Metaphorical Nostalgia

Rating: 9/10 (29 September 2016)

Warning: A very warm movie with a scent of contagious nostalgia.
Like other notable Studio Ghibli movies, the director Makoto Shinkai widely uses realism to touch the minds and hearts of his audience. From the beginning, the breathe-taking and very realistic imagery pushes you to keep watching the movie. Immediately, we are introduced to the two main character's backgrounds: high school student Taki who lives in Tokyo and is distracted by his studies and part-time job, and Mitsuha, a young girl who lives in an isolated town and daydreams of going to Tokyo. One day, Mitsuha wishes with all her heart to have a life in Tokyo and somehow awakens the ancient Japanese Gods who allow her to switch lives and bodies with Taki.(Freaky Friday, much?) However, what is most interesting in this case, is the theme of being unsatisfied with the present, and longing to be in another area or period of time, even.
Though we are focused on Mitsuha, the turning point in the movie is focused on Taki's realization that Mitsuha has been writing his diary entries for him. Taki is really the main character who has to juggle with the much harsher repercussions of realizing that someone has been swapping lives with him and how they're effecting his job and daily life. At this point, Taki is bewildered but infinitely curious about who this person is. Then, he decides to call Mitsuha with the phone number she has provided. Yet, he can't reach her phone, which we realize is because she does not exist, not in his world, at least. So, Mitsuha is imaginary in Taki's world, and Taki is imaginary in hers. On both ends of the spectrum, Mitsuha and Taki are different periods of time, one where (Mitsuha's) country (or town) still exists and one where it doesn't. Connection to nature, in this case, Mitsuha, is nonexistent in Taki's world. In fact, the loss of connection to spirit and nature is quite a conventional theme of films directed by Japanese animation directors such as Miyazaki and Shinkai (just to name a few). This theme is not coincidentally used in the majority of Japanese-produced (animation) films (see: metaphors in Spirited Away), but reflects the conflict of many, if not, the majority of working Japanese middle-class, who convey a large percentage of Japan's population. Many of these people are completely immersed into their work, thus gradually missing a spiritual connection to their "religion" and home. (Notice: the shrine is an important symbol for home) A great amount of Japanese people leave their hometown "the countryside" to move to a bigger, more "successful" city, in this case, Tokyo. It can be suggested, then, that the movie has attracted the majority who face this conflict daily, which could explain how it became a box office hit in Japanese theaters. This leaves me to presume that Taki and Mitsuha are moving metaphors of City versus Country, of Modernity versus Tradition. Both of these metaphors are moving towards each other. City yearns for the country, while modernity yearns for tradition. This reflects the sad state of Japanese society (and other societies as well): the feeling of artificiality in the materialism of city life. The feeling of "something missing" or emptiness in the working nonstop 24/7 life. Indeed, the most beautiful moment in the movie is in its final scene, when Taki and Mitsuha reunite after 8 years and realize who they are and what they mean to each other. After all those years, Mitsuha (and Taki) realizes that Taki still needs his "country". "Country," or more specifically, home, will always come back to remind you where you came from. Absolutely loved this movie and 10/10 recommend.