Suzume
| Suzume | |
|---|---|
 movie's logo stylized | |
| Revised Hepburn | Suzume no Tojimari |
| Directed by | Makoto Shinkai |
| Written by | Makoto Shinkai |
| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Ryōsuke Tsuda |
| Edited by | Makoto Shinkai |
| Music by |
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Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Toho |
Release date |
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| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
| Box office | US$314 million |
Suzume (Japanese: すずめの戸締まり, Hepburn: Suzume no Tojimari; lit. 'Suzume's Locking Up') is an animated 2022 Japanese coming-of-age fantasy adventure movie. The movie was written and directed by Makoto Shinkai. It is the third and last movie in Shinkai's Disaster trilogy following Your Name (2016) and Weathering with You (2019).[1] The movie follows Suzume Iwato and Souta Munakata as they travel around Japan to close doors to prevent an ancient worm from escaping that causes earthquakes if it hits the ground.
Work on the movie started in 2020[2] and finished in October 2022. The movie's themes were inspired by the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.[3]
Makoto Shinkai came up with the concept while traveling through Japan, where he realized that buildings that open in Japan get a ceremony but not when they close or are abandoned. He also wanted the memories of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami to not be forgotten.[3]
Plot
Suzume is a teenager in high school who lives with her aunt in Kyushu. She has dreams of her younger self walking through a ruined city at night, before encountering a shadowy figure resembling her dead mother. On her way to school, Suzume meets a young man searching for abandoned locations with doors. Suzume tells him of a nearby abandoned Onsen resort. After thinking about it , Suzume follows him there. After looking around, Suzume discovers an upright door, which she opens to find a field which she can't enter . She trips over a cat statue on the floor, which turns into a real cat and runs off. Scared, Suzume rushes to school.
While eating lunch, Suzume sees smoke that none else can see, which is coming from the resort. Suzume rushes over and finds the man she met earlier, struggling to close the door she found earlier which the smoke is coming out of. Suzume helps the man close the door, but the worm ended up causing earthquake-like damage to the town and the man was injured.
Suzume takes the injured man to her house, where she treats the man's wound, and as she wraps bandages around the wound the man reveals his name, Souta Munakata. He tells her that he is a "closer" who finds doors around Japan in abandoned places and locks them to prevent a supernatural worm from escaping which was what was coming out of the door Suzume helped close.
As they talk the cat from the resort comes to Suzume's window and she feeds it . After finishing the food, it starts talking and turns Souta into a three legged chair he was sitting on. Souta starts chasing the cat as Suzume follows. the three end up on-board a ferry heading to Ehime, Souta fails to catch the cat as it jumps on a boat beside the ferry. Afterwards Souta tells Suzume that the cat is a "keystone" after Suzume tells him that she removed a statue at the resort, and that the worm probably broke free shortly after the keystone was removed.
upon reaching Ehime Suzume shows Souta social media posts of the cat, which the locals had named Daijiin. After helping a girl save oranges rolling down a hill Suzume gets a ride from her to an abandoned school where the worm is escaping from, Suzume helps Souta close the door again after he realizes he cannot do it alone since he's a chair.
Suzume and Souta the next day hitchhike to Kobe where Suzume helps at a local bar. She notices Daijin and gets Souta and they head to an amusement park. The worm has already escaped. Souta fails again to catch Daijin so he helps Suzume close the door which was a Ferris wheel cart. Suzume tells Souta about a starlit field she saw while closing it and Souta explains it was the Ever-After where souls go after death and where all of time exists all at once.
In the morning Suzume and Souta track Daijin to Tokyo so they take a bullet train there. Suzume and Souta stop at Souta's apartment where they learn more about the worm and how if it escapes it can cause damage similar to the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake. after Souta's friend stops by they notice the worm but cannot access it, the worm breaks free and Suzume and Souta hop on it. at the top they meet Daijin, who tells Souta he is the keystone now and suddenly Souta starts turning into a crystal and Suzume has to use him to stop the worm from falling.
After waking up Suzume realizes that Souta is in the Ever-After and closes the Tokyo door. Suzume cleans herself up, after visiting Souta's grandfather who tells her that she probably went through a door to the Ever-After as a kid and that's why she can see the worm, and if she wants to enter the Ever-After again she must go to the door she got to the Ever-After with in her childhood town. She decides to go to her childhood town to get Souta and convinces her aunt and Souta's friend to take her there.
Upon reaching her hometown, Suzume finds a tin with a childhood notebook where she remembers parts of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. While flipping through it, she finds a drawing of the door and remembers the location from the drawing, she finds the door and goes through it. Inside the Ever-after which is covered in fire and ruins from which the worm is trying to escape, she notices Souta and gets him back to his human form where he then helps seal away the worm and restore the Ever-After. Suzume notices a young girl ( her younger self ) walking in the ever after. Suzume calms her down and gives her the chair Souta was in, her younger self goes back to 2011 and the older Suzume gets out of the Ever-After and locks the door. Suzume heads home with her aunt and Souta gets on a train to close more doors but promises to meet with Suzume again.
a year later she meets Souta again at the place where they first met.
