Weathering with You (Japanese: 天気の子, Hepburn: Tenki no Ko, lit. 'Child of Weather') is a 2019 Japanese animated romantic fantasy film written and directed by Makoto Shinkai, produced by CoMix Wave Films and distributed by Toho. It follows a 16-year-old high school boy, Hodaka Morishima, who runs away from his troubled rural home to Tokyo, and later befriends Hina Amano, an orphaned girl who has the ability to control the weather.
It features the voices of Kotaro Daigo and Nana Mori, with animation direction by Atsushi Tamura, character design by Masayoshi Tanaka, and its orchestral score and soundtrack composed by Radwimps; the latter two previously collaborated with Shinkai on Your Name (2016). A light novel of the same name, also written by Shinkai, was published a day prior to the film's premiere, while a manga adaptation was serialized in Afternoon on July 25, 2019.
Weathering with You was theatrically released in conventional, IMAX, and 4DX theaters in Japan on July 19, 2019, and was released in the United States on January 20, 2020. It received positive reviews from critics, with praise for the animation, screenplay, music, visuals, and emotional weight. The film grossed US$193.8 million worldwide, becoming the highest grossing Japanese film of 2019 and the seventh highest-grossing anime film of all time, unadjusted for inflation.
The film won a number of awards, including being selected as the Japanese entry for Best International Feature Film at the 92nd Academy Awards. It received four Annie Award nominations, including for Best Independent Animated Feature, tying Spirited Away, Millennium Actress, (both 2001) and Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (2005) for the second-joint most nominations for an anime film at the Annies, behind Ghost in the Shell (1995) and then Belle (2021) with five.
Plot[edit]
In June 2021, first year high schooler Hodaka Morishima escapes to Tokyo in order to get away from his troubled home life in Kōzu-shima. When his ferry to the city is hit by a torrential rainstorm, he subsequently meets Keisuke Suga, after he saved his life. As Hodaka begins to struggle financially due to a lack of job opportunities, he later finds a Makarov PM handgun that was abandoned in a trash can. He meets Hina Amano, an employee of a McDonald's restaurant, who takes pity on him and gives him food. Suga hires him as his assistant at a small occult magazine publishing company where they investigate urban legends related to the unusually rainy weather in Tokyo. They hear the legend of "sunshine girls" who can control the weather. Hodaka sees Hina being intimidated into working at a club. He attempts to intervene, but is attacked by the club owner. He draws the gun, and out of panic, fires it, barely missing him. Hina grabs him and takes him to Yoyogi Kaikan, an abandoned building with a shrine on the roof, where he throws the gun away after realizing his mistake. Hina shocks him by demonstrating her ability to clear the sky by praying. He later discovers that Hina lives alone with her brother Nagi, and they have no adult guardian. Seeing how they are also in financial trouble, Hodaka proposes to start a business together: a job to clear the weather for large social gatherings, such as weddings and parties. Their business becomes a success, however, Hina was filmed and broadcast on television after being hired to clear the sky for a fireworks display, leading to their site getting flooded with requests. They decide to temporarily suspend business to give them some time to rest.
Meanwhile, the police are searching for Hodaka, as his family had filed a missing person report. They later trace Hodaka using a security camera, where he was captured using the gun. Officers arrive at Hina's apartment and interrogate her; Hina realizes that because they have no legal guardians, social services are going to separate her and Nagi. Suga, having also been visited by the police, fires Hodaka, explaining that police suspect him of kidnapping him. Hodaka, Hina, and Nagi try to run away but are halted by the weather, which is worsening, subsequently causing delays on public transport. Two police officers find them walking in the street, and tackle Hodaka to the ground, however, he is set free by Hina, who unintentionally uses her powers to send a bolt of lightning to a nearby truck, causing it to explode, distracting the officers. They eventually take shelter in a hotel. Hina reveals that her body is slowly turning transparent the more she uses her power, and reveals that her sacrifice will allow the weather to return to normal. The next day, Hina has vanished and the rain has stopped. The police track Hodaka to the hotel and take him into custody. Nagi is sent to the children's counseling center.
