Film: Suzume
Cast: Nanoka Hara, Hokuto Matsumura, Eri Fukatsu
Director: Makoto Shinkai
Rating: 3/ 5

A thought-provoking anime action-adventure cum road movie centered around a 17-year-old orphan girl, Suzume, who helps a mysterious young man, Souta( who has been hexed into a chair), close doors from the other side (metaphysical) that are releasing disasters all over Japan.

After following a young man to the ruins near her town, Suzume accidentally awakens a demon/giant worm that protected Japan from an evil that creates earthquakes. Suzune’s journey is emblematic of the wondrous country whose resilience despite a plethora of natural disasters plaguing it, is definitive of the courage, perseverance, and work ethic of a people who never give up. The road trip has Suzume meeting people of all ilk and seeing more of Japan. The narrative is further enriched by magic and fantasy.