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Makoto Shinkai’s 2016 blockbuster hit, Your Name, remains one of the most beloved anime films in the community. Apart from its heart-wrenching storyline, the anime garnered a lot of praise from both anime and non-anime enthusiasts for its surreal artwork and its bewitching animation.
Your Name follows Mitsuha Miyamizu and Taki Tachibana, whose lives were turned upside down after experiencing a strange phenomenon where their bodies got swapped. Your Name is widely acclaimed as one of the best anime films of all time. With that being said, this article will list eight anime movies that a fan of Makoto Shinkai's masterpiece shouldn't miss.
Anime movies that are a must-watch for fans of Your Name
1) Weathering With You
Weathering With You, akin to Your Name, is another great hit by Makoto Shinkai which has received immense appreciation for its storylines and animation. Weathering with You follows Hina and Hodaka amidst the unceasable rain. After meeting Hina, the latter discovers her power to manipulate the weather.
Hina can stop the rain whenever she wants, which gives Hodaka an idea to use her ability to earn some money. However, both of them soon realize that her unique power comes with hefty ramifications. Like Your Name, Makoto Shinkai was unbelievably scrupulous in Weathering With You.
2) A Silent Voice
Although A Silent Voice doesn't comprise supernatural elements like Your Name, both involve characters on the cusp of adulthood as they discover and understand themselves and others. A Silent Voice follows Shoya Ishida, who used to be a bully in his elementary school days.
After being ostracized by everyone, Shoya realizes the pain he inflicted on his fellow deaf classmate Shouko Nishimiya. The former felt detached from the very world he inhabited and indulged in self loathing.
However, after reconnecting with Shouko, he resorted to amending himself and his mistakes. A Silent Voice got appreciated for shedding light on crucial mental health problems that are often overlooked.
3) Josee, the Tiger and the Fish
Tsuneo Suzukawa has a great passion for marine biology and loves diving. In light of that, he harbors an ambition to pursue a career abroad, prompting him to juggle several part-time jobs. However, his encounter with Kumiko, who prefers to be addressed as “Josee,” changed everything.
Although Josee came off as rude to Tsuneo, the latter soon recognized the former’s inability to walk as the reason for her apprehension. Subsequently, he tried to become Josee's caretaker, but her constant nagging and bossy demeanor pushed him to quit.
Soon, Tsuneo discovers that Josee’s deepest desire is to traverse the outside world, which seems unfeasible in her current condition. Turning over a new leaf, Tsuneo changes his mind and decides to accompany Josee in exploring the world.
Both Your Name and Josee, the Tiger and the Fish are well regarded for depicting identity issues and, more importantly, overcoming them.
4) A Whisker Away
At first glance, it'd seem like Miyo Sasaki comes from a generic family and household. However, she leads a miserable life with troubles stemming from her tenous relationship with her step-mother.
Amidst all the duress, Kento Hinode became her personal escape and the antidote to her sorrow. Miyo likes Kento, but her advances often get rejected.
One fateful day, she receives a magical mask from a mysterious mask vendor, which she deemed to be just an ordinary mask. However, she discovered that the mask grants supernatural shapeshifting abilities to those who wear it. Upon donning the mask, Miyo turns into a white cat named Taro.
She uses her cat form to get the affection she needs from Sasaki, but soon scuffles between revealing her identity or continuing her act. The characters in both Your Name and A Whisker Away transcend reality with supernatural occurrences. While Mitsuha in Your Name can swap her body with Taki, Miyo in A Whisker Away can transform into a cat.
5) Patema Inverted
Patema Inverted follows the titular Patema of the underground civilization and Age from the nation of Aiga. People of the underground society are forbidden to leave their deep-seated world as they will fall towards the sky. Furthermore, even the Aiga nation deemed the people living underground as sinners, believing gods are punishing them for their crimes.
However, after befriending Patema, Age disregarded the false propaganda made by his nation. Overcoming their disparities, Age and Patema unraveled the secrets of their origin together. Similar to Your Name, Patema Inverted is also revered as one of the best sci-fi anime films around.
6) Hello World
Hello World takes place in the distant future in the year 2027, where Kyoto has undergone tremendous technological advancement. The story follows Naomi Katagaki and Ruri Ichigyou, who share the same interest of being book enthusiasts, but are polar opposites of each other. Naomi meets a mysterious man who also reveals himself to be Naomi, but ten years from the future.
Naomi instructs his present self that he has come to change a tragic event that happens sometimes after the former started dating Ruri. Tagging alongside his future self, Naomi hopes to alter the course of his fate to protect the person he cherishes the most. Hello World also carries a unique time-travel concept, which differs slightly from Your Name.
7) When Marnie Was There
Anna Sasaki suffers from frequent asthma, but her true duress stems from her reclusive and reticent lifestyle. To help with Anna’s condition, she was sent to live in the countryside where she can get clean and fresh air.
Following some initial troubles, Anna came across the strange Marsh house and met a mysterious girl named Marnie, who breathed new life into her. Anna started getting out of her shell and became more jovial around her new friend.
However, there is more to Marnie than meets the eye. With that being said, When Marnie Was There has a similar setting to Your Name, as the characters' lives involve people from their past.
8) Ride Your Wave
Hinako Mukaimizu is drawn more towards her passion for surfing than solidifying her precarious future. One fated day, her whole apartment was set ablaze due to a firework accident, but she was saved by a firefighter named Minato Hinageshi. Unsurprisingly, both of them subsequently became acquainted with one another.
While Hinako is bewitched by Minato’s unique personality and passion to save lives, he becomes intrigued by her surfing skills. Ride Your Wave focuses on Hinako and Minato as they try to move forward and learn to stand on their own. With that being said, Ride Your Wave is somewhat similar to Your Name, as the characters have to overcome challenges to embrace their true selves.
