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Suzume is modern Shinkai's third work after Your Name and Weathering with You. A common criticism shared by other reviewers is that Suzume's plot is a rehash of the previous two. I think this interpretation has validity, but to write off this movie because of that would be tragic. If you've enjoyed modern Shinkai's other works, you'll enjoy this one too.

I think Suzume is best interpreted as Shinkai exploring the themes raised in his older works, The Place Promised in our Early Days, 5 Centimeters per Second and Garden of Words. Without spoilers, these films had a heavy emphasis on the ubiquitous struggle and ... stagnation faced by those who've lost a loved one. A common criticism of Shinkai's older films before the commercial success of Your Name is that the plots are incomplete, and the emotional aspects too subtle to resonate.

At it's core, Suzume is about coming to terms with the randomness of death and the importance of loving the people around you. You never know when they might go, so we must "live" the time we're given to its fullest. These universally emotional messages are packaged in a relatable, but not melodramatic story about growing up. Shinkai wants us to understand that as long as we are alive, "we already have everything we need." The movie is a Shinkai's tribute to the victims of the 2011 Tōhoku Earthquake.

People who love Shinkai's older works will find that Suzume is a maturation of Shinkai's thoughts on loss. While his previous films conveyed grief and distance, Suzume conveys liberation and gratitude. Shinkai stated in an interview that Suzume is the highlight of his career so far, and I personally couldn't agree more.

Those who are on the fence about this movie, do yourself a favour and go see it. Those who came here because they're upset by the negative reviews, me too. Suzume lives too far beyond the horizon to be touched by those who refuse to see its beauty.

I love Children of the Sea.

I love its saturated palette. Joe Hisaishi’s atmospheric music. Acid-trip cinematography. Sublime art. A surreal plot that will bend your mind to the ends of the universe, but then back again to return perfectly to its origin, where everything settles beautifully.

This will be a full interpretation of every plot-relevant event. Please use this review as a guide for your own thoughts, rather than a concrete explanation.

Initially, Ruka is a young girl stranded on an island with the entire Pacific sprawling before her, stranded by her frustrations of growing up and communicating with others.

She struggles with communicating her feelings ... and understanding her own wants. She balls up in anticipation for a long, uneventful summer vacation.

Soon after, in her father’s aquarium, Ruka meets Umi, a carefree spirit dancing in his own world. He tells her that “things that shine will always be found,” and Ruka is swept up by her fascination and the beauty of the will-o’-wisps, meteors falling from the sky. She clutches to Umi’s hand as he leads her onward, noticing his incredible warmth.

Umi is a metaphorical representation of Ruka’s connection to others, her own tie to humanity. A physical expression of her desire.

Umi takes her to meet Sora, his brother. We find out that he is sick, and will soon die. The three of them board the aquarium’s boat on a reckless journey out into the open sea, fueled by Ruka’s aversion to seeing her alcoholic mother, apologizing to the handball team, and frustration with herself.

Sora is a metaphorical representation of Ruka’s appetition, her curiosity for the unknown.
When Umi takes Ruka’s hands, she feels warmth and fulfilment. When Sora takes Ruka’s hands, he is pulling her into the unforgiving ocean water.

The sea is omnipresent throughout the movie. The sea, space and the universe are representations of Ruka’s thalassophobic helplessness in a vast and unknowable world.

After a storm, Sora gets lost and Ruka rides with Umi on a truck to a secluded area where she meets Anglade. Anglade is a marine biologist who isolates himself from society to understand the world around him.

Anglade asserts that the sea and the space are one and the same, that we are made out of the same substance, and we are connected to people across worlds. There is an inexplicable vastness in the universe; 90% of it is made of dark matter that we can never observe. Yet, Anglade seems to suggest that we should be content in merely experiencing the wonder of creation. Nothing more.

In a beautiful coalescence of colour, Ruka, Umi and Sora wade through the seawater. Blue plankton light up the world and warmly envelop the trio.

Ruka wakes up in the middle of the night to a feverish Umi. She is surprised by Sora in the darkness, who leads her to the shore.

Sora, before he disappears in a streak of light, kisses Ruka and forces her to swallow a meteor.
The meteor is representative of Ruka’s appetition for the unknown.

For an unknown number of years, Anglade and Jim have attempted to collect data to understand when the “festival” will happen, which will mark the end of the boys’ lifespans. After failing to “save” Sora, Jim deletes his research data and announces that his goals have changed: rather than to prolong the lifespans of Umi and Sora, he now strives to protect them from the interference of arrogant people. Self righteous adults have no place in imposing biases on a child’s self reckoning.

