It was very compelling to watch this little cat. He comes off as some sort of trickster , but when Suzume grabs him and he complains suddenly everything changes "he wasn't messing with her, he was guiding her to help her close the doors" it's heartbreaking when he shrinks . And when he says "I couldn't be your cat" ..... man 😭 he is a divine being and all that but he just wanted some pattos

Suzume and Daijin's relationship for me is a parallel of Takami and Suzume. Her aunt adopted Suzume out of pure benevolence and empathy, however, she wasn't aware of how much sacrifice this help may demand of her. Because of that, she couldn't get a normal relationship for her prime years because she had to take care of Suzume. And she blamed Suzume for it. Daijin was also adopted by Suzume out of pure benevolence, but Daijin, being a childlike being, needed Suzume as a proper owner, just like a child needs a mom. The people Suzume meets on her travel, first the other student who discusses relationship with men, and the other who makes her oversee her children, both gives Suzume a hint on what her aunt had to go through to raise her. And Daijin makes her do the same sacrifice, giving up her future relationship with Sota so she can take care of him.

Can we appreciate that suzume is a rare occasion of story telling where there really isnt a villian driving the plot line or its about good vs. Evil? This is one of the best and original story telling ive seen in any anime.

Sadaijin definitely had more wisdom. When it appeared in the movie it gave off this older sibling vibe, grabbing Daijin and putting him on the car seat 😂 like "alright Daijin, enough with the shenanigans time to go home" lol It also helps that it's also physically bigger than Daijin.

Just like Makoto Shinkai's other movies, Suzume was beyond deep. Definitely cried hard for poor Daijin after initially assuming he was causing the problems.

I do atleast hope that the two of them visit and pray to daijin regularry, and the other keystone too though I don't think it matters as much to him. Daijin may have not gotten to spend his life as a cat with suzume for long but he got to spend time with and be apreciated by the people he protected for so long and be reassured of the meaning his eternal dutie has. Also he got to reunite with the other spirit, their cuddling on the car seat was soo adorable. So eventhough I feel bad for him I do think he is happy in the end, I just wished they added a scene at the end were suzume prays at his keystone and offers him some fish, the poor little cat deserves it.

If I was suzume, I would pull out Daijin for 2-3 days every month to spend time with it. Knowing a keystone who have conciousness and desire, knowing how lonely it is at keystone realm just make me so heartbroken to leave Daijin like that 😢

What I learned from a professor of relugious studies that originally miko priestesses form relationships with Kami because the particular Kami likes either her cooking, personality or looks. So, Suzume becomes Dajin's miko by feeding him and being kind.

Daijin’s character profile and development throughout the film is one of the most coherent and touching I have come across in a good while. I cried the moment he shrunk after hearing Suzume answering “I hate you” to asking if she loved him. What moved me is not the fact he shrank alone but also that he remained by her side in a non-violent/non-grudgeful way, out of some form of personal loyalty to her. That is what showed me the most clearly how non-evil this character is. I really felt Daijin’s resemblance to a child in his approach to the world and an unawareness of what may be considered bad or good behaviour by others. The fact he regularly checked on Suzume throughout their encounters and that he communicated openly about immediate dangers and risks without trying to obstruct Suzume’s important choices made him appear as an external force accompanying Suzume on her spiritual journey.

Daijin must be a mischievous kami, like a prankster spirit. Although in the movie it comes out to seem more like a villian or plain evil when he says "a lot of people is going to die". At the end it is understood that he was triying to help and prefered some one else to trake his duty. The movie highlight the rol of caretakers (mothers, teachers, nurses, etc) in family and society and the personal sacrifices they do. Daijin and the other kami are forces of order trying to keep chaos contained. Duality is a recurrent theme in Shinkai's movies. Male & female, order & chaos, live & death. So Daijin must be harmonized by his partner and viceversa.

When sadaijin turned big, me and the homies went wild

I've just returned from the 11th viewing of Suzume in the cinema and I'm still deeply touched by it. I'm from Hong Kong and I can still vividly remember that back on that fateful day in 2011 I was watching the tsunami hitting the shore from the TV in my office - such a terrible disaster. I really appreciate Makoto Shinkai's attempt in healing the open wounds of those affected, and imho Suzume is now the best movie he has made so far. I do love Your Name, but Suzume touches on multiple themes and many parts of it resonates with me. Way to go, Cinema Tokyo, for making this and the previous video on Suzume, which very helpfully clear up some of the remaining questions I have about certain plots and backgrounds of this excellent movie! Thank you again, and looking forward to your next video!😉👍

This was such an in depth explanation to the events in Suzume....thanks for explaining ...really got to learn so much more about Japan through this. I was actually confused about Sadaijin and you explained it very well. Great video mate...!👍

Beautifully described. I knew our little keystones weren’t the evil ones in the story but I was missing the deity connections since I’m not well versed in Japanese culture. Thank you for your analysis :)

I was born in Japan and now I'm living in Canada for 16~17 yrs now. I moved to Canada in 2011 in September and I still remember the 2011 earthquake and tsunami even though I only heard from my mom that my dad was so devastated and cried about northeast of coast in Tohoku. When I saw Suzume went to the second - third one area, it reminded me of that coast. Gosh it is truly devastating and tragic.. Anyway I watched this today with my lil sis and I really loved it and had a beautiful message.

I remember walking out of the theater with my friend, after seeing Suzume. We were rather confused about Dajin's motives. This video really cleared up a lot, thankyou! Very well made, keep it up!

