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The Girl Who Leapt through Time

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The Girl Who Leapt through Time

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Summary

Finding herself with the power to travel in time, a young woman is initially tempted to use it mainly for frivolous purposes. Animated fantasy adventure with the voices of Riisa Naka, Takuya Ishida and Mitsutaka Itakura

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IMDB

Review

A star rating of 5 out of 5.

Dave Golder

A teenage girl uses time travel to stop her best friend falling in love with her in this captivating anime romance, the second screen adaptation of Yasutaka Tsutsui's 1965 novel. High-school student Makoto has a happy if unexceptional life, but things grow more complicated when her close pal Chiaki reveals his feelings for her - she'd prefer that time stood still and they just stay friends. Thankfully, having literally stumbled upon a small time-travel device, Makoto gains the ability to skip back and change events. What starts out a seemingly familiar sci-fi story develops into something more surprising, thoughtful and bittersweet as the smart narrative barrels through twist after twist. Directed with a gentle sense of magic by Mamoru Hosoda (who would later be Oscar-nominated for Mirai), this beautifully designed film makes suburban Tokyo look almost ethereal: a world you can understand Makoto wanting to live in forever. Hosoda paces his story carefully, ensuring moments of stillness are just as important as action. The film's last minutes risk a frustrating vagueness, but they just add to its tantalising mystique.

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7.6/10

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Credits

Crew

rolenameDirectorMamoru Hosoda

Details

Theatrical distributor

Manga Entertainment

Released on

2008-09-19

Languages

Japanese

Available on

DVD and Blu-ray

Formats

Colour

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