I went blind into the latest anime flick to show up at the theater. It didn’t look like it was based on a long-running series that I didn’t follow so I felt it was a safe bet. After it was done, I checked the director and I was unsurprised to see it was from the guy who did the masterwork Your Name. It’s not on that level… but visually? You betcha.

Suzume is about a regular high school girl who discovers a secret world and the young man who tries to keep the doors sealed. After the young man is turned into a chair, she must travel the length of Japan trying to keep a malevolent smoke worm out of our world.

I found this flick a little shaggy and wandery, both in premise and in plot. Partly the girl is on a road trip where she meets average people living normal lives… and it’s unclear why so much time is spent on these vignettes. But the script is smart and eventually its meandering solidifies into something meaningful and emotionally intelligent, though I wish it had a stronger punch.

The flick is beautiful in that way anime can just wow your senses. You want to run though that grass, eat that carefully crafted food, feel that wind. It’s gorgeous. All the effort I’ve come to expect from top-tier anime bleeds ink across the screen.

The film is amusing and artful and, even if it not as heartwarming as it wanted to be, full of genuine emotions. It’s message/theme was also more nuanced and thoughtful than the simplistic messaging of most American animated films. This isn’t the director’s top tier work, but it’s still a pretty artful and crafted film.

Score: 82