The animated film "Your Name" is an absolute hit by topping the chart with $99.5 million revenue for five consecutive weeks.
History is made, considering this is the very first animated film done outside Studio Ghibli to rack in millions. The director, Makoto Shinkai, is a well-known anime director in Japan who captures millions of people with this movie, Japan Times reports.
However, people are wondering what's sweeping the nation and BBC published a few reason to solve this mystery.
Main Characters Body-Swapping
"Kimi no Na wa" in Japanese, is a film about two teenagers swapping body that is based on a novel. There are two main characters named Mitsuha, a girl from a Japanese town, and Taki, a city boy.
In the movie, Taki begins seeing himself as a female student while Mitsuha gets the same dream but with her as a young man. The story goes as both the characters living in each others bodies which also involves time traveling.
Resembles Old Japanese Tales
The inspiration of the movie was a classic Japanese tale, Torikaebaya Monogatari, which is about being raised with a different gender. The boy grew up thinking he was a she, and vice versa.
The Line Between Dream And Reality
According to BBC, Shinkai said that he was heavily influenced by a famous Japanese poem,
"I wonder if he appeared in my dream because I fell asleep thinking of him.
I wouldn't have woken up if I had known it was a dream."
He explored the idea of reality and dream, and its constant blurriness.
Reminiscence of Tohoku Earthquake
In 2011, Japan was struck by an earthquake that took 16,000 lives, which changed the whole society of Japan.
Fans Are Flocking to Its Locations
Your Name was modelled after real-life locations in Japan and the fans who have watched the movie are visiting the different locations it was modelled after.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