Hodaka, realizing that he has fallen in love with Hina, wants to bring her back, and escapes from custody with the help of Suga's niece Natsumi. The police surround Hodaka in the abandoned building, but Suga, inspired by Hodaka's desperation to see Hina, helps him escape. At the rooftop shrine, Hodaka jumps through the shrine gate and is transported into the sky, where he finds Hina and asks her to leave with him, insisting that Hina let go of her worries about the weather and start living for herself. As soon as they come back to the rooftop shrine, Hina, Hodaka, Natsumi, Nagi, and Suga are all arrested, and the heavy rains resume. Hodaka is sentenced to a three-year probation and sent back to his home in Kōzu-shima.
Three years later, the rain has been falling without end in Tokyo, submerging much of the city. In the spring of 2024, having finished his probation, Hodaka graduates from high school and returns to Tokyo to start college. He meets with Suga, who has expanded his business. After Suga encourages him to find Hina, Hodaka finds her praying on a street overlooking the drowned city. They reunite, with Hodaka promising her that they will be all right.
Voice cast[edit]
| Character | Japanese[3][4][5] | English[6] |
|---|---|---|
| Hodaka Morishima (森嶋 帆高, Morishima Hodaka) | Kotaro Daigo | Brandon Engman |
| A first-year high school student who ran away from home and moved to Tokyo. | ||
| Hina Amano (天野 陽菜, Amano Hina) | Nana Mori | Ashley Boettcher |
| A third-year middle school student who is taking various part-time jobs to support her family after her mother's death. She has a very unique ability to control the weather in various forms such as rain and lightning with her emotions while bringing sunlight by praying. | ||
| Keisuke Suga (須賀 圭介, Suga Keisuke) | Shun Oguri | Lee Pace |
| A middle-aged man who runs a small publishing company where Hodaka ends up working part-time. | ||
| Natsumi Suga (須賀 夏美, Suga Natsumi) | Tsubasa Honda | Alison Brie |
| Keisuke's niece and a college student who works part-time at his office. | ||
| Nagi Amano (天野 凪, Amano Nagi) | Sakura Kiryu | Emeka Guindo |
| A 5th grader who is Hina's younger brother living with her. | ||
| Yasui (安井, Yasui) | Sei Hiraizumi | Mike Pollock |
| A police officer and Takai's partner, who is working on Hodaka's case. | ||
| Takai (高井, Takai) | Yuki Kaji | Riz Ahmed |
| A police officer and Yasui's partner, who is working on Hodaka's case. | ||
| Kana (カナ, Kana) | Kana Hanazawa | Echo Picone |
| Nagi's girlfriend, A 4th grader with long hair. | ||
| Ayane (アヤネ, Ayane) | Ayane Sakura | Emma de Paauw |
| Nagi's ex-girlfriend, A 5th grader with short hair. | ||
| Fumi Tachibana (立花 冨美, Tachibana Fumi) | Chieko Baisho | Barbara Goodson |
| Taki's grandmother, who asks Hina to bring sunshine on the anniversary of her husband's death. | ||
| Taki Tachibana (立花 瀧, Tachibana Taki) | Ryunosuke Kamiki | Michael Sinterniklaas |
| A character from Your Name and Fumi's grandson. | ||
| Mitsuha Miyamizu (宮水 三葉, Miyamizu Mitsuha) | Mone Kamishiraishi | Stephanie Sheh |
| A character from Your Name, who sells Hodaka a ring. | ||
Production[edit]
On August 2, 2018, Makoto Shinkai announced that he was making a new feature film that would be released the following year.[7] The film staff included Masayoshi Tanaka as the character designer, Atsushi Tamura as the animation director and Hiroshi Takiguchi as the art director.[8][9] Shinkai tweeted about his admiration for Shikao Suga, and that he "borrowed" the last name for the character Keisuke Suga.[10]
In February 2017, plot development of Weathering with You began, and in April, character design and development started. In July, Shinkai began writing the script of the film. In August, development setting, location scouting and information collecting started. Storyboarding began two months later in October. In May 2018, animation work commenced, while the development of the rain material in the film started in July. In August, the cast audition was held, and art background work started in September. In October, the cast of Hina and Hodaka had been chosen.[11] On December 13, 2018, a press conference was held to reveal the film's first key visual and it was announced that it would be released on July 19, 2019.[9] Photoshooting for the film started in January 2019. The first trailer debuted on April 10, exactly 100 days before the premiere.[12] Additional posters of the film and the second trailer was released on May 28.[5] All work was completed by July 7, and the film was ready to be released.[11]
