Dec 19, 2023
Watched twice now, and I have come away feeling even warmer the second time around.
This movie, as the other reviews have said, is the most realistic romance I've ever seen animated. It's melodramatic and poetic in narration, but only in the ways that people actually are. Scenes are almost underacted (this grew on me). The characters are messy the way we all are in our late teens/early twenties. It's tight, and doesn't drag, at only 60 minutes. There is a stunning lack of tropes. This reads like someone's actual memoir.
Another reviewer complains that the motivations of the characters were unclear, but I find it
...
impossible to see it that way. Anyone who's experienced a serious relationship as an adult can see the exact ways in which our neurotic behaviors can compound under quiet duress.
From an animator's perspective, this movie is also a triumph.
BGs here are so finely rendered, some of the most beautiful I've ever seen. The lighting and composition stand out in nearly every shot, and the camera luxuriates in it. It KNOWS how amazing the art is. They capture such specific spaces in all their realistic, messy details, it feels more real than reality. The biggest flex, though, is that they'll use a BG for maybe 2, 3 seconds, before cutting to another shot, equally beautiful, never to return. I was alone watching this the second time, but I still found myself audibly exclaiming at certain shots of the city and their hometown.
The character animation, too, stands out, not because of any dramatic action sequences (though the soccer scenes are more than competent), but because of careful camera work and pacing, traits so undervalued in many modern productions. Keep an eye out for how they use POV shots as suffocating, self-conscious moments, when we are most "in their heads."
I'm rating this a nine because it succeeds in every aspect it sets out to explore, but I think this movie only resonates with people who've had to negotiate serious relationships (platonic or otherwise) with adult responsibilities over a long period of time.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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