Suzume

Seventeen-year-old Suzume lives in Japan. While heading to school one day, she meets a mysterious young man who is searching for a nearby ruin. Suzume remembers the abandoned bathhouse close by and sends the stranger there. Instead of continuing on her way to school, however, she secretly follows the man. His trail is soon lost, but when Suzume finds a strange door in the deserted bathhouse, she opens it out of curiosity and sees another world. She tries to enter it but is denied access. When she picks up a statue from the ground and it turns into a cat, Suzume has had more than enough of the eerie situation and flees.

Shortly afterwards, a series of terrible events ensues: an earthquake shakes the rural idyll of her village, and Suzume discovers a colossal red worm stretching towards the sky. She quickly realises that the monster is rising from the old bathhouse. She meets the young man there again, who is now trying to close the gate from which the worm seems to be escaping. Together, they manage to close it, but not before the worm falls to the ground and triggers another earthquake. Suzume’s everyday life ends abruptly when she realises that her actions have caused a chain reaction that threatens the fate of Japan.

Makoto Shinkai made his directorial debut in 2002 with “Voices of a Distant Star”, but his international breakthrough came in 2016 with “Your Name”. His last film, “Weathering with You”, was screened at Fantoche in 2020. There is no mistaking Shinkai’s style: magnificent, detailed worlds that are so palpable that they almost become characters themselves. This is the case with “Suzume”, which once again captivates with breath-taking scenery. The film has been met with great enthusiasm by audiences, and was nominated for a Golden Bear at this year’s Berlinale. (Dorian Duric)