Ruka, drunken and confused with the meteor inside her, rides out to sea with grandma Dede and Umi, where the former gives a speech about how we can never fully perceive things around us. We can only catch fragments of memories in the wind, as if we were sails. Through these fragments, we come to understand ourselves and the world we live in.

Ruka dives into the water, driven by her appetition and curiosity. She is swallowed by colossal beings, constantly reminding us of our insignificance in the presence of the sea, and space. She meets Sora again inside a chamber, who tells her that her job is complete. She begins to ascend through space and the universe and the camera pans out to show galaxies, DNA, primitive life forms, and seemingly the fabric of the universe itself.

Ruka, now a being made of stars, meets a fully material Umi, who drives himself through a shield of flames surrounding her, and grabs the meteor fragment burning in her chest.

Ruka fights Umi for this fragment, as if to say “Umi, this drive is dangerous, you cannot have it.” Umi and Ruka somersault over each other for the possession of this meteor. In this process, Ruka comes to the realization that she must return to humanity, and this meteor will not allow her to do so. When Umi turns into an infant, in an act of her own volition, Ruka gives this meteor piece to Umi. This action represents her maturity; a willful choice to return to reality, now that her appetition has been sated, her job complete. It is her desire for human connection that brings her to chase Umi’s warmth. The two fall into the sea, and Umi begins to disappear.

Ruka fights to hold onto fragments of Umi as his body loses materiality. She screams out “Umi, please stay with me,” grasping for his perfect personification of the warmth of love and connection. As the final piece of Umi bursts into a tiny fragment of the universe far away, Ruka, with tears in her eyes, is met with familiar voices: her parents. What is shining will always be found.

She is pulled out of the sea by her desperately worried folks.

In a conversation with Dede, Ruka tearily asks why she was chosen for this, and remarks that she wishes to see the boys again. Dede, empathetically tells her that she has experienced a beautiful boy by the sea as well. Dede explains that the journey to maturity is a path that all humans trek at some point in their life. “The most important things cannot be conveyed with words.” Ruka, having received solidarity from Dede, and a newfound trust in herself, runs forward into her life with a newfound spring in her step.

Some time in the future, Ruka sloshes through crystalline waves on a golden beach. Under the gaze of the clouds, she is content to kiss the beauty of the everyday. Perhaps longing for days past, she looks toward the horizon where the blues are blurred and recalls an unforgettable time with those who changed her life.

I am writing this review because I believe I hold an uncommon opinion. Don’t worry, it’s spoiler free. Allow me the time to tell you a story.

Once upon a time, a little boy was shopping at a mall with his mother, when he passed by a brightly lit shop window sporting an inviting neon sign at the entrance, labelled simply “Candy.” The display case under the sign had a large, swirly lollipop in it, each swirl being a different color. Eager to satisfy his taste buds with the sweetness of a candy he has never ever seen before, the boy tugged on his mother’s coat ... collar, begging for her to buy him the seemingly delicious treat.

The mother, not even bothering to look at the price tag, took a single glance at the ridiculous lollipop and told her son, “It’s not worth it, I’ll buy you something else.” Being a stubborn little boy, he sat down onto the floor and refused to move a single step. Exasperated, the mother led the boy into the shop and paid for the candy.

The boy, overjoyed at his victory over his mother, licked his lollipop with vigor. After a few licks, he noticed the lollipop didn’t taste proper. Taking a look at it, he noticed that he’s been blending the different colored swirls with his disobedient tongue. Despite realizing this, the boy noticed that there was nothing he could do to salvage his ruined lollipop. Not knowing what to say to his mother, he finished it silently.

Later that night, the mother asked the boy, “how was that lollipop?” The boy, not wanting to admit his own wrongdoing, plastered a smile over his face and replied, “it was great.”

What is the moral of this story? There are a few.
1. Just because something is new and fancy, it doesn’t mean that it’s good.
2. A weird blend of themes and flavours will not always leave a good taste in your mouth.
3. Mainstream consumers do not want to admit the faults in their initial judgement.


<Artstyle and initial thoughts: 10/10>
How does this relate to the anime Houseki no Kuni? It should be quite clear. The “innovation” in this series is the usage of CGI. In the brief history of anime I’ve had the pleasure of experiencing, there has not been an instance where CGI was used well. Naturally, a show that executes a controversial style well would receive positive attention. Admittedly, the artstyle for this show suited its purposes well enough, so I have no complaints. In fact, talking strictly cinematography, art and sound, this show is unparalleled at creating an immersive atmosphere. Now, if that’s the case, why did I imply that the show “isn’t good?” Speaking of the show’s purposes, you’ll see soon enough.

