I love this movie. It is a sci-fi adventure time travel story. From start to end, there is always something interesting happening and no scene is ever boring.

You either love him or hate him; the protagonist, Kyon, is a moody and complicated young high school student with a peculiar train of thoughts. He is entertaining to listen to and his perspective is relatable, though sometimes cringey, but someone who never does anything embarrassing simply isn't human. Kyon is very human and humanity happens to be a major theme in this film.

If you have not watched the source material, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, you may not understand the significance in the changes that happen after the beginning of the film. However, you can still watch this movie and gain something from it without watching the source material first. Anyone who likes the "they annoy me, but I need them" trope, will enjoy this film.

The visuals are amazing, but fortunately, they aren't a mask to compensate for poor writing and direction like other anime films. This movie looks good and it's story is good too. There are some unsightly CG choices, but they don't last long enough to be a major issue.

The best part of this movie is the energy Kyon gives to his friends. He acts tough, but he cares a lot and it's shown throughout the entire film by his interactions with and personal thoughts about his friends. I'll confess, I have a crush on Kyon and it's entirely because of the surprising ways he shows he cares; it's because when he does you never see it coming.

There are very few problems with this movie. I thought the music direction in some places was too enthusiastic for a story lead by such a bitter protagonist. In other places, specifically the scenes with Kyon's friend, Yuki, the music was perfect. I watched this film in English and I thought the voices sounded too old for the characters, but they were otherwise OK and the acting was decent enough.

One glaring issue that I have with all episodic series like The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is that the characters don't evolve, and that applied to this movie as well. Kyon experiences a lot, but none of the experiences really change him. They basically reaffirm who we already knew he was, but this movie likes to tease you with a big "What if?". Kyon doesn't need to change, however, because he's already a great character and his friends (mostly) are too.

This movie didn't do anything wrong so I gave it a perfect score for this review. Your enjoyment is entirely connected to how much you like Kyon because he's talking (yes, TALKING) you through everything. I love Kyon, I have always loved Kyon, I loved him when I first watched this movie almost 10 years ago, and he is a character that stands the test of time. I would recommend this movie to anyone. You're guaranteed to like something.