Some fantasy violence. Expect to see intense action sequences and small amounts of blood. There are multiple intense scenes of earthquakes hitting Japan, and characters frequently are placed in dangerous situations and get injured while attempting to prevent natural disasters. One scene shows a large beam fall and cut open a character's arm. Characters visit a scorched world that depicts the destructive aftermath of a tsunami that has destroyed a small town.
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Suzume's aunt worries that she's having a boy over at their home while she's not there. One scene takes place in a Japanese hostess bar; someone comments that one of the bar patrons likes younger girls. One character is referred to as a "playboy." Suzume and Souta's relationship is a major theme of the movie, but it's very innocent.
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Characters use Instagram and Twitter. Characters purchase food and eat at McDonalds. A character drives a Toyota car. All of these products appear naturally throughout the film and don't come across as advertisements.
Positive Messages
a lot
Themes include family, grief, dealing with loss, love, sacrifice, responsibility, teamwork, friendship, and perseverance.
Positive Role Models
a lot
Suzume is a brave and kind teenage girl who selflessly puts herself into harm's way to help close supernatural doors that are releasing natural disasters all over Japan and save the person she loves. Suzume also shows a good deal of strength in dealing with the grief of her mother's passing and choosing to live happily moving forward. Souta is a dutiful and responsible man, continuing in his family's footsteps as a "closer" putting his life in constant danger to close the supernatural doors and prevent natural disasters. Tamaki is Suzume's aunt who became her guardian after her sister's passing; she cares deeply for Suzume and has dedicated much of her life to raise Suzume as a single mother.
Diverse Representations
some
Suzume is a Japanese movie set in Japan, with a Japanese cast and female and male characters. The main character, Suzume, is a strong, well-rounded teenage girl who teams up with the male lead, Souta, to save Japan. Suzume is also an orphan, who deals with the loss of her mother throughout the film. Tamaki is Suzume's aunt who takes her in after her mother's passing. Tamaki being a single mother and her and Suzume's nontraditional family and relationship are a subplot.
Parents need to know that Suzume is a Japanese animated fantasy adventure film about Suzume (voiced by Nanoka Hara in the Japanese original and Nichole Sakura in the English dub), a teenage girl helps a mysterious young man named Souta (Hokuto Matsumura/JoshKeaton) prevent natural disasters from striking Japan. Expect fantasy violence, fairly intense action sequences, and a little blood. There are multiple scenes of small earthquakes hitting Japan, and characters visit a scorched world that reflects the destructive aftermath of a tsunami that's destroyed a small town. In multiple scenes, characters are placed in dangerous situations and get injured while trying to prevent natural disasters. Though Suzume and Souta's relationship is a major theme of the movie, it's very innocent. There are a few sexual references. One scene takes place in a Japanese hostess bar, and someone comments that a bar patron likes younger girls. A character is referred to as a "playboy." Language includes "crap," "idiot," "pissed," and "hell." In one scene, adult characters are shown smoking and drinking at a bar; some patrons are drunk. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.
what I loved about this movie is that there is not much violence, and it introduces kids and teens to beautiful Japan, it teaches about earthquakes and natural disasters, which my young kid loved a lot. what you should know, is that there is a little bit of drinking that's shown less, and light romance. it also teaches kids how to problem solve, and the stages of thinking critically.
What's the Story?
SUZUME, from acclaimed writer-director (Makoto Shinkai, Your Name), centers on Suzume Iwato (voiced by Nanoka Hara in the Japanese original and Nichole Sakura in the English dub), a teenage girl who crosses paths with a mysterious young man named Souta (Hokuto Matsumura/JoshKeaton). Through their chance encounter, Suzume learns that she can see supernatural doors to a realm called the "ever after." These doors are opening up all across Japan, causing natural disasters. Determined to help save the country, Suzume teams up with Souta to journey across Japan and close the supernatural doors before it's too late.
This beautiful anime movie explores themes of love, loss, and adventure and asks what happens to the places we used to love that have been abandoned. Suzume is gorgeously animated and delivers a mature and relatable story about dealing with grief and love. Throughout the film, Suzume is forced to revisit the trauma of her mother's passing in a tsunami when she was a child.The film also explores the loss of locations -- places such as an old amusement park that were once full of life but have been abandoned and left to rot. Every time Suzume closes a door in one of these forgotten locations it feels like she's giving it a proper sendoff as one of the only people that can tap into and feel the lingering memories and emotions from a bygone era.
The art and animation in Suzume are stunning, the attention to detail in the environments and the lifelike animation of characters that perfectly captures their emotion is a joy to behold. The music is fantastic, and the voice actors deliver excellent performances that capture the emotions of heartfelt scenes such as an argument between Suzume and her aunt that exposes the strain and struggles of each character's loss following the death of a parent and the frustrations with their situation as a nontraditional family. Overall, Suzume is a winning anime film that is impressive in just about every way, and one that's wonderful for all ages.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about healthy ways of coping with grief and loss, which are major themes in Suzume. Have you ever had to deal with that?
One character abandons their responsibilities by leaving an important post, which causes grave consequences. Why is it important to be responsible?
How does this movie compare to mainstream Hollywood animated fare? Which do you prefer, and why?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
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Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
