Makoto Shinkai's Suzume Movie Review

Date: 2023 April 10 20:22

Posted by Joe

Makoto Shinkai's latest cinematic offering Suzume hits cinemas from Friday 14th April 2023 in the UK, Ireland and North America. It's released by Crunchyroll. If you're curious about this animated marvel then you'll be pleased to know we've got a review ready for you!

Makoto Shinkai's latest cinematic offering Suzume hits cinemas from Friday 14th April 2023 in the UK, Ireland and North America. It's released by Crunchyroll. If you're curious about this animated marvel then you'll be pleased to know we've got a review ready for you!

If you want to know more about Suzume you can also read our interview with director Makoto Shinkai.

Full Story

Suzume is the latest film from blockbuster anime director Makoto Shinkai. As we know this film is much anticipated, this review is spoiler-free as are all reviews on Otaku News.



Suzume is a fantasy adventure set in modern-day Japan. It tells the tale of Suzume who is a 17-year-old girl that must travel around Japan and close magical doorways before they cause disaster. The story grabs you from the very beginning as we jump straight from her small town school day into a tense action sequence that sets the scene for the movie. Through a series of chance encounters along the way she meets a series of strong female characters who help her.



The movie is set in the aftermath of the Great East Japan Tohoku Earthquake of March 2011. The tone for this is just right. It's incredibly difficult to get something like this correct, but Shinkai avoids being crass and delivers a master class in how to show a traumatic event from the past. The response is refined and well-balanced with the funny and ridiculous moments.



If you've seen his other works, all the key elements of a major Makoto Shinkai movie are in place. We have his trademark red sky colour palette with pinks and bright bold blues. We're treated to his usual standard of extremely high budget animation. We also have characters free-falling through the sky (this wouldn't be a Shinkai movie without that). Of course the music is set to a sound track of music by RADWIMPS.



The settings and backgrounds are particularly lovingly rendered. The beautifully detailed rural are based on real-world places and make you want to take a trip to visit these picture postcard locations in Japan. Tokyo is captured perfectly, the whole spirit of a crowded big city along with the hustle and bustle.



The attention to detail is not just in the sets. Small, every day moments keep the story grounded in the real world. For example you see people plugging their phones in to charge. Unsuspecting bystanders on social media take photos of various unusual things happening around them, which provide clues to power the story.



After the massive success of Your Name, followed by the excellent and enjoyable Weathering with You, we were excited to see if Shinkai could pull off a hat trick of big-budget blockbusters, and he has! Suzume has a cast of interesting characters, plenty of action and adventure, and the level of jeopardy is set just right. The harrowing reality of natural disasters is skilfully balanced, and the movie is about grief, loss, and mourning, but it also has a great amount of funny moments. In contrast to his previous films, the melancholy has been replaced with humour, with great results. This film marks a further level of maturity with Shinkai's storytelling. We really enjoyed Suzume and think you will too. It's an event you'll want to catch in the cinemas!

While writing this review, we've deliberately avoided going into any detail about the story and we suggest you avoid reading up about the movie and skip and trailers and so on, if you watch the movie without knowing anything about it you'll be in for even more of a treat.

You can catch Suzume in cinemas from 14th April 2023 in the UK, Ireland and North America thanks to the good folks at Crunchyroll. Check your local cinema to find a screening. The film is available both subbed and dubbed.

If you'd like to know more about Suzume you can also read our interview with director Makoto Shinkai.