5 Anime Films Loved & Recommended By The Japanese
Who remembers the first anime they ever watched?
To be honest, during my growing-up years, I have never really watched anime. I preferred watching iconic Western cartoons such as Winx Club or Spongebob Squarepants! However, as I graduated from Disney Channel, Cartoon Network & Nickolodeon, I soon found myself entering the world of anime.
I remember watching Attack on Titan for the first time (Still not over the manga ending by the way) and being so enamoured with the storyline and the art styles that I found myself binging on other popular anime titles till the wee hours of the school morning. Needless to say, my laptop privileges were stripped off so I could concentrate on my O levels!
I went from a casual watcher to a full fledged anime fan, and f you’re anything like me, you are constantly on the hunt for good anime - So here are 5 anime films recommended by our Japanese friends!
Warning: Spoilers ahead!
1. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006)
Source: IMDb
17-year-old Makoto Konno, discovers a strange walnut object and a cryptic message written on a blackboard. On her way home, she is hit by an oncoming train, but finds herself transported back in time when she was riding her bicycle before the accident. She soon realises that she has the ability to “time-leap”, and is able to manipulate the past and future events.
What makes this movie so outstanding, was that it was initially released to a small number of theatres in Japan. The film eventually gained massive success due to word of mouth and positive reviews that generated interest, eventually winning the Best Animated Film category in Sitges Film Festival in 2007, and Animation of the Year by Japan Academy Prize!
Genre: Romance, Science fiction
Rotten Tomato Ratings: 83%
IMDb Ratings: 7.7/10
2. Tokyo Godfathers (2003)
Source: IMDb
An alcoholic, former drag queen and teenage runaway forms an unlikely trio as they race against time to return an abandoned newborn baby. With only a handful of clues to the baby’s identity, the makeshift family search the streets of Tokyo for help in returning the baby to its parents.
What makes this movie so memorable would be the fact that the trio was such an unlikely fit. After all, what would a former drag queen, teenage runaway, and an alcoholic have in common? This movie is heartwarming in a sense that it teaches you that sometimes the bonds between your chosen family is thicker and greater than the family you are born into.
Genre: Drama, Adventure
Rotten Tomato Ratings: 93%
IMDb Ratings: 7.8/10
3. A Silent Voice (2017)
Source: IMDb
High school student Shōya Ishida, is outcasted from his peers. It is revealed that he has had a past of bullying a student with impaired hearing, resulting in his high school classmates and peers to reject him. Wanting to make things right, he sets out to find Shōko Nishimiya to make amends for the bullying she suffered years ago.
A Silent Voice is definitely a tear jerker! The film touches on the importance of self respect, accountability, and most importantly, the value of forgiveness. The film looks as teen bullying and suicide from a sobering perspective that you typically would not expect from an animated film, and Makoto Shinkai, director of Your Name, had high praises for the film, stating that it was a “polished and grand production”.
Genre: Romance, Drama
Rotten Tomato Ratings: 94%
IMDb Ratings: 8.2/10
4. Ride Your Wave (2019)
Source: IMDb
19-year-old Hinako Mukaimizu moves to an oceanside town to attend college and indulge in her hobby, surfing. She meets Minato Hinageshi, a 21-year-old firefighter. A terrible tragedy strikes the couple, and Hinako must learn how to find joy and purpose in her life again.
Ride Your Wave, is much about the way we process and come to terms with losing a loved one. The film processes Hinako’s unfiltered and raw emotions in a realistic way (even though the premise of Minato’s resurrection seems like something out of a child’s storybook), and manages to encapsulate the fact that sometimes the hardest part about moving on is acceptance.
Genre: Fantasy, Romance
Rotten Tomato Ratings: 93%
IMDb Ratings: 6.8/10
5. Detective Conan: The Last Wizard of the Century (1999)
Source: IMDb
Detective Conan works on a new case; The Phantom Thief Kid has been assassinated, and the special jewelled Easter eggs are no longer to be found. With the help of his crew, they attempt to investigate the death of the infamous thief, and the location of the special eggs.
Nothing says nostalgia like Detective Conan. I’m pretty sure we have all heard about Detective Conan growing up!
The film was released in 1999, in the middle of a recession when the Japanese movie industry was not doing well. However, The film was able to gain a box-office success of 2.6 billion yen (¥). 10 years later, the dubbed version of the movie was also shown in movie theatres in the United States!
P.S/ This was highly recommended from our Japanese friends!
Genre: Action, Thriller
IMDb Ratings: 7.5/10
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