Anime Review – 5 Centimeters Per Second

Author: nova

Makoto Shinkai. The name that’s quickly becoming a household title within anime fandom and even praised as some as the new Miyakazaki. A man who worked his way into fame by self-made animations and now continues his success with a new anime movie 5 Centimeters Per Second. Being somewhat fan of previous works of Shinkai, I was quite enthusiastic about 5cm/sec and managed to pull together enough budget to get this latest release on a DVD.



Shinkai’s movies are one of the things that strongly divide opinions – one either loves them or hates them like nothing else. Personally I found his previous major works Hoshi no Koe and Kumo no Mukou, Yakusoku no Basho very enjoyable and touching – and naturally expected this of 5cm/second.

I could write paragraph after another on how the movie met every single expectation I had for it and then some, but hopefully this one will do. 5cm/sec is guaranteed Shinkai. If you like his previous works, you will no doubt love this one. The movie is very emotional and features very streamlined style typical of Shinkai’s animations. The show does makes the feelings and circumstances of the character very clear, but leaves a lot of the math to be done by the viewer.

Shinkai’s greatest weakness is his character animation which appears simplistic and sometimes blocky, although in the case of 5cm/sec one can see great improvement from Hoshi no Koe. However the man himself seems to be quite aware of this and appears to know how to counter it. 5cm/sec has a great focus on what Shinkai does best – describing everyday objects, sceneries and situations in an aesthetic and touching way. 5cm/sec doesn’t rely on flashy CG-work, cool action or breathtaking views of the future to amaze to viewer, but rather describe and visualize everyday things in a way that is very subtle and realistic but at the same time incredibly beautiful. The sunlight sweeping through the floor of a train carriage, the warm and slightly flickering light of a fluorescent tube in the middle of a snowstorm, snow falling silently next to a parked train, a single man in a coat leaning to a concrete pillar next to a vending machine, colorful timetables of a train station and of course the obligatory cherry blossoms reflecting of a windshield of a passing car – 5cm/sec takes these everyday views and presents them in almost miraculous light.


Not that the movie would be all scenic route from start to finish. 5cm/sec is a chain of three stories of love, separation and sadness – a familiar theme from the Shinkai’s previous animations, but it’s surprising how striking it is every time around. The separation of childhood friends, feelings of isolation and longing are conveyed in a way that I found very touching. Not to mention the Cosmonaut-storyarc’s strong focus on unrequited love, something many of us can well relate to.

All in all 5 Centimeters Per Second is an excellent movie and should not be missed by any anime fan out there and other people as well. This is a powerful love story with an unique view and may require a special mindset for full enjoyment, but well worth the 62 minutes it consumes. Some people have complained about the ending which is indeed unconventional, but personally I found it to be original and satisfying conclusion.