Music
The movie's soundtrack was released on November 11, 2022. The songs were composed by Kazuma Jinnouchi and Radwimps. Japanese Tiktoker Toaka sang the first theme song "Suzume".[4]
| Song | Artist(s) | Time (minutes) |
|---|---|---|
| The First Encounter | RADWIMPS | 1:02 |
| Abandoned Resort | Kazuma Jinnouchi and RADWIMPS | 3:58 |
| First Aid | RADWIMPS | 1:25 |
| Cat Chase | RADWIMPS | 2:16 |
| At Night in Ferry | RADWIMPS | 1:53 |
| Cat Me If You Can | RADWIMPS | 1:34 |
| Abandoned School | Kazuma Jinnouchi | 3:12 |
| Time for Two | RADWIMPS | 2:57 |
| Hitchhike | Kazuma Jinnouchi | 2:18 |
| Two Little Terrors | Kazuma Jinnouchi | 1:23 |
| Dreaming Ferris Wheel | Kazuma Jinnouchi and RADWIMPS | 4:51 |
| Soldiers Break | RADWIMPS | 2:52 |
| Shinkansen Super Express | Kazuma Jinnouchi | 1:33 |
| History Of Minizu | RADWIMPS | 1:27 |
| Significant Precursor | Kazuma Jinnouchi | 3:05 |
| Sky Over Tokyo | RADWIMPS | 4:15 |
| Suzume's Departure | Kazuma Jinnouchi and RADWIMPS | 5:30 |
| Possessed | Kazuma Jinnouchi | 1:25 |
| Double Ring | RADWIMPS | 1:43 |
| It Wasn't A Dream | RADWIMPS | 1:52 |
| The Other Side Of The Door | Kazuma Jinnouchi and RADWIMPS | 1:09 |
| Aftermath | Kazuma Jinnouchi | 1:44 |
| To Be With Souta | Kazuma Jinnouchi and RADWIMPS | 2:24 |
| Prayer | Kazuma Jinnouchi | 3:06 |
| Closing The Door | Kazuma Jinnouchi and RADWIMPS | 3:53 |
| Kanata Haluka | RADWIMPS | 5:56 |
| Suzume | RADWIMPS and Toaka | 3:59 |
| Tamaki | RADWIMPS | 4:56 |
| Tears Of Suzume | RADWIMPS | 4:36 |
Development
Shinkai decided to make the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami a main theme of Suzume after his previous two movies, Your Name (2016) and Weathering with You (2019), had only used the event as an influence. He wanted to express his experience and what he felt during the event instead of only making it a metaphor.[1][5]
Characters
Shinkai decided to make the main character for the movie female since the main character in Weathering with You was male.[1] He also felt that the main character needed a "buddy", so he first thought of another female character and having a "sisterhood type romantic story". He believed he had used the "girl meets boy" formula enough, but his producer told him not to, saying that viewers liked the typical romantic aspects of his movies.[6] While thinking of characters, he thought of a buddy that turns into a monster throughout the movie, or objects such as a milk carton. Shinkai ended up deciding on a chair, which he came up with the idea when he saw an abandoned chair at a bus stop and found its "foreign feeling" to be better than his other ideas.[1] He also felt that it would be good to explore other relationships in the movie, like with Suzume's aunt Tamaki who adopted her after her mother's death.[1]
Casting
The voice actor for Suzume is Nanoka Hara. She was selected by Shinkai in an audition with 1,700 people. Hara is a fan of Shinkai's movies and said that she couldn't imagine being the one to share the "unforgettable, heart shaking sensation" she felt when first seeing one of Shinkai's movies.[7][8] Hokuto Matsumura was picked as the voice actor for Souta. He said Souta wasn't like any other character from Shinkai's other works, so he did a voice that he had never done by doing a lower voice. Shinkai found it impressive and fits the character.[9]
| Voice actor (JP) | Voice actor (EN) | Character |
|---|---|---|
| Nanoka Hara | Nichole Sakura | Suzume |
| Hokuto Matsumura | Josh Keaton | Souta |
| Eri Fukatsu | Jennifer Sun Bell | Tamaki |
| Ann Yamane | Lena Josephine Marano | Daijin |
| Nanoka Hara | Joe Zieja | Tomoya |
| Kotone Hanase | Rosalie Chiang | Chika |
| Shota Sometani | Roger Craig Smith | Minoru Okabe |
| Sairi Ito | Amanda C. Miller | Rumi |
| Akari Miura | Bennet Hetrick | Suzume (young) |
Release
The movie was released in Japan on November 7, 2022,[10] and on April 13, 2023 in the United States with the Japanese subtitled version playing along with it.[11]
Home media
In Japan, Suzume was released on September 20, 2023 on Blu-Ray and DVD. A collector's edition version was also released, which has a 4K Blu-ray disc of the movie and bonus features including audio commentary, storyboards, cast and crew interviews, and a making of documentary of the movie.[12] The movie was also shown on Nippon TV on April 5, 2024.[13]
Crunchyroll started streaming the movie around the world on November 16, 2023. The movie was released on DVD and Blu-Ray on March 12 in the United States and April 1 in the United Kingdom.[14][15] Netflix also started streaming the movie on April 5, 2024 in selected countries.
