Your Name. (2016)

The critic calls the film a dazzling, gleaming daydream that is anime at its very best, praising its beauty, raucous teenage body-swap comedy, metaphysical themes and embrace of human helplessness amid cosmic events.

The critic hails the film as a breakthrough for Shinkai and a worthy successor to Spirited Away, celebrating its richly detailed hand-drawn animation and narrative boldness. They single out the dextrous handling of the lead characters and the film’s genre-blending mystery for praise.

The critic praises Shinkai’s inventive body-swapping, time-travelling teen romance for its emotional depth and visual invention. They single out the film’s breathless pacing, Radwimps soundtrack and satisfying blend of poignancy and plot for particular praise.

Clarke lauds the staggeringly beautiful animation and emotional resonance of the body-swap story, highlighting its sci-fi fantasy with an apocalyptic twist and the exquisite depiction of nature and cityscapes. She notes some comedy drags but overall calls it a thing of beauty.

The review finds the first half's body-swap fun engaging but criticizes the second half for dragging with confusing time-travel elements and melodrama. It acknowledges the film's ambition and slick visuals despite not fully delivering on entertainment.

The critic finds the animation exquisite and the focus on the physical aspects of the body swap refreshing, but feels the story loses steam once it shifts into eco-disaster territory. They single out the increasingly anodyne characters and weaker third act for complaint.

The critic hails it as a thrillingly beautiful, expansive achievement that juggles farce, romance, and survival epic with cosmic reversals and sensitivity to young people's fears. Shinkai's hyperreal, painterly visuals and tonal balance from comedy to tragedy are singled out for praise.

The critic calls it a beautiful, captivating animated film that starts rocky but builds to an emotional, powerful ending with remarkable visuals. Shinkai is praised for turning a body-swap premise into something with melancholy, honesty, and empathy between characters from different worlds.

The critic praises Shinkai's body-swap teen romance for its emotional depth and stunning visuals blending sci-fi with Japanese landscapes and culture. She notes it mixes wit, heart, and spectacle but mentions some plot indigestion in the later stages.

The critic notes the film's boldly unpredictable storytelling and romantic core but finds the later plot twists desperate after a delicate early focus on longing and character; it remains a passionately beautiful mess of a narrative.

The critic hails Shinkai’s body-swap romance as a breathtaking, rip-roaring and heartbreaking YA adventure that confirms him as Japan’s new animation king and a worthy successor to Miyazaki. The film’s thrilling animation, astral magic, natural disaster spectacle and fusion of ancient and modern elements are singled out for praise.

The critic calls it a dreamy, entertaining narrative puzzle that sparks imagination through its animation and visuals, but finds the story ultimately incomprehensible and less emotionally stirring than works by Miyazaki or Hosoda.

The critic describes an endearingly loopy, enormously entertaining mix of time-travel, body-swap, and disaster elements that is vividly realized and emotionally satisfying. Shinkai's stunning animation, especially the hyper-realistic backgrounds and skies, is highlighted as making him a household name.

The critic praises the film's assured emotional through line exploring time, memory, and loss, with vibrant characters and hyper-detailed animation that feels deeply lived-in; it is ultimately a romantic, infectious story of connection despite its metaphysical tangles.

The critic praises the film's unconventional storytelling, gorgeous visuals, and tear-jerking romance as a timeless crowd-pleaser that transcends typical anime tropes. Minor flaws are forgiven due to its earnest intimacy and breathtaking animation of real-world inspired landscapes.

The review calls it the saddest and most emotionally devastating body-swapping teen rom-com, conceived in response to Japan's 2011 earthquake and tsunami for catharsis. Shinkai's film tops Ghibli box-office records with its mix of adolescence, history, escapism, and genuine emotional devastation.

The critic calls it a funny and moving fantasy romance that is unmissable, praising its intricate plotting, heartfelt emotion, and superbly crafted animation that feels more real than real.

The critic praises the film's breathtaking animation and epic, magical body-swapping romance between teens that feels grander than some Ghibli works, but notes that complex plotting, disorienting sequences, and subplots slightly slow the pace and distract from the central story.

The critic notes the high-concept body-swap premise is exploited to full comedic and emotional effect, balancing sweet sentiment, romance, existential themes, and a comet-induced catastrophe in a way that explains its massive popularity.