In an interview, Shinkai said, "I thought, 'Should I make my next film so that I don't anger more people, or should I make a movie that angers them further?' And I chose the latter." He also added that he was influenced by the impact of climate change on Japan, particularly the increase in rainfall during the summer months.[13] He revealed that he used both CG and traditional hand drawn animation to depict the rain in the film. The writing process of the story includes getting feedback from the production team, he revealed that he took around six months to write his previous film, Your Name, and another six months for Weathering With You. Shinkai chose a more "supernatural" approach on this film, as opposed to the science-fiction angle he used for Your Name.[13] When asked for the reason of including the characters from Your Name, Shinkai said, "Personally, I wanted to see Taki and Mitsuha again before they met."[14]
Casting[edit]
Around 2,000 people auditioned for the roles of the film's two protagonists with Kotaro Daigo and Nana Mori being chosen.[15] Other key roles were filled with returning crew members of Your Name.[16] Daigo and Mori began recording their parts on April 27, 2019.[17] On May 29, 2019, additional cast was announced: Shun Oguri (Keisuke Suga), Tsubasa Honda (Natsumi), Chieko Baisho (Tomi), Sakura Kiryuu (Nagi Amano), Sei Hiraizumi (Yasui), and Yuki Kaji (Takai).[5][18]
Music[edit]
Like Shinkai's Your Name, Japanese rock band Radwimps wrote and composed the soundtrack and score for the film.[12] It was released worldwide on July 19, 2019, the day of the film's release.[19] "Is There Still Anything That Love Can Do?" (愛にできることはまだあるかい, "Ai ni Dekiru Koto wa Mada Aru Kai") is the film's theme song.[20] It become the top-selling song in the weekly digital single chart of July 15–21. Another song, "Grand Escape (Movie edit) feat. Tōko Miura" from the film ranked second with over 41,000 downloads.[19] The film's soundtrack album won multiple awards, including the Japan Gold Disc Award[21] and the 43rd Japan Academy Film Prize.[22]
Marketing[edit]
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Producer Genki Kawamura presented a work in process screening on June 14, 2019, at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in France that was open to industry professionals and students but not the general public.[23][24] TV Asahi aired footage from the film's opening scene during a reshowing of Shinkai's previous film Your Name on June 30.[25] Before its screening in Japan, Uniqlo launched special t-shirts with designs inspired by Weathering with You and Shinkai's previous anime films.[26] Weathering With You reportedly promoted multiple products and companies including SoftBank Group, Suntory and Baitoru, in television advertisements.[27] During its screening in Japan, many convenience stores such as Lawson, launched food products inspired by the film.[28] Lawson also created a new beverage called Ameiro Jelly Tea, a herbal tea infused with blue flower petals.[29]
Release[edit]
Weathering with You was released in Japan on July 19, 2019, at 9 a.m. (JST) by its distributor Toho on 448 screens in 359 theaters across the country.[30] Theaters in Tokyo's Shinjuku and Osaka's Umeda districts, however, premiered the film at midnight on July 18.[31] The official Weathering With You announced on September 20 that the film would be shown in the popular 4DX and MX4D formats throughout Japan from September 27.[32] The film was produced by Genki Kawamura with CoMix Wave Films and Story Inc. revealed as the film's producers.[3] On July 16, it was announced that the film would be released worldwide; releases had already been decided for 140 countries in North America, Europe, Asia, and South America,[3] exceeding the 135 for Your Name.[31]
