Your Name (2016)

The Japanese animated film Your Name (that title just comes across as a bad translation) has accomplished what perhaps no other 'body swapping movie' ever has, garnering a 97% fresh ratting on Rotten Tomatoes. That is what convinced me to see the film, and while its good at being what that description implies, about half way through the story veers in an unexpected direction and becomes something much more. The plot concerns a country girl and city boy in Japan who suddenly find themselves switching bodies at random in conjunction with the appearance of a passing comet. Again the movie indulges some of the expected tropes of that genera, one which I believe is more pervasive in Japan then it is in the west, but never feels truly exploitive, indeed it holds back and gives some depth to the proceedings, before adding some fresh and unexpected crinkles. I was impressed with the quality and intelligence of this film, and in fact kind of moved by it. While I'm not generally big into anime, there are certainly a fair number of gems coming out of this world of film making, and Your Name is definitely one of them. ****