Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on May 2011

Anime nerds across the world are trembling with excitement at the prospect of a new, feature length work by director/screenwriter/producer/animator Makoto Shinkai. Many see him as the heir apparent to the throne of master Hayao Miyazaki, and in Shinkai’s recent work (5 Centimeters per Second, The Place Promised in Our Early Days), the similarities are obvious. Both directors have a knack for hyper-realistic depictions of the world featuring superb attention to detail and the lush beauty of nature—mixed in with a considerable dollop of magical realism. Shinkai is certainly a renaissance man like Miyazaki—writing, animating and directing—and I have ultimate respect for his craft. Still, he is no Miyazaki. Despite his technical excellence the stories he presents are a little too corny, cloying and unoriginal. Hoshi o Ou Kodomo (Children Who Chase Lost Voices from Deep Below) concerns Asuna (Hisako Kanemoto), a daydreaming girl who spends her time listening to a magical radio received from her father—until she decides to embark on a journey to meet a boy she treasures. Shinkai fans will eat it up and kids will love it, but, unlike Miyazaki’s pieces, Hoshi o Ou Kodomo falls short of a mature work that will enthrall adults. (116 min)