Amateur Recommendation Hour: The Garden Of Words

Today’s recommendation is the single most visually stunning piece of anime, let alone animation from any country, I’ve ever seen and may ever see. But don’t let it’s good looks fool you, not only does it win massive style-points for its glistening and striking visual flair, it also has quite a bit of beautiful substance beneath its shiny exterior skin. The kind of substance that only the smartest creative muse is capable of doing with such meaningful impact. The team over at CoMix Wave are among the very best at their craft.

The Garden Of Words, written and directed by Makoto Shinkai, one of my personal favorite people creating art of any medium today, is the story of a lonely teenager who decides to skip his morning lessons to sit in a secluded garden away from the public eye. As he is there he meets a slightly older woman taking time to herself from her job. The more they communicate, they more they learn they are experiencing similar feelings of isolation borne of different circumstances. The more they keep coming back to each other to feel safe and understood as the larger population around them chooses to ignore any of their attempts to reach out. The boy with a passion for shoes and shoemaking, not something he imagines would be accepted by his school and classmates, offers to craft some for the woman if she would like. 

The film’s greatest accomplishment is its ability to tell its story and say its piece in a very succinct manner while being far more abbreviated than comparable films in its genre. The film is only 46 minutes long (yes, you read that correctly) but never felt like it was “too quick.” In fact I think if it was any longer it would diminish the impact it’s trying to make on its audience. Its sensitive subject material is handled in a very intelligent and emotionally poignant manner, having an expertly steady hand whilst not needing to overtly imply anything beyond its genuine and authentic nature of its interactions. And I would argue that it is that sensitivity and how it manages its potentially trepidatious story that is what allows it to pack more of an effective emotional punch. The material details ultimately meld into the background, smartly focusing on the similarity of feeling between the characters, rather than constantly coming back to the superfluous or heavy handed. The only argument against that being the fairly obvious and not so subtle connection between the shoes that are being crafted and the “learning how to walk again” messaging. That can be forgiven how otherwise deceptively intelligent this film so often is.

As emotionally weighty as the tone can be, the isolation and misery of living in a connected modern world where we feel misunderstood and mishandled by just about everyone we cross is not exactly an uplifting mood, it hits this beautiful mixture of hope and fulfillment, to spontaneously and organically discover someone, regardless of age, race, gender identity that we can feel connected with on a soulful level through our interactions and how we communicate. We don’t set out with the intention of connecting with each other on the others level. Simply expression passions mishandled by the rest of our social circles can be exactly what the other person needs to spark purpose and faith in our own drive for live.

According to Shinkai he wrote the story as a “lonely sadness” based on the meaning of the traditional Japanese word for “love.” The age difference between the two main characters and their character traits demonstrate how awkwardly and disjointedly people mature, where even adults sometimes feel no more mature than teenagers. “We’re all still just children at age 27.” People don’t mature as linearly or elegantly as we like to believe and development is not as simple as a standard curve. We are often thrust into adult society unceremoniously and with little in terms of guidance or responsibility without the tailored and accessible community of say, a school of our peers to keep the loneliness at bay. “Go forth and survive on your own and hope you attract the right people” doesn’t seem like a great runway to experience fulfillment. We can only hope that we are able to pull the resolve needed to learn from the often harsh and unkind experiences and people awaiting us in places that we don’t choose out of dreams but out of necessity of continued survival.

The setting brings as much personality to the table as our main characters do. Drenched in an ethereal, calming green, glistening with morning dew and rain, it’s given an almost oasis like quality away from the hustle and bustle of a densely populated Japanese city. A muffled exterior from inside the overhang where anyone could feel safe and secure with another who endeavors to understand without judgment or maliciousness. A natural and earthy therapy amongst the jungle of concrete and minced words of the unforgiving city.

I believe this work to be about the importance of finding and/or creating your own refuge from the bustle and judgment from daily life. Being able to feel safe, understood, spoken to, and listened to by another human being that understands the importance of all of the above. Lending each other the strength to push forward in life’s challenges. It doesn't have to be a conventional space or relation, it only needs to make sense to you and the person or community that you are with. In fact it is sometimes the least likely spaces you find yourself feeling the most real and uninhibited. We all need a chance and deserve a space where we can hear ourselves being ourselves. It's hard to constantly feel like you're hiding the parts of yourself that need a place to go and live, if even just for a small amount of time.

On a personal level I’m glad to say that I have had someone like that in my life during my darkest period, a person as unconventional as you would expect given all of my superficial details. Needless to say the messages of this film resonated very strongly with me, and I believe they are communicated in a very emotionally intelligent and authentic manner. And that it is only when we begin to overthink it and complicate it beyond what it deserves, that its theming and messages become muddled and incoherent and incongruous with something so harmless and beautiful as being understood by another. Truly there could only be controversy if one actively went out of their way to search for it.

I hope you find someone like that. Whether they stay in your life or not, whether platonic or romantic, in your age group or not, who you expect or who surprises you. It's a special feeling that, no matter how far away we may stray from it as the years go by, remains impactful to this day and we will be left forever better because of it.