Every time she does though, she loses a little more of herself, destined to finally disappear and become part of the sky with which she’s become connected. On realising this, Hodaka, a teenage runaway, does everything he can to hold on to the girl he’s fallen in love with, but the earthly bounds of the society around him, make that anything but easy. It’s a love story, but one woven with charming comedy, assorted characters and the real life grit of living on the breadline and being wanted by the authorities in a vast metropolitan city. The animation truly is something else, whether it’s the rain, the jaw dropping aerial shots of the city or the stunning camera work, which would be heart-stopping if real, but is truly staggering when animated. A beautiful piece of extraordinary cinema.
9/10
