Locations such as a train crossing encased in cherry trees are so well-rendered, down to the steepness of the terrain, that they feel like places you’d recognise if you saw their real-life inspirations. Set in the adult years of Takaki’s life, this segment swaps the natural environments of the first two for the dense streets of Tokyo. “5 Centimeters per Second” is the titular final chapter of the film is also the most compact. A scene from “5 Centimeters Per Second” (CoMix Wave, 2007). Though ironically, both Takaki and Kanae’s searches have left them unfulfilled, two members in a triad of love gone to waste. The idea of exploring space in search of something vague or even unknown in the distance is also used and compared to the search for love. Takaki often stares into the night as if wondering what Akari is doing somewhere under the same stars. It’s a lonely sky but it is still what connects everyone. The star-studded night sky is a focus in this chapter and while giving the visuals another chance to shine, it is also key to the theme of this segment. Kanae is forced to face this when the courage she has summoned to reveal her feelings disintegrates as she accepts that Takaki will always be looking elsewhere. Though, the dramatic irony here means that the audience understand that her efforts will be in vain and that Takaki’s heart clearly still belongs to Akari. As we are shut out from Takaki’s narration for most of this chapter, we are left to wonder for ourselves just what he is thinking, just as Kanae does. Takaki is no longer the main narrator as we follow another student named Kanae, who’s feelings for Takaki place her in a love triangle against another girl who isn’t even present. In the second chapter, titled “Cosmonaut,” we are reintroduced to Takaki as a slightly more weathered high school student. Together, this all deludes the audience into seeing this as a classic romance plot, in which the love between the pair will somehow still triumph. All the while, the saccharine score (composed by Tenmon) plays softly in the background. You can feel the icy winds that snatch away Takaki’s handwritten love letter and the cosiness as the pair sit in front of a fire. The heavy and sombre snowfall getting in the way of Takaki’s journey becomes a beautiful backdrop when the two finally reunite. The clean animation makes the environment both pretty and immersive. This is achieved largely through Takaki’s voiceovers, which convey a pure and young love that is hard not get invested in-his desperation to get to Akari in time is palpable. This segment is filled with a naïve and optimistic energy that becomes infectious. They arrange one last rendezvous before this happens, though a string of misfortune threatens to make Takaki miss their meeting. However, once Takaki learns of his family’s impending move to the other side of the country, it becomes clear that the two will soon be unable to visit each other. Once the two have graduated, the geographical distance between them becomes a hurdle in their relationship though they manage to maintain contact by sending letters to each other. After Akari transfers to Takaki’s elementary school in Tokyo, the two befriend one another and quickly become an inseparable pair. The first chapter is titled “The Cherry Blossom Blooms” and is certainly the most hopeful of the three. Together, the story follows Takaki as he deals with becoming increasingly estranged from his old flame Akari (Yoshimi Kondou as young Akari, Ayaka Onoue as adult Akari) as two grow and their paths diverge. The film is composed of three short chapters that each act as a snapshot of a certain point in the life of protagonist Takaki Tohno (Kenji Mizuhashi). Here, Shinkai uses realism to give a pragmatic and almost cynical account of love in the real world. In many ways, “5 Centimeters Per Second” is a clear precursor to Shinkai’s acclaimed “Your Name” (2017) however it is also the antithesis of that film in terms of its outlook. Makoto Shinkai’s “5 Centimeters Per Second” (2007) is a refreshing take on the romance genre that disassembles the standard sanguine love story.
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