In the year 2023, it is widely acknowledged that Makoto Shinkai is the most successful anime film director of the past decade. With the golden age of Studio Ghibli having come to an end, titles such as Your Name, Weathering With You, and now Suzume have come close to breaking all of Japan's box office records. Therefore, each time Shinkai releases a new film in theaters, the audience sets the bar high. They are right to do so, as Suzume is a stunning film that is full of substance, allegories, and emotions.

Following his favorite motifs, Shinkai creates another work with a detailed art style and animation, a romance created from scratch, a theme song by RADWIMPS, natural disasters, and supernatural/psychic powers. At first glance, one might conclude that the director is repeating himself and has no new ideas. However, despite the clear inspiration, Suzume is a distinct film that stands out on many levels.

Let us start with the basics: this time, the romance is secondary, and the real substance lies in the psychological and emotional damage caused by a natural disaster on a person. The protagonist is a teenage girl who must battle the traumas of her past and the harsh reality she has endured following the loss of her mother in the well-known 2011 Tohoku earthquake in Japan. In the real world, Suzume now lives with her aunt and meets a mysterious young adult who catches her interest. Following him, she embarks on a magical journey to close "doors" that connect reality to a fantasy world, from which a giant entity that causes earthquakes on the earth is trying to escape. As Shinkai said in an interview, he tries to raise awareness through the girl's story, connect the new generation with the previous one, and poetically demonstrate how earthquakes traumatize millions of people.

During this journey, Suzume visits areas such as Ehime and Kobe, where significant earthquakes have occurred in the past. The director shows viewers the harsh reality of abandoned amusement parks and schools. The young woman's final destination is Tohoku, the home where she lived during her childhood years until her traumatic experience, and the place where she will come into contact with her deliberately forgotten past and try to accept it.

The pop culture references are more abundant than ever. Shinkai plays with his fans by showing scenes similar to his previous films, such as the railroad crossing at the beginning of the movie reminiscent of "5 Centimeters Per Second." Additionally, we see references to Miyazaki's movies, such as "Kiki's Delivery Service," through the Spotify playlist of a secondary character who played songs from older anime such as "KareKano" and "Galaxy Express 999". Many viewers may consider the cat-like creature Daijin a reference to Kyuubey from "Madoka Magica", or Souta and his relationship with Suzume a reference to "Howl's Moving Castle".

However, Shinkai does not just allow us to imagine his references or influences. He leaves many things "up in the air" for the viewer to interpret. Events that occur in the movie lack a clear explanation, and while this can often be a positive thing, other times it can leave too many question marks that shouldn't exist. It is up to the viewer to decide when there are limits to creating an allegorical film.

Special attention was given to the soundtrack, which always blended perfectly with the mood of each scene. The voice actors did an excellent job, and the colors, animation, and art style were all stunning, almost on par with the fan-favorite Your Name. The combination of all these factors contributed to the creation of an exceptional atmosphere.

To sum up, I would like to emphasize that Suzume is a work that manages to sensitize the viewer in every way. The balanced mixture of comedy, drama, fantasy, and adventure is enough to entertain the audience, keeping them glued to the cinema screen from beginning to end. However, to me, apart from the aforementioned balance, the film's greater success is the unique embodiment of a psychologically traumatized person who has experienced destruction in their childhood. Far from perfection, Suzume is a pleasant and meaningful film for all audiences.