Movie Review: The Place Promised in Our Early Days
movie cover
What caught me first about this movie is the beautiful cover. Aside from the gorgeous coloring and lighting, I was drawn to the pair with violins, an instrument I played growing up. Little did I know how important lighting would be in the context of the story line; more on that later.
Ever have a dream, and it was so incredibly good? Ever wake up from that dream and you remember how awesome it was, but you don’t remember anything about it or what even happened? The writers of this movie seemed to take that concept and craft a visually and emotionally moving piece.
The story follows three friends, which is why I was shocked to learn that three are involved when the cover only shows two. I mean, I get why those two specifically are on the cover, because the focus is around the pair. But the third friend also has a major role. He’s also a MEGANE DANSHI! More on him in a later post.
But anyway, Hiroki and Takuya (not pictured in the cover) were best friends in jr. high school who shared a dream of building an airplane and flying it into the tower that reached into the sky. The girl on the cover is Sayuri. She’s a mutual friend of the pair, but she is better acquainted with Hiroki. It’s also hinted at early on that Hiroki has a thing for her. But anyway, she stumbles upon the pair’s plan, and is introduced to the future airplane that they hope to fly. She wants in on the adventure, and the THREE of them make the promise to fly the plane to the tower: the place promised.
the beautiful scenery and lighting that reoccurs
The first 45 minutes is a mysterious overlapping of past and present between the three characters. The story is told from Hiroki’s narration, but scenes are shown from the others’ as well, even though they don’t narrate. Exactly at the 45 minute mark is when the story finally settles into present day, and the main question of “what happened to them since the memory?” is answered.
The main context of the movie swirls around an ensuing war in the midst of a break on the discovery of parallel universes. It is thought that the parallel universes are given as glimpses in people’s dreams, some more than others, and especially one in particular: Sayuri. The movie begins to blur the lines of what’s real and what’s the actual dream, and probes the theory that memories fall in the same lines as dreams.
Hiroki, left, and Takuya, right in Jr. High
Perhaps my favorite quote of the movie is “in those days, the time and place would continue like that for the rest of my life.” Hiroki was referring to the times he and his two friends spent working on the plane and day dreaming about finally venturing to that place they promised. I know everyone has a time in their life that was the “good old days.” And when they’re over, are we waking up from a dream? Did we really think we could live those moments forever? “The sun is setting so slowly, isn’t it?” -Sayuri
It wasn’t until after I had finished the movie that I took a closer look at the movie cover. Note, the left side features a cold, sterile city, while the right shows a warm orange sunset. Those colors and themes are set against each other during the entire duration of the movie. They liken reality to the cold; it snows often in the main present of the the plot, and Sayuri talks about being completely alone in the world and very cold in her dreams (very eerily similar to Clannad, right?). But during hopeful bits of the dreams, or memories of the past, bright orange glows and fading sunsets illuminate the scene. And, now that you know about the orange glows, you’ll notice them constantly in nearly every scene.
Sayuri
As the first hour closes out, be sure to get your tissue boxes ready. For a good 5 or so minutes you’ll be thrown into a cry spell and question everything you’re watching. Thankfully it doesn’t last long.The last half hour focused on the present in the timeline, and the three friends are brought back together once again in a series of bizarre and unexpected events. At the end, the story wraps up nicely, not in a straight-forward unicorns and rainbows kind of ending, but a “I don’t really know what’s going to happen past this point, but it seems hopeful” kind of way. That’s good enough for me.
All in all, I’d give this one a good 4.5 stars. Though the story build slowly, it’s well thought out, the characters are deep, the message is profound, and the art is breathtaking. Makoto Shinkai created a masterpiece on this one. This kind of movie pairs well with a warm blanket (or in my case, a Harry Potter snuggie) and a hot cup of tea. You’ll never look at the colors of a winter sunset the same way again, as this movie will always settle in the back of your mind.
