At this point, almost everyone in the anime world has heard about Kimi no Na Wa, otherwise known as Your Name. It broke some box office records in Japan, as well as in the UK and Ireland – and is slowly becoming one of the most successful anime of all time, sitting at the highest spot on MyAnimeList. This is an extremely popular movie and for good reason.

Your Name takes place in the world of two different characters; one is a girl who lives a very cultural Japanese life in the country and one is a boy who lives a very city-based life in Tokyo. The characters have no interaction with each other, but they do with their lives – every day or so they switch places and exist in the other’s body for a time. The story is actually quite genius and has a lot of twists and turns that really make the audience think and keep up with the movie while still staying captivated to the storyline.

The art style is stunning, anyone who has seen the works of Makoto Shinkai will know it well – it is very reminiscent of other movies such as Spirited Away. Sometimes it moves at a slower than seamless pace – but I found this actually gives you enough time to look at the scenery. This is the beautiful part of Shinkai’s work which is evident throughout everything he does – the scenery. It is all about the beauty of life through physical manifestations which take place all around us; this is what makes the movie so unique. It is not just some unique story taking place between characters, it is a world all built on itself and on reality which is explored through visuals and not just words. It is, in all essence, an experience.

In the theatres, there was an overwhelming number of tears, laughter and just smiles all around – people had such an overpowering response to the movie that the emotion could be felt from every orifice of the body. This is what a movie should be, it should be an overwhelming experience and it is what makes cinema such a unique journey – going down to the theatre and enjoying it with others without even having to say a word because none are needed. Makoto Shinkai has really crowned himself the king of not only anime, but of film making in general and storytelling in the most beautiful way possible.