Ah, Koe no Katachi. I went into this film with high hopes, I really did. I have seen this movie 4 times now and each time it has gotten progressively worse. The characters are unlikable and feel completely unrealistic. Shots linger and meander far longer than they have any right to. Shouya Ishida may well be one of the worst protagonists I've ever seen. There are a myriad of problems. But what did I like? Well, the colors are beautiful and the animation is astonishing. I could listen to this film's score for ages. And it is mercifully a shorter time investment than the manga it attempted to adapt.

And that's it, unfortunately. The voice actors were clearly either inexperienced or not at the top of their game. They sounded almost inebriated throughout the film and I'm unsure if this was some weird artistic choice or they threw a party before recording. But the real problem is the story. Shouya acted like a complete psychopath to Nishimiya. Then suddenly he's a great guy who wants to make it up to them but he still acts like a monster. He never truly changes but he's hailed as a redeemed person. This was less prevalent in the source, which while suffering from these same issues did not make them as prevalent. Another problem is the time spent on scenes. Scenes that should have been longer were cut woefully short, and scenes that didn't even need to be in the film ran on for ridiculous amounts of time. Shouya had no meaningful moments of self reflection that weren't about what could benefit him. In the end he was primarily focused on getting himself ahead. This is seen as a righteous crusade by the characters in the films, with no real moral challenge ever given to his beliefs and action, even in the beginning. This is further compounded by the fact that Nishimiya is a blank slate of a character who is herself unlikable. Seemingly only being there to be abused and hurt to foster a sense of sadness in the viewer.

Just looking at the summary, Koe no Katachi sounds like a brilliant and heartfelt narrative. I was thrilled to see what my personal favorite anime director, Naoko Yamada, would bring to the table. It's sad that a story with such potential ended up as such a poor final product. This animated filth will forever be a smear on her name (I joke, my not liking a film is not an attack of any sort on the director.

At the end of the day a strong lack of vision and unremarkable source ensured this film would be abysmal. What would I recommend instead? Check out Basically any other project by Kyoto Animation, as their output is, usually, fantastic. I truly never thought there would be an anime I put beneath the infamous Fairy Tail, but Koa no Katachi has proved me painfully wrong. I recommend you stiay away unless drunk.