SANTOS, Marc Paulo T.

October 9, 2019
WFW7 ENG 13 1,122 Words
Kimi no Na wa and Kataware-doki

Love can be felt as having a warm attachment towards another individual or object. It

may be characterized as having a strong affection for someone or something based out

on having similar characteristics, origins, sexual desire, value, or based on kindness and

admiration. It has a profound meaning and can be shown or said in different ways

depending on a person or setting. When I first watched the film Kimi no Na wa back

in 2016, I instantly loved it because I believe that in the first few minutes of film, it

introduced the characters, the mystery of the body switching, and made me think of the

possible conclusions of the story. I unconsciously formed a connection between me and

its characters as I found them relatable in a sense where I was also searching for

something. Not knowing what it was, I’ve re-watched the film countless of times to find

out what was that missing thing in me. In order to fully understand the missing piece of

the puzzle that Kimi no Na wa made me feel, I believe that focusing on the character

Taki and exposing the challenges he overcame and the juxtapositions of the narrative is

a must to find the answer.

The movie starts off with a beautiful shot of the comet about to hit the town of Itomori

and is followed by a black screen with Mitsuha stating that she finds herself crying

when waking up. This may be because she forgot all about Taki and the feeling of

loneliness and not being able to meet him again stuck to her. This claim is supported

by the next shot of the city and Taki waking up having the same statement about the

dream they’ve had but can never recall. With the two unable to forget the sensation that
something important to them was lost, they continue on with their lives and halted the

search for the object that was supposed to fill the void in them as they lost all hope of

meeting each other.

The story begins with Tachibana Taki absolutely clueless on what is happening after he

wakes up in Mitsuha’s body. The scene is followed by the real Miyamizu Mitsuha with

her grandmother Hitoha, her younger sister Yotsuha, and her friends telling her how

weird she acted the day before. Mitsuha was said to forget her name, the location of

her desk, and went to school with terrible bed hair enough to make people around her

realize that something was off. To prove that something was indeed unnatural, we are

shown a scene where she saw the “Who are you?” written by Taki on her notebook.

The next clips showed Mitsuha having a hard time living in the country side which

made her wish to be a handsome teenage boy in Tokyo in her next life. The connection

between the two starts when Mitsuha’s wish was granted and switching her soul into

Taki’s body. In the said scenes, the movie wanted to show the juxtaposition between a

man living in the city and a woman living in the country. Since both of them live in

different areas, they find it hard to adjust on what they should and should not do.

Mitsuha has a hard time in acting masculine, saving money, and managing properly on

Taki’s part-time job while Taki has a hard time in acting feminine and braiding cords.

Because of these, they unknowingly change each other’s reputation and relationship with

the people around them. What I found impressive is that both characters are simple but

because of the body switching and how they react to the phenomenon, it made them

interesting and fun to watch.

Kataware-doki or Tasogare-doki is a Japanese word that originated from Tasokare which

could mean twilight, “who is that?”, or “who are you?”. Kataware-doki is an event

where it is neither day nor night and people who witness it may experience or encounter

something that is super natural. What I found interesting in Kataware-doki’s definition is

that it is an event where the sun and moon doesn’t fight for the space in the sky but

both are said to be at standby or absent. The happening resulted in Taki successfully

reuniting with Mitsuha for a couple of minutes despite the rules of reality. It made me

think that perhaps the most ideal outcome comes from an agreement between two

opposing forces like day and night. To solidify this point, various contrasting pairs fight

one another in the film which resulted in a change in relationships and even the deaths

of the people living in Itomori. Besides the examples given in the previous paragraph,

another great juxtaposition of the movie is tradition against modernism. To see this

clearly, taking a look at the character of Miyamizu Toshiki, Mitsuha’s father, and his

actions are important. Toshiki was married into the family of Miyamizu’s and became a

priest to serve the shrine. After the death of Futaba, Mitsuha’s mother, Toshiki leaves

the shrine and abandons the tradition of the Miyamizu’s to pursue politics. Toshiki

wasn’t able to reconnect with Futaba due to the fact that he has abandoned all of its

traditions unlike Taki who embraced it and was able to meet Mitsuha after her death

when he drank the Kuchikamisake after going to the body of the shrine’s god.

I believe that the main theme of the film is the word Musubi which is said to be is an

old way of calling the local guardian God of Itomori. The word has a profound meaning

which could also mean tying threads, connecting, describing the flow of time, and

consuming something for it connect with the soul. Referencing the question on the first
paragraph, the film wants us to search what lies at the end of the string because I think

that it is the missing part of us that we desperately look for. This doesn’t necessarily

mean a significant other but can be as simple as searching for the thing that once made

us felt happiness and love. It could be a person, an object, a hobby, or even a concept

where we are truly passionate at.

Relating this to modern day issues, a lot of people feel dead and bland maybe because

they forgot or abandoned their passion. As an artist, this movie made me realize that at

the end of the string of fate are the times where I actually felt happiness when I was

starting out as an artist. Not caring for the perfect work but to draw because you want

to draw is I believe the missing part of me.

References:
“The Giant Explanation of Your Name.” FilmColossus, 1 June 2019,

https://filmcolossus.com/your-name-explained/.