5 Centimeters Per Second is a short, one-hour anime subtitled "A Chain of Short Stories About Their Distance" is a meditative piece about young love stymied by just that - distance. Spatial distance, emotional distance, temporal distance, in its various segments. All look beautiful and are almost made up of stills, or brief moments, impressions, that have lingered with the characters. Their inability to reach out and go the full distance isolates them in each of their realities, preventing real contact and intimacy, except in the most furtive of manner. The title is about a speed that can either seem slow or fast, it's not clear and within the stories, is relative. For the characters and thus for the audience, time seems to distend or contract according to the point of view. It's either going to take forever to get the lovers together (the first 20 minutes feel like an hour, truly), or there is never enough time to make them have their moment together. A brilliant piece of film-making that justifies the one-hour format we never see as a feature on this side of the world.
WinterInJapan
One of the finest animated films in recent years.
Siskoid
5 Centimeters Per Second is a short, one-hour anime subtitled "A Chain of Short Stories About Their Distance" is a meditative piece about young love stymied by just that - distance. Spatial distance, emotional distance, temporal distance, in its various segments. All look beautiful and are almost made up of stills, or brief moments, impressions, that have lingered with the characters. Their inability to reach out and go the full distance isolates them in each of their realities, preventing real contact and intimacy, except in the most furtive of manner. The title is about a speed that can either seem slow or fast, it's not clear and within the stories, is relative. For the characters and thus for the audience, time seems to distend or contract according to the point of view. It's either going to take forever to get the lovers together (the first 20 minutes feel like an hour, truly), or there is never enough time to make them have their moment together. A brilliant piece of film-making that justifies the one-hour format we never see as a feature on this side of the world.
Vinnypassy
Slightly touching story, beautifully animated. Could become a personal fav' after another watch.