A Silent Voice Review Summary

This movie was painful. Brutally painful. Yet, it was painfully beautiful at the same time. 2 Hours and 9 minutes of pure pain and heartache… and I loved every second of it. I really cannot recommend this movie enough. Outstanding story, extraordinary characters, amazing visuals, and a beautifully-done soundtrack that adds so little… which added so much. I cannot recommend this film enough. Please watch it. SCORE: 9.8/10

Story I’m going to be honest. This movie is hard to watch. Very hard. There is an intense amount of pain, suffering, and emotion sewn throughout the endless-seeming 2 hours and 9 minutes. What I thought was halfway through the film I paused and thought “Jesus christ, how much more of this is there?” in response to a painful scenario. I was 20 minutes in. Sufficed to say, this story is incredible. It’s been an incredibly long time since a movie like this brought me to tears. Not to mention, this one brought me to tears 5 times. This was a horrendously difficult movie to watch, and I felt uncomfortable for the first hour. Yet, there is a serene beauty to the film and its elegant plot that, upon finishing, makes you sit back in your chair, look up at the ceiling and say “Wow.” These are the types of movies that make me want to have a significant other, because wow I could use a hug… or three… or five… Honestly, this is one that will be remembered for a long time. I think I’m a better man for having watched this film, and I am appreciative that it was recommended to me. That being said, I wish @KisaDi had told me just how much of a sobfest this movie was going to be. Not cool. SCORE: 10/10_Characters This movie has a small, intimate cast; Yet, the characters in that cast were incredibly dynamic, three-dimensional, and painfully realistic. The relationships between these characters and how they change throughout the movie is phenomenal. Honestly, there wasn’t a single poorly-written or poorly-acted character in the movie. This movie serves as a great blueprint on how to create a dynamic cast that carries the film from beginning to end. The two main characters… just wow. If anything, a little bit of explanation about one or two of the characters and their motives would have been appreciated, but it’s not a huge deal. ___SCORE: 9.5/10Visuals I quite enjoyed the visuals of this film. Beautiful hand-drawn animation complemented by great set pieces. I have very little to say about the visuals except they fit the film and they are beautiful. One thing I didn’t like was how a lot of the scenes have a white haze-y filter over them. That being said, I think the washed-out colours actually suit the film and the subject matter, as the colours do not scream “happiness,” which is apt because the movie is not happy. At least not for a while. SCORE: 9.5/10Music I have very little to say about the music, as there was hardly any. Yet, I’m still giving the score of 10. Why? Because, this movie didn’t need music. So often, movies will try to fit in a soundtrack to add emotion. This movie had maybe the most emotion of any film I’ve seen recently, and there was like two songs. The lack of lots of music created an uncomfortable silence that really caused me to focus on the emotional dialogue and presentation of the film. Honestly, it was very well done and a very good use of space in terms of audio. SCORE: 10/10Enjoyment I enjoyed this one. A lot. Like…… a LOT. When I added it to my planning list, on the recommendation of @KisaDi , she responded instantly with “SOBFEST.” Boy, was she right. And boy, was it good. It’s quite rare for me to feel like I achieved a sense of true growth upon completing a film. This film made me reflect on past mistakes and the ways that I may have treated others in the past, and has given me quite a lot of room to grow and ponder my own mistakes. I love this film. I cannot recommend it enough. SCORE: 10/10

P.S
If you enjoyed this review, please feel free to check out my other reviews. They’re all not nearly as good as this one, though. :-) Also, feel free to start a conversation with me about this film or any other great anime films! I’m new to anime films so I’m always looking for recommendations. I appreciate you reading until the end!