Lately, I've been seeing several reviews about this anime and most of them are really good ones that praise this. Aside from it's only a 46-minute watch what else could be the reason why many like it? Is it because of its art style? Animation? Plot? Or is it because it's a Makoto Shinkai movie? Well judging from the good reviews it got, rain is an important element of this movie.
The rain was depicted beautifully there and that somehow got me curious about how it felt to like rain because honestly, I never liked rain. Its coldness and dampness just don't feel nice for me so I'm not really fond of that weather. However, upon watching this movie I somehow understand why some people like rain. So now be with me as I share with you my thoughts and a sneak peek at one of Makoto Shinkai's masterpiece, The Garden of Words.
About the Anime
The Garden of Words (Kotonoha no Niwa) is a 2013 original movie that was written and directed by Makoto Shinkai—the same director and novelist behind the well-known anime movies such as Your Name, Weathering With You, 5 Centimeters per second, Suzume and many more. This award-winning drama and romance movie was aired on May 31, 2013. This 46-minute movie was animated by CoMix Wave Films and was also produced by The Answer Studio and TOHO Animation.
A faint clap of thunder
Clouded skies
Perhaps rain comes
If so, will you stay here with me?
It all started one rainy morning when Takao Akizuki decided to skip his class to spend time sketching shoe designs under the small house in the beautiful garden. And in that very spot, that's where he met her for the first time. The rainy mornings became frequent, and despite that they even don't know each other's names, they found themselves enjoying each other's company. The rainy mornings became their comfort and the beautiful garden their rendezvous. Slowly and steadily their once cold interactions became warm, but as soon as the rainy days end they soon find themselves back to where they were from before.
Now facing their realities, it's almost as if those rainy mornings never existed. However, drawn to each other's warmth, they find themselves longing for those rainy mornings, and soon another rainy morning arrives, and they find themselves coming back to the garden where it all started. But will their relationship flourish or will it be like the rainy season that comes unexpectedly and leaves like it never happened?
A faint clap of thunder
Even if the rain comes not
I will stay here
Together with you
I never expected that this short movie would deliver such a meaningful story. The age gap was something that really intrigues me because I was wondering how they'll portray the interactions between the characters. I really thought that the forbidden love context was an exaggerated description of their relationship, but indeed 
Sadly, there are people who can go that far (calling it grooming!) on hating this movie, but anyways that won't change the fact that there are more people like me who enjoyed it than the people who hated it. Ok, ok moving on from that, I'm still in awe with how they're able to give us a nice movie with just 46 minutes! The pacing was good and even though I kinda felt that it's just short, they definitely built the characters well. They really utilized the time to establish a gripping plot and at the same time develop characters with depth. Also, the details in the dialogues really astound me—especially that tanka in the beginning. I thought it was part of trivial details, but it turns out it's one of the important details behind the identity of the woman. I didn't see it coming, so again I'm in awe.
As for its art style and animation, we all can agree that this 2013 exceeds most of the aesthetics and details that the recent anime series have. From small details such as falling raindrops to larger ones such as the bustling city, everything was made with utter care and mastery. It's astounding that even the random act of MC putting coins looks so good. The level of details there was so amazing and there are really times I rewind some parts because I find them enthralling. Further, the background music and sounds were so on point. They are well utilized because they definitely contributed to the added enjoyment I felt while watching the movie. Also, I really love its ending song to the point I ended up finishing the ending credits because of it. It's not only the tune that made me stay, but also the lyrics that matches well with its story.
Overall, this movie is undoubtedly a masterpiece and for that I rate this one a 10/10. From the art to the plot, everything was great! The end was so promising, and I think I couldn't ask for another end because it's definitely the most realistic way to end it. Makoto Shinkai is indeed a master in delivering unusual and visually stunning anime movies. So if you're looking for a short movie with an intriguing plot and captivating art, then you need to try watching The Garden of Words.
Before I end this movie review, I'll share with you its trailer, so—
Have you watched this movie before? Or is this your first time seeing it? If you have thoughts about this movie feel free to share it in the comments. That's all for now, minna-san! I hope you enjoyed reading my review.
Arigatou and tanoshinde ne~
The pictures that didn't have source were screenshots from the movie while the last picture was edited in Canva.