Note: This has been released commercially! Please support anime in the US by purchasing the commercial version! Thanks!
REVIEW of:
I Can Hear
the Sea
|
An in-depth look into the process of "growing
up", I Can Hear the Sea is a realistic portrayal of life in modern
day Japan. The story revolves around the college student Taku Morisaki,
who is on a plane heading towards his first high school reunion.
On the plane, he reminisces about high school times, and the movie mainly
centers upon these nostalgic recollections. He remembers friends, not-so-friends,
his own mistakes, and so much more. In particular, he remembers his best
friend, Matsuno, and the transfer student that Matsuno liked, Rikako Muto.
Muto transferred to Koichi, a small, almost "backwoods" town,
from the big, noisy Tokyo, and is having a hard time fitting in. Through
his interactions with Matsuno, Rikako, and himself, Morisaki learns a great
deal about life, about growing up, about relationships, and most of all,
about himself. I Can Hear the Sea is approximately an hour and fifteen
minutes, and is a realistic portrayal of growing up and discovering one's
self. - Kiwi Note: This has been released commercially! Please support anime in the US by purchasing the commercial version! Thanks! |
-Quick Scale-
(click
here for the details on scoring)
10
= EXCELLENT!!
5 = Average
0 = TERRIBLE!!
| Kiwi-san (info) |
Eva-1 (info) |
Akito-san (info) |
|
| Artistry | 5 | 6 | |
| Character Development |
7 | 7 | |
| Clarity | 5 | 4 | |
| Plot & Storyline |
6 | 6 | |
| Style | 5 | 7 | |
| Comments | I found
that, although this movie was indeed a quite realiztic look at growing
up and relationships, it did not seem like a complete story to me. Being
just over an hour long, I didn't feel there was enough time for resolution,
though that may have been the point (to leave the end up to you). I Can
Hear the Sea does succeed in accurately portraying what it's like to grow
up, and I found myself agreeing with the characters many times. Still,
on the whole, I felt this movie was lacking something. I wouldn't mind
seeing it again, but I wouldn't go out of my way to do so, either.
Reviewers note: After re-watching "I Can Hear the Sea", I HAD to go back and change my numeric scores, bringing it from an overall 4 to a 6. Forget what I said earlier about not going out of your way to see it again... definitely do so! It made SOOO much more sense the second (and especially the third) time around, at least for me. Perhaps some of you will catch on the first time, but much of the movie is subtle, and it took me a couple viewings to catch 'em. The interactions between the characters are, as I mentioned, quite authentic, but they are also quite meaningful, if you can catch the subtle hints. And finally, after watching it again, I feel that the story is, in fact, complete and not left "open-ended" as I had previously reviewed it to be. |
I found this movie quite pleasing to watch. Though not quite up to par with Whispers of the Heart, I do recommend watching this movie. However, the story is harder to follow than your typical anime show. Personally, I found that watching the movie a second time helped to clarify the story. My ratings are based on my first viewing though. The character development and originality of the show amazed me. Towards the midle of the movie I found myself trying to anticipate what would happen next to no avail. The ending is a shocker too. (whoops did I give away too much =) Drawings are nice, but not as detailed as other works. Overall, a movie definitely worth seeing. | |
| OVERALL | 6 | 6 |
TOTAL OVERALL RATING = 6
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