What strongly supports this anime is the excellent animation which stunning and the music, which while not jaw-droppingly amazing, still does not leave anything to be desired. Simply the way the characters progress and the way that it seemingly ends as soon as it starts will haunt you for hours or days afterwards.
5 CM PERSECOND SERIES
Only adding to this sense of wonder is what might by some of the better pacing in a series to date. You will be able to feel exactly the same as they do because in your childhood you will have felt precisely the same at some point and this connection comes through wonderfully. As you watch this, you will be able to distinctly feel for these characters and you will be able to connect with them as if you actually knew them because of how human and relatable they feel. The real point is the volumes of material that could be written about the emotion, feeling, and beauty that can found in this masterpiece. The story that it has is very simple and could be summarized in a few sentences but that is not the point of this series. Each of these three episodes portrays a pair of people and their relationship during childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. Basically, 5cm Per Second is a short movies split up into 3 episodes, the first one being 30 min, the second one 20 min, and the last one 15 min. This, for me, is quite probably one of the most touching animes that I have ever seen and one of the more heartfelt pieces of cinema that I have ever experienced. But for me, it was too slow, too wordy, and lacked the things that, for me, make film so powerful. The situations are sad, the images are pretty, and a sense of melancholy hangs over the whole thing.
5 CM PERSECOND MOVIE
Most of the people writing reviews here find this movie deeply moving, and I do understand why. And while the movie has some emotional impact, most of it is contained in a final music video-style piece whose combination of lyrics and images would be almost as effective without the hour of story preceding them. The story itself is moderately interesting, a slice of life contemplation of time and desire and feelings of loss. This movie is absolutely gorgeous, with stunning backdrops that will take your breath away.
You would, admittedly, miss some really stunning animation. Shut your eyes, and you wouldn't miss a bit of story. The bulk of the episode is a train ride in which his anxiety over train delays is expressed mainly by hearing his thoughts about how anxious he is. For example, the first of the movie's three episodes begins, after a snippet of dialogue, with a series of read letters while you watch their receiver go about his day. You could simply read the script and get the entire story. 5 Centimeters Per Second, however, tells its story almost completely through words.
For me, the difference between cinema and literature is that while the latter is fundamentally about words, the former should tell its story at least as much through visuals and movement as through dialogue.