Reception
Box office
Suzume earned US$314 million dollars worldwide, including ¥14.94 billion in Japan.[16] The movie became the fourth highest grossing anime movie at the time of its release.[17]
Critical reception
On the review website Rotten Tomatoes, 96% of the 135 critics said they liked the movie, with an average rating of 7.9/10. The website's overall critic opinion reads: "Suzume sees director Makoto Shinkai falling just a bit short of the bar set by previous outings – but when the results are this visually thrilling and emotionally impactful, it's hard to find much fault."[18]
On the Japanese review site Filmark, Suzume has an average rating of 4.00/5 based on 6,585 user reviews.[19] Matt Schley of The Japan Times gave the movie 4 out of 5 stars, calling it "the director's most satisfying work yet" and felt that the movie was "a bit more mature" than Shinkai's previous works.[20]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 "映画『すずめの戸締まり』公開記念インタビュー。新海誠が「いまでなければ間に合わないと思った」、作品に込めたテーマを語る【アニメの話を聞きに行こう！】 | ゲーム・エンタメ最新情報のファミ通.com". ファミ通.com (in Japanese). 2022-11-17. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
- ↑ "Makoto Shinkai Reveals New Anime Film Suzume no Tojimari". Anime News Network. 2026-04-26. Retrieved 2026-04-26.
- 1 2 Sekihara, Noriko. "Makoto Shinkai's new film 'Suzume' mourns Japan's deserted towns". Nikkei Asia. Retrieved 2026-04-26.
- ↑ Mateo, Alex (2022-09-20). "RADWIMPS, Kazuma Jinnouchi Score Music for Makoto Shinkai's Suzume Anime Film". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2026-04-29.
- ↑ "Makoto Shinkai's new film 'Suzume' mourns Japan's deserted towns". Nikkei Asia. Retrieved 2026-04-01.
- ↑ Baron, Reuben (2023-04-12). "Director Makoto Shinkai On The Anime Artistry Of Suzume - Exclusive Interview". Looper. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
- ↑ "Makoto Shinkai's Suzume no Tojimari Anime Film Casts Nanoka Hara as Heroine". Anime News Network. 2026-04-27. Retrieved 2026-04-27.
- ↑ "18-year-old Actress Nanoka Hara to Voice The Main Heroine of Makoto Shinkai's New Film Suzume no Tojimari". Crunchyroll News. 2022-07-05. Retrieved 2026-05-02.
- ↑ "Makoto Shinkai's Suzume no Tojimari Anime Film Casts Nanoka Hara as Heroine". Crunchyroll News. 2022-09-06. Retrieved 2026-05-02.
- ↑ "Suzume, 3 More Makoto Shinkai Films Get IMAX Screenings in Japan". Anime News Network. 2026-04-13. Retrieved 2026-04-13.
- ↑ Grobar, Matt (2023-03-21). "'Superstore's Nichole Sakura To Lead English-Language Voice Cast Of Crunchyroll's 'Suzume'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 2026-04-13.
- ↑ "アニメ映画『すずめの戸締まり』BD＆DVDが2023年9月20日(水)遂に発売！". アニメイトタイムズ (in Japanese). Retrieved 2026-04-13.
- ↑ "すずめの戸締まり：新海誠監督の最新作 金曜ロードショーで地上波初放送 原菜乃華、松村北斗出演も話題に". MANTANWEB（まんたんウェブ） (in Japanese). 2024-03-01. Retrieved 2026-04-13.
- ↑ "North American Anime, Manga Releases, March 10-16". Anime News Network. 2026-04-13. Retrieved 2026-04-13.
- ↑ "U.K. Anime Home Releases for Early 2024 Listed". Anime News Network. 2026-04-13. Retrieved 2026-04-13.
- ↑ "歴代ランキング - CINEMAランキング通信". www.kogyotsushin.com. Retrieved 2026-04-10.
- ↑ Harding, Daryl (2022-11-15). "Suzume Sails Past One Piece Film Red to Be 4th Highest-Grossing Anime Film of All Time Worldwide". Crunchyroll News. Retrieved 2026-04-29.
- ↑ "Suzume". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2026-04-10.
- ↑ Komatsu, Mikikazu (2022-11-15). "Japan Box Office: Makoto Shinkai's Suzume Beats Black Panther Sequel in Its Opening Weekend". Crunchyroll News. Retrieved 2026-04-29.
- ↑ Schley, Matt (2022-11-10). "'Suzume': Makoto Shinkai reigns supreme as master of visuals". The Japan Times. Retrieved 2026-04-29.