This show is complicated in many ways. Plot, characters, setting, all of it. Allow me to clarify. Complex shows are not intrinsically bad, in fact, that’s far from the truth. However, shows that end up complex due to blatant execution issues are BAD. Not even god tier art can carry such an aimless, thoughtless story.

<Setting and Plot: 3/10>
Let me start with the setting. The worldbuilding in this show is highly fantastical, and the explanation behind how everything ended up the way it was sounds like something a 13-year-old whose idol is his geologist grandpa would come up with. Sure, it’s ludicrous, but there’s nothing wrong with a good laugh, but I digress. The premise of the show is surprisingly amazing for philosophical explorations on rational sentience and immortality. On top of that, the CGI artstyle compliments this setting very well, leading to some extremely beautiful scenes. Sounds like fun and lollipops, right?

No. Here comes the plot. The first two episodes work to introduce the characters and the world, but it suffers from a major writing issue. It leads you to believe that this show is a social commentary emphasizing on the hierarchical nature that results from self contained communities, and how each character suffers as a result of their own mental insecurities and lack of identity. That doesn’t sound too bad, if it actually followed up with what it set itself up as.

After a series of slimy (ha, ha.) events, you find yourself in a confusing spot halfway through the show where you start to wonder where this show is going. Remember what I said about the setting being an optimal one for philosophical exploration of unique themes? You actually get some of that. Just three lines of dialogue unrelated to the plot, then the show wants you to forget about everything that happened in the first half of the show in favour of some shounen style character development, which is carried out for the remainder of the show, to my massive disappointment. Sadly, the first half of the show provided weak narrative exposition at best and pretentious, irrelevant babble at worst, and this was actually the good half of the show.

Do you like repetitive, meaningless fights with no emotional implications or plot strings attached to it? This was the case with most of the fight scenes in Houseki no Kuni. The typical end result of each fight is that our main character "develops." You'll see what I mean.

<Characters: 2/10>
Don’t we all love that classic slice of life “conclusion,” where a stupidly dramatic event drastically alters the characters beyond recognition, in a weak attempt to add dimension to the cast? Wait a second, I hate that. Referring back to the plot section, I mentioned that the first two episodes set the show up for a character oriented exploration? I guess it wasn’t completely off the mark, if Dora the Explorer is your type of “exploration.”

The supporting cast is usually defined by a single, one dimensional trait that dominates their entire character. This is evident in Diamond, Cinnabar and Bort. The rest of the many characters are not worth mentioning. There is some very weak development by the end of the show, but this was not the anime’s focus.

My dear Phosphophyllite. You developed so much, its almost as if you underwent a chemical change (pun and sarcasm intended). This character’s journey of self discovery was the aim of the show, yet her changes are not only inconsistent with her former self, ridiculously dramatic, but also violates the laws of chemistry. The sequence of events that led up to who the character became by the end of the show was definitely the result of inadequate planning and incompetent writing, evident by a chain of stupidly dramatic incidents that served no other purpose than to turn Phos into a more dynamic character.

Perhaps you don't agree with my criticism that Houseki no Kuni's characters lack depth, if you've seen the show. It's difficult to argue this point without spoiling anything, but I'll say this: our only knowledge of Phosphophyllite is her current desires and motivations, which progress from a linear lack of self worth to a sentimental attachment to a certain dead character following a short time skip. Both of these plot devices lack narrative backbone and portrays Phosphophyllite as incredibly shallow and her actions extremely simple. There was not a point in the show where I questioned the motives or psychological states of a single character, because this shallowness is present in the entire cast. There simply isn't enough information or character exploration in the show.

My last point lies in my disappointment that the basic premise of immortal people was not evident at all in the characters’ behaviour. In fact, every member of the cast acts like a 21st century high school student, which ruined the immersive atmosphere the art desperately tried to create.

<Final Thoughts and total score: 5/10>

It may be clear by now, but my biggest issue with this show is the obvious lack of direction in its narrative, mismanagement of dramatic structure and insignificant ending. I am aware that the anime does not adapt the entirety of the manga, but hey, I’m just reviewing what’s here right now.

Would I recommend this show? If you’re interested in sitting through a 12 episode tech demo, be my guest, but don’t place many expectations on the storyline to provide a compelling analysis of a theme, or the characters to bring any entertainment.

I will reiterate that the art was beautiful. There is no denying that. After all, isn’t a big, swirly, colorful lollipop enticing? Just don’t forget, mommy warned you...