In Asia, EDKO Films released the film in Hong Kong on August 8,[33] Encore Films streamed a Malay, Chinese, and English-subtitled trailer and announced and released the film in few Southeast Asia countries including; Indonesia on August 21,[34][35] Vietnam on August 30,[36] Malaysia & Brunei on September 5[37] and Singapore on September 12.[38] Pioneer Films announced and released the movie in the Philippines on August 17 for an advanced screening in SM Megamall and August 28 for general release.[39][40] Producer Genki Kawamura said they want to release it in India because 53,000 people signed a petition requesting its release there.[41][31] On August 10, director Makoto Shinkai and the official page of Weathering with You announced through Twitter the film would be screened in 20 Indian cities including Mumbai and Delhi from October 11, 2019.[42] PVR Pictures and Bookmyshow-backed theater-on-demand platform Vkaao distributed the film.[43] It was the first mature Japanese animated film to be screened theatrically in India.[42] CJ CGV premiered in South Korea on October 30.[44] Volga Film Company has confirmed it would release the film in Russia on October 31.[45] Thai film distributor Major Group announced the film would open in Thailand on November 7, 2019, but was changed to September 5, 2019.[46] The film has been approved by Beijing's censors[47] and hit Chinese theaters on November 1.[48]
In North America, GKIDS announced that it had acquired the rights of the film and screened an awards-qualifying run in 2019, followed by a theatrical release with Japanese and English-language options on January 17, 2020.[49][50][51] The 44th Toronto International Film Festival, which was held from September 5 to 15 in 2019, hosted the North American premiere of the film.[52] As part of the "Special Presentation" category, it is eligible to compete for the People's Choice award.[53] Reportedly Fathom Events released the film in theaters in the United States on January 15 and 16 as a "Special Fan Preview" with special bonus content.[54] GKIDS screened the film in the US at Animation Is Film Festival on October 18, 2019, with Makoto Shinkai in attendance.[55] GKIDS also screened it at Anime NYC 2019 on November 17, 2019 as the east coast premiere.[56] It additionally received a one-week IMAX[57] and 4DX showing.[58]
In Europe, the 67th San Sebastián International Film Festival in Spain hosted the European premiere of the film from September 20 to 28 2019.[59] Anime Limited acquired the UK and Ireland rights of the film, premiering the film at Scotland Loves Anime on October 12, 2019,[60] with a theatrical run in Japanese and English-language options from January 17, 2020.[61][62][63] In Italy, Dynit and Nexo Digital released the film theatrically on October 14, 2019.[64][65] Selecta Visión has licensed it in Spain and screened the film on November 29, 2019.[66] In France, the film was released on January 8, 2020 by Anime Limited and BAC Films.[67] In Germany, the film was released on January 16, 2020 by Universum Film.[68] In Portugal, the film was released on February 20, 2020 by Big Picture Films.[69]
In Australia and New Zealand, Madman Entertainment acquired the rights of the film and began screening it theatrically from August 22, 2019,[70] with encore screenings of the English dub from February 13, 2020.[71]
In the Middle East, Front Row Filmed Entertainment announced that the film will be released on September 10, 2020.[72]
Home media[edit]
The film was released on Blu-ray in Japan on May 27, 2020. A collectors edition included a 4K UHD Disc with English and Chinese subtitles.[73] The film was released digitally in North America on August 4, 2020,[74] with a subsequent release on Blu-ray and DVD on September 15, 2020,[74] and a limited edition 4K UHD following on November 17, 2020.[75] This film is currently streaming on HBO Max, a streaming service by AT&T's WarnerMedia.[76]
In Japan, the film sold 157,750 physical home video units in twelve days by 7 June 2020, including 111,403 Blu-ray units and 46,347 DVD units.[77][78] In the United States, the film grossed $4.6 million from Blu-ray and DVD sales, as of April 2022.[79] In the United Kingdom, where it was the first anime to receive a 4K home video release,[80] it was 2020's second best-selling foreign language film on physical home video formats (just below Parasite).[81]