Celebrated auteur filmmaker Makoto Shinkai’s animated masterpiece “Suzume” returns to over 200 theaters across the United States and select cities in Canada for a special engagement starting today. Audiences will be able to discover or revisit the critically-lauded film, which will be available both in Japanese with English subtitles and dubbed in English. Tickets are now on sale at suzume-movie.com.
“Suzume” had its International Premiere in February 2023 at the Berlin International FIlm Festival (“Berlinale”), marking the first time that an anime feature film screened in the coveted competition section in over two decades. The film was met with critical acclaim and went on to gross over $300 million worldwide during its initial theatrical run, making it the fourth highest-grossing anime film of all time. The film also earned a 96% critics score and 98% audience score on RottenTomatoes.com making it “Certified Fresh.” “Suzume” has recently been nominated for the World Soundtrack Awards “Discovery of the Year” and the Asia Pacific Screen Awards “Best Animated Feature Film.” The film was also awarded Outstanding Achievement in Music at the 46th Japan Academy Awards.
In “Suzume,” young Suzume and her companion, a talking chair, race to protect the world from impending disaster, guided by a mischievous cat. Inspired by the filmmaker’s observations in the wake of the 2011 earthquake that devastated Japan, this anime action adventure is a combination of hand drawn and CGI animation.
“Suzume” is the latest film from auteur Makoto Shinkai. Shinkai has been a visionary in the animation space for decades, with the most recent films being “Your Name.” (2016) and “Weathering With You” (2019), both of which have catapulted him as a leading animation filmmaker with international viewers. “Weathering With You” was selected as Japan’s entry for the best international feature film category of the 2020 Academy Awards and nominated in four categories in the 47th annual Annie Awards including best animated independent feature.
Source: Press Release