Is 5 Centimeters Per Second good?

[yuki-chan]

They asked me to bring a movie to school tomorrow and I decided to bring 5 Centimeters Per Second. Is the movie good, my classmates thinks that anime and manga are boring, but I want to bring this movie because I saw Hoshi o Ou Kodomo and I liked it, I readed that the director has made good movies and 5 Centimeters Per Second is his best movie.

[Peytral]

I didn't really care much for the movie, but that was mostly because it just wasn't my cup of tea at all. I'll tell you that it's very different from Hoshi wo Ou Kodomo (which I absolutely loved). I won't really try to say much aside from that, since I seem to be the black sheep when it comes to this movie and Wyrdwad will be able to offer much more informed opinions.

though, not sure if 5 Centimeters Per Second is the right movie to show to a class that thinks anime and manga are boring. It's definitely a very... not sure what the word is. It's not really "action-y" at all.

[Garuno]

5 cm per second is a masterpiece. Nuff said. I <3 it.

And it's a bit slow, so they might not like it, but I bet if they pay attentions dem tears will be shed.

[Peytral]

And then I found myself wondering, once again, why I didn't like it. I didn't even cry throughout the entire movie. >:

[Ivy]

Going to be nosy here, feel free not to answer if it's PERSONAL~

Why did they ask you to choose and bring a movie to watch? Is it for an assignment or is it to kill time or what?

[Wyrdwad]

If they're not into Japanese culture and literary tradition, 5 Centimeters Per Second most likely won't appeal to them -- which is a shame, because it is an absolutely spectacular movie, and one of my favorites of all time.

You might be better off with Satoshi Kon's "Millennium Actress." I can't imagine anyone taking issue with that movie. It's got a lot more action, a much more involved story, great humor, great visuals, great music and still a whole lot of Japanese feel without screaming "ANIME!".

-Tom

[Cobaltwire]

Like Tom said, it's a great movie but isn't everyones cup of tea.

[Ryos]

I'm not sure any movie's really all that good of an option in terms of people who dislike anime because most movies are style over substance. There are a few rare exceptions but you'd need some context...Grave of the Fireflies, for instance, is one of those amazing sorts of experiences but if you aren't too spun up on WW II history or find anime boring, that wouldn't really do. If I had to go with only one possible release for people who find anime boring/etc., I'd probably pull out the first Kenshin OVA episodes because if you don't like those, you pretty much aren't going to like anything. If you have to go with a movie, I'd say almost anything from Studio Ghibli (barring Grave of the Fireflies, which is again heavily dependent on circumstances) is a fairly safe bet because I haven't seen a title yet from them where I came away wishing I hadn't.

[Raguna]

Yeah even that game thats being sorta made by Studio Ghibli. What was it again Ni No Kuni? Is getting a lot of coverage in Gamestop's GameInformer having two pages for itself.

[Wyrdwad]

I dunno, I wasn't a fan of the Kenshin OAVs personally -- but then, samurai drama really isn't my thing.

I still say Millennium Actress is a great all-around choice, easily matching (or IMO topping) anything from Studio Ghibli -- but SOME Studio Ghibli movies would be good choices as well. Princess Mononoke is probably the best all-around choice for a mixed group, I'd say.

Tokyo Godfathers would be a good choice as well, from the same guy who did Millennium Actress (RIP Satoshi Kon, you will be missed!). And if you really want to show something from Makoto Shinkai (the Hoshi wo Ou Kodomo guy), you might consider The Place Promised In Our Early Days -- not as good a movie as 5cm/sec, but definitely more accessible.

-Tom