The Garden of Words
Seen it?2013 | 46 min | Animation, Drama, Romance
Saturday SpecialWhy it’s a Saturday Special
Audiences rate it highly (7.6 out of 10), despite a box office flop. A strong pick for the weekend.
Based on critics, audiences, awards, box office and buzz. Details below.Is it for you?
- Who'll love it
- Made for romantics and animation lovers. If you loved The Virgin Suicides or The Breakfast Club, start here.
- The mood
- Warm and romantic, feel-good.
- The pace
- Takes its time with its characters, at 46 min.
- What might put you off
- Rated PG-13. Probably too much for younger kids.
- It's in Japanese, so expect subtitles (or a dub).
Takao, who is training to become a shoemaker, skipped school and is sketching shoes in a Japanese-style garden. He meets a mysterious woman, Yukino, who is older than him. Then, without arranging the times, the two start to see each other again and again, but only on rainy days. They deepen their relationship and open up to each other. But the end of the rainy season soon approaches.
How it earned its rating
- CriticsNot counted
Not enough reviews on record yet
- AudiencesStrong
7.6 out of 10
- AwardsWeak
1 win and 0 nominations from smaller awards and festivals
- Box office & staying powerWeak
$820K worldwide; still draws a steady audience long after release
- Buzz & cultural impactSolid
About 112K people sought it out in the past year
Trailer
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Cast & crew
Directed by Makoto Shinkai
- Miyu IrinoTakao Akizuki (voice)
- Kana HanazawaYukari Yukino (voice)
- Fumi HiranoTakao's Mother (voice)
- Takeshi MaedaTakao's Brother (voice)
- Yuka TerasakiTakao's Brother's Girlfriend (voice)
- Takanori HoshinoTeacher Itou (voice)
- Suguru InoueMatsumoto (voice)
- Megumi HanSatou (voice)
- Mikako KomatsuAizawa (voice)
- Yuki HayashiMoriyama (voice)