The Place Promised in Our Early Days (2004)

Just perfect...

Brilliant and touching

A brilliant film that helped define a genre

It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film

While a popular anime, I find that the title (The Place Promised in Our Early Days) is more interesting than the slow, plodding script. Many will find this film unmoving and uneventful.The animation is so-so. In only one scene (a mountain background with mist) was I impressed; otherwise it's very typical. I'm honestly surprised by the number of reviews stating this is "beautiful". It's really simply not that impressive animation-wise. I guess beauty really is in the eye of the beholder. The characters are largely undeveloped. The plot line is simple and mono-directional, without much in the way of suspense, surprise or emotional impact. There are no highs or lows, no real climax to the film, and the ending is weak.I am a fan of anime and very much enjoy artistic anime. I don't need giant robot battles in order to enjoy a film-- and enjoy many aspects of the drama genre where story is as important as the animation itself. But this work struck me as mediocre in all aspects. I do appreciate that some may enjoy the (very)subdued romantic aspect, but I found it as undeveloped and uneventful as the rest of the work.As would be expected I give it 5 stars. Neither impressive nor bad... just a slow-moving story, weak plot line and so-so animation.

Whenever we are young we have lots of dreams, and make lots of promises to fulfill them. They can be a lot for things like flying a plane, going to a far off place, but the most common is mainly an emotional need which is love.this isn't so much a film it's more of an experience, there isn't really much of a plot which in reality is more of a setting. It's really a story concerned about it's three characters and the feelings they carry through the film.It all has the feel and setup similar to a Terence Malick film, like with his films they were all based on mood, emotion, and always had a poetic/journalistic sensibility to them which helps draw out a humanistic quality, just like this film. The film does have dialog in some places but not much of it, most of the film consists of narrative which feels journalistic and poetic since it all describes the feelings the characters feel at certain points or what they've been carrying within them but near say out loud.Even the background at times and music reflect their emotions, almost as if the world their in has a symbiotic connection to them and I'll admit it is just beautiful to see. One of my favorite scenes in the film is when Hiroki and Sayuri are both in the isolated alternate world together, their in a classroom and both have shared an intimate moment together and then we see that there is sunlight that just surrounds them in the background, it was just beautiful that visual just metaphorically shows both love each other, it's reminiscent of that same visual between Darcy and Elesbeth in Joe Wright's "Pride and Prejudice".The theme throughout the whole film is mainly about promise of the heart, it centers in on three characters in particular who all have desires but as time has gone on they have denied it, which has made them go different but lonely directions but as we see no mater how much has changed they have never forgotten what they promised themselves. and we see how in different circumstances what they do to fulfill them.Hiroki and Syuri it's all about unspoken romance. For Hiroki, he's basically naive and brash, he's always a child at heart which is his great quality, he does have feelings for Sayuri but doesn't really discover or admit to them till unfortunately Sayuri is gone. I can easily feel the internal sadness he was going through when his best friend Sayuri is in a coma, the backgrounds he's in at the time really reflect it from his small apartment the use of gray and dark as he goes out.Sayuri is a girl that is rather shy but sweet, can play the violin beautifully which reflects the beauty within. We see she carries feelings of love for Hiroki but has trouble expressing it even when she spends time with him. I could feel even her sadness when we see the coma has put her into that alternate world which is a rather quiet and lonely place it really had that feeling of isolation where we saw the same town with no life much like the alternate world in the film "The Quiet Earth". In a way it gets at the common fear we all feel of being alone for the rest of our life.Both of them we see somehow have developed a psychic connection to one another and we see scenes when probably through the strength of their feelings are able to come together in that alternate world, the time they spend together is beautiful, we very much want them to find each other and stay with one another forever.Takuya we see is very much the one through the whole film that struggles the most. His persona sort of reflects my own in a way, he is sort of an introverted guy very much a brainy person but as we see has trouble expressing his feelings. Thsi doesn't make him cold which he's anything but however shy and in denial to admit what he really needs the most in life. But as the film goes further, despite all the different ways he exercises his denial, the wall he's built around himself crumbles when Hiroki and Sayuri come back into his life. But it's really one particular character he interacts with at times int he film (a shame there wasn't more scenes with the two) Maki his coworker and best friend a sweet soul is the one that breaks that wall completely. Both obviously desire each other, from the way they talk to each other as well as look at one another, there is one shot as both are talking Takuya briefly glances down at Maki's chest area, this doesn't make him a pervert mind you, it's just natural attraction is all Takuya's desire for her mentally has evolved into being more physical. It's a common thing as some of us who might at first be best friends with someone of the opposite sex depending on two deep things get begin to see them differently, as if our sense are opened up for the very first time.The place promised in their early days is the future and beyond.Rating: 4 stars

The first thing to emphasize is that, regardless of what the plot summary may sound like, this is not and should not be regarded as true science fiction. While there are definitely sci-fi elements in the show, the approach that the director takes uses them more as a backdrop for the main plot line than as an actual focus to the show. As a result, a lot of criticism is generated because the anime doesn't "explain enough," when in fact they're missing the point entirely. The science-fiction is used to aid a story of love and friendship, not the other way round.The second thing to bring out into the open is that truly appreciating the storyline requires both a tolerance of a deliberate pace and an appreciation for what at heart is a rather simplistic story. Both of these elements seem to have turned more than a few people off, but for me they only added to the film's elegance.Unfortunately, the narrative admittedly falters when the anime wanders into superfluous details that distract from the main focus of the show. Although such moments are thankfully rare, the times that they occur feel messy and muddled. These flaws in the story can most likely be attributed to the extra length of the movie; in Voices of a Distant Star, the limited running time forced the director to focus on what was most important. Here, however, he feels free (or even obligated) to diverge into places not relevant to his main plot line, and the result is never helpful.However, barring each of these points, the anime offers a truly moving experience. Essentially, the basic storyline can be distilled to three characters learning the importance of their childhood promises and feelings. While the story is simple, the director is able to give immense depth and power to it. The message is also relatively straightforward, but at the same time thought-provoking and moving. The storyline is aided considerably by some absolutely beautiful animation, which sparkles with light, color and detail.As a whole, Beyond the Clouds is a soaring work, a stunning accomplishment that is basically a must-see for this year. As Makoto Shinkai's debut into the world of film, this is a landmark achievement, and I dream of the day he surpasses this work. No other anime released in 2004 has resonated with me more.

For a movie that goes for 90 minutes to last my group of friends 120 minutes to watch one must think it's pretty awful.We paused the film many times to talk about what happened but still ended up finishing the movie with no clue.The story was very nicely written but was all over the place. For some reason Hokkaido had been taken over or something and a tower was built... Why??? don't ask me What happens??? I don't know... it was nice but not good,. I may be writing a critique about this film but it was so confusing do not know what to write about. It was just so hard...Watch it if you need to fall asleep.