The Girl Who Leapt Through Time

"I wonder how someone was able to create such a beautiful painting, when it must have seemed that the world was coming to an end."

When high school student Makoto inadvertently discovers that she's gained the ability to leap (literally) backward through time, she immediately begins using it to her advantage - with little concern for how and why she's gained this mysterious power. No problem is too trivial to be solved by a little time travel, from pop quizzes to uncomfortable conversations. But, nothing in the past can be changed without consequence, and Makoto's frivolous use of her ability may result in one or more of her friends being lost forever.

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is about as mainstream and accessible as anime gets. The characters are all pretty normal, likable, and relatable. There's a lot of humor in the first half of the story, while the last half is quite serious, heartfelt, and poignant. The animation and character designs are clean and smooth, and have a very modern appeal. The score has a lot of piano pieces that occasionally caught my ear in a very pleasant way.

I recommend this both to anime fans, and to those who aren't particularly familiar with eastern animation. The story is an entertaining mix of moments both somber and lighthearted, the characters are great, and the visuals were top-notch. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time isn't just a good animated movie, it's good by any standards.

This film is one of those films that comes once in every generation. The voice actors give the characters a sense of realness that makes you suffer or feel joy. The detail of the work is phenomenal and the story doesn't drag or end in a familiar way. I specially like the detail they put to little things as the sliding doors bouncing back open when Makoto tries to close them. This is one of those films that in the end it leaves you a good feeling and not guilty for spending two hours enjoying yourself. When you see this film you might have to find time to think when was the last time you saw something so good.I just wish there's a sequel for it, because I just couldn't get enough of it. But maybe is one of those stories that you wish it never ended but you know that it has to end.

P.S. Now I have to buy the DVD.

What an amazing film this was. Its funny, its heartwarming, its emotional during certain points and if you are in touch with your emotional side, there is a chance that you will cry buckets. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is a Japanese animated film that dwells in high school life and all that comes with it, the crushes, the puppy love, the platonic friendship and friendship that soon blossoms into romance. To spice things up a bit, the creators incorporated time travel in the mix and gave it to our klutzy heroine Makoto and the end result is absolutely satisfying as it manages to hit all the right spots and tug your heartstrings. The animation is just gorgeous to look at. It reminds you of a Ghibli movie due to its breathtaking use of rich colors and lavish texture, the film itself almost comes alive with its near perfect animation. The voice work done is perfect as well, integrating it seamlessly into the film thus giving life to the colorful and cheerful characters on screen. While the Sci-fi part and the time travel stuff may not be ironed out to the highest level, I suggest you leave your Einstein mindset right at the doorstep and just enjoy the story that the film is telling. All in all, if you look at it, the film is a touching tale bursting with emotions and it just warms your heart in all the right places. Highly recommended.

There are about 10 Japanese films that I re-watch almost every year since their releases. "The Girl Who Leapt Through Time" is one of only three such animated films for me.

"The Girl Who Leapt Through Time" is based on a 1967 hit novel of the same title. The original work has been used in numerous film and dorama adaptations, most famous ones being the 1983 film directed by Oobayashi Nobuhiko. Instead of making just another anime adaptation and possibly becoming just another adaptation shadowed by the 1983 film, the producers took a risk by creating a spin-off movie with the setting of about 20 years after the original story. The gamble paid off big time, as the animated film went on to win at least 23 awards worldwide.

The underlying theme in this movie was "the importance of living the moment". Our protagonist was given the power to leap back into time to correct her mistakes, only to realize later that the short-term gains only lead to greater losses that followed. The story was extremely well-constructed to teach the lesson of embracing things the way they are, and never run from confrontations, because once that moment gone, you'll never get it back.

The director for this film did a phenomenal job of pacing and creating many memorable moments, but it was the live-action film screenwriter Okudera Satoko, who really made a difference for this movie by composing a story out of number of time leaps that slowly developed the main characters and made so many epic scenes possible. Many anime screenwriters fail in movies because they incorporate too many characters, as it is common practice in series, into the limited 100 minute time-frame. What's remarkable about this piece of work is that it focuses on only three main characters. Even counting the secondary cast, there are only 8 characters in total who we are given the names of. The limited number of characters not only improved character development, it also allowed the story to focus on the underlying theme.

I was actually very uncertain about the viewing this year because I started watching a lot of TV anime again since the last viewing. However, the only new flaws I've noticed was the excessive still motion in some scenes and most backgrounds, and that the protagonist was being a bit overly insensitive in few instances, which made her character a bit unrealistic. Animation is years ahead of its time, and it still is an excellent example of what happens when music is in harmony with the story/animation. The insert song by Oku Hanako, IMO, is still the best selection ever made among hundreds of Japanese films, anime, and live-action doramas I've encountered. Ending theme is a truly poignant one that really captured the mood and made the story sink in, and the music score throughout the movie has been used perfectly to enhance the drama.

"The Girl Who Leapt Through Time" is a timeless masterpiece that made me want to cherish every moment, and it's a movie I expect myself to be re-watching for many more years to come.

Having watched the trailers on the net for Toki wo Kakeru Shoujo (official English title: The Girl Who Leapt Through Time), I've been looking forward to it for a while. With character designs by Yoshiyuki Sadamoto, the same guy who did those for Neon Genesis Evangelion, and animation by Madhouse, Tokikake (as it is nicknamed in Japan), is a great-looking movie. Lively and interesting backgrounds, lush colours and detailed animation, it's a joy to look at. Particular mention must be made of the time-leaping effect, which gives you a sense of breathlessness. The voice acting is extremely enjoyable, with the voice actors really managing to convey their characters' personalities, while endearing them to the viewer. The music is great, with a wonderfully wistful theme song "Garnet", provided by Hanako Oku. The direction is interesting, with some really nice shots effectively conveying the more important events and scenes. Overall, I really enjoyed Toki wo Kakeru Shoujo, which is why it is such a mystery as to why it is only showing in one cinema house in all of Tokyo. With Gedo Senki generally failing to live up to people's expectations, were Tokikake shown in a few more cinemas, it could have the potential to be the surprise blockbuster of the summer. Definitely to be recommended over Gedo Senki as the anime movie of the summer.