The Cinematheque

“Obayashi’s signature experimental techniques are present, but it’s in service of deep nostalgia for the earnest, painful emotions of youth.”

Danielle Burgos, Screen Slate

Few films by Obayashi Nobuhiko have greater name recognition than his adaptation of Tsutsui Yasutaka’s The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, the first to make it to the screen. The sci-fi drama was a major success, making a name for idol Harada Tomoyo (and the film’s title song), but from its first frames—of a monochrome ski trip set among the stars—it’s clear that rather than a cash-in, this is a project where Obayashi’s personal imprint is keenly felt. Set in his hometown of Onomichi, Girl Who Leapt follows the irregularities of teenager Kazuko’s daily life after she is altered by a lavender-scented drug during a chemistry lab clean-up, as well as by her encounter with the mysterious student Fukamachi. Whether due to longing or something more supernatural, Kazuko begins to experience time differently, anticipating calamities and returning to recurring moments, dreams, and memories. Her increasingly strange life, gently and inexorably, becomes combined with both friendly affirmation and fate.

In Japanese with English subtitles

“Although The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is an adaptation of a classic novel, many of Obayashi’s regular concerns are present, from the wistful tone to the transience of emotion and the importance of memory.”

Hayley Scanlon, Windows on Worlds