Makoto Shinkai's newest anime film Suzume is currently the 25th highest-grossing picture of all time at the Japanese box office, making it the third Shinkai-directed film to do so. The film is still making its way through Japanese theaters, with overseas releases scheduled for later this year.
With 9.39 million tickets sold, Suzume has generated a total revenue of 12.49 billion yen (US$91.66 million) as of the 15th of January. After surpassing the live-action adaptations of Disney's Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast, the film is only 210 million yen away from passing Star Wars: The Phantom Menace and moving up one more spot to 24th.
Suzume remains the 10th highest-grossing anime film of all time in Japan, with JUJUTSU KAISEN 0 currently holding the top position.
Suzume is directed by Makoto Shinkai. He is also the writer of the screenplay for the film. Masayoshi Tanaka is the character designer, while Kenichi Tsuchiya is on board as the animation director. Takumi Tanji is the art director. Animation production for the film was done at CoMix Wave Films.
Suzume landed in Japanese theaters on November 11th, 2022, including IMAX format screenings. Crunchyroll, in collaboration with Sony Pictures and Wild Bunch International, will bring the anime film to audiences outside of Asia beginning April 12th of this year.
About Suzume
17 year-old Suzume begins her story in a tranquil Kyushu village where she encounters a young man who says, "I'm looking for a door." What she finds is a solitary battered door that is standing upright amid the wreckage as though it were protected from whatever disaster had occurred. Suzume goes for the knob, seemingly drawn to its power.
Doors start opening one after the other across the entirety of Japan, unleashing destruction upon anyone who is nearby. Souta is widely known as a "Closer" because of his job of traveling throughout Japan and locking doors shut.
However, as soon as the door is opened, the enigmatic white cat with the nick name "AristoCat" appears in front of them. "I love Suzume, but you [Souta] are in the way," it said, and as soon as it said those words, Souta transformed into Suzume's childhood chair, which she has treasured ever since she was a child.
As Souta follows the cat posing as a chair with three legs, Suzume chases after him in a panic. On their mission to close doors, they eventually set off on a journey together that will take them from Kyushu through Shikoku, Kansai, and ultimately Tokyo.
During her travels, Suzume meets a number of people who assist her in the same way that she assists them. But when she finally reached the end of her journey, she was confronted with a particular reality that had been ignored for a very long time.