Can an animated movie make you feel things? Can it conjur up emotions from the viewers? Not all can of course, but if you look to Japan and to movies like the one on hand here, the answer is yes. Generally speaking anything that came out of Studio Ghibli can be considered high quality. And I speak past tense, because it does unfortunately not exist anymore.

But they put out so many movies, you will have a good time (re)visiting them. This is one of them, with unlikely two leads ... well unlikely at first to actually be together. It feels so real relationship wise, it really gets to you. Even following the cat, is something you may or should be able to connect with curious wise. A very good movie, with colorful characters - no pun intended.

In the Studio Ghibli canon Whisper Of The Heart is one of my favourite films. It's a straightforward story about a young teenage girl named Shizuku Tsukishima. Her life seems usual, but it takes a turn when she meets Seiji Amasawa. In the absence of action, director Yoshifumi Kondo focused on what Shizuku does daily. This is handled with care, Shizuku is a good character (doing what girls do). Her circumstances are portrayed realistically and imaginatively. The film is very sweet, it makes one feel good for sure. When one is depressed, Whisper Of The Heart is the right film to watch. Viewers can sympathize and connect with the characters here. The animation is, for the most part, standard Ghibli fare. There are beautiful and detailed backgrounds. Some scenes are truly magnificent (like the fantasy scene where Shizuku and Baron Humbert von Jikkingen fly, catch the updraft). Yuji Nomi's score is often exquisite. It fits the film perfectly. While similar to Hayao Miyazaki's works like Kiki's Deliver Service (1989), Whisper Of The Heart is very much Kondo's film. His touches are evident in the animation, the characters and the story elements. He was groomed to take over the directing reins at Ghibli after Miyazaki retired, but unfortunately Kondo died of an aneurysm in 1998. Whisper Of The Heart remains an insightful and good-natured look at the lives of young people in Japan. It captures that period of peoples' lives perfectly. I highly recommend watching it.

This was on the TCM channel late one night, and I discovered it by accident, having just turned on the TV, which often helps me get to sleep. I didn't expect an anime movie to be this involving, but I stayed up for what turned out to be a very pleasant movie.

The story tells of a young girl named Shizuku who enjoys reading, and has a desire to write stories herself. She notices that many of the books she has checked out of the library show the same name of a boy who has checked out all these books. She becomes curious who this person with similar tastes to her own is.

It turns out to be a boy from her school; they meet, and almost like an old MGM musical, initially have friction, but it's obvious they are warming up to each other. The scene where they sing "Country Roads" together is charming and joyous. Their budding "first love" romance is sweet, but beyond that, has an extra dimension, in that they inspire one another to utilize their talents to pursue their dreams and ambitions.

The animation is exquisite; the backgrounds resemble paintings, almost looking like real places, not animated pictures. There's even quite a bit of attention to create a three-dimensional world.

Good, uplifting movie, with a lot of heart and optimism. Well written, and you can't help but love these appealing characters, and root for them that a happy ending comes their way.