Daijin and Sadaijin have the reference from Shinkai's commercial called Gathering Of Cats. Daijin also have the reference of Mimi, the orange cat from Shinkai's former movie, The Children Who Chase Lost Voices too. That movie shared the similar concept, theme and some characters to Suzume.

I did get most of the motivations for daijin as I was watching the movie, but I was unaware of a lot of the cultural elements that are used in the movie. Thanks for making the effort and highlighting them us 😄 it definitely enhances the experience.

American viewer here! I loved your video so much! Suzume was a very moving movie, but I did have a lot of questions about it. However, your video cleared all the major ones up! Thank you so much for the different perspective, and thank you for putting in so much work to present it to English audiences.

Thanks for this! Was very confused about Daijin and Sadaijin and their role and relationship. This clears up a lot. But even while being confused before, the message of not forgetting disasters that happened and the people who lived there, really came across on the first watch and it is what really made me appreciate this movie from the start. I still think the romance is very forced and shouldn't have happened, but on 2nd watch I was able to not focus on that but the bigger picture and that made me appreciate the movie so much more as well

I think this is his best work so far.

Thank you so much for offering context behind Suzume! I'm going to watch it again with all this knowledge in mind. You explained everything perfectly and I appreciate the work you went to put this together.

Thank you for such an in-depth and concise explanation! I'm looking forward to the next one!

Thanks! This video really helped!

This video was really great! Thank you for all this dedication!

this is beautifully explained.. thank you.. this movie is so far the best work of Shinkai as it resonates with me so well

this is the perfect video essay I needed after watching this film! I didn't understand everything but this shines a new light on the subject! Thank you for sharing your knowledge in such a beautiful summarised video!

This is such a great and well thought out video, you present your point in a clear and concise way that makes it easy to understand. Thank you!

A great video and fantastic insight!

Thank you so much for making this video, it helped a lot to understand that beautiful movie even better!

Thank you for this! This fills the gap I was feeling after the movie ended!

Great video! You answered a lot of questions I had after watching the movie! Excited to see what you will release next

Great quality analysis and articulate writing as well. Thank you for sharing this

Thank you! You provided a viewpoint that helped me process the movie. It was beautiful

Thank you for the very instructive video ! It makes me want to watch Suzume again !

Thanks a lot for this video!

Your explanation is phenomenal. Especially from 13:45, it was just absolutely amazing. Thank you for giving me a better insight on this beautiful movie

Thanks for the video, for the great explanations of Japanese folklore and for the deep dive! Keep up the good work! :D

Thank you for this video

Thank you very much for this Video! ⛩️💖

Your video is amazing and gave the movie even more depth for me! Thank you for your efforts and keep it up!

Your english is perfect and thank you for this detailed explanation. It helped a lot for me to understand the whole thing. I appreciate you making these videos in your channel. お疲れ様です

finally i got to under what shinkai wants us to show, thankyou for the explanation it was soo goood!!!

Most helpful explanation video! Thank you

Your video was amazing! Every second of it was interesting! Your videos always are the best and always will be, thank you for making these videos for everyone I really appreciate that you make these videos.

thank you so much for your video!! it has absolutely explained some questions i had about daijin specifically and some more things in the movie i missed and i loved the brief history behind everything. you definitely have a new subscriber in me, keep up the good work!

Amazing video ! Thanks a lot for explaining the meaning behind this character. I was a bit confused when I first watched it, and I felt like I was missing a lot of infos since I don't know much about japanese's myths. I look forward to see more of your work in the future. Again, you did a very good job, keep it up !

You easily have some of the best, most enjoyable, and wonderfully informative videos on all of KZfaq. I absolutely CANNOT wait for more! Thanks so much for all of your effort!

Wow, very nice video! I appreciate the story and explanations! very good!

please continue this amazing work!! and i love your voice and listening to your very well practiced English, it is perfectly easy to understand!

Well done with your insightful explanation! Keep up the good work!

thanky I was trying to figure this out and was a little confused we need more people like you

Great video, thank you! Especially the explanation of their names (Daijin and Sadaijin)

Awesome analysis!!!

These videos are exactly what i need after watching the film. I need to know more!!

Thank you so much for explaining this! It helped me appreciate the movie even more!

Thank you for your explanation. I really need this.

I haven't watched Suzume yet, but ever since watching your videos I really wanna watch Suzume now. I haven't watched this video yet but I will after this comment, I know this will be a amazing video! I saw one of your others videos of Suzume about Japanese Myths linked to Suzume. Cinema Tokyo, you do the best job at making wonderful videos I can't wait to watch this!

Amazing analysis. I loved the movie and this helped me to better understand certain aspects of it. The way it ties japanese mythology references to reflect on contemporary subjects is fascinating. You earned a new subscriber!

Thanks for making this video! I remember the moment in the cinema where the date March 11th actually clicked for me. I think it's very fitting that Radwimps got to do the soundtrack because of it!

Arigato, this helped a lot.

Thank you for this, and your other video. I knew there was a cultural knowledge that I was missing based on Shinkai's previous movies, but your videos have been the only details, in English at least, that I have found to provide that context.

I loved this movie sooo much! The cuteness, the scenes, the storyline, the sadness abiut Daijin and Suzume's mother....what an amazing movie

This movie became more interesting when it related with the original earthquake, and I really appreciate Makoto's such an amazing story. I dont live in japan but this makes me learn more about the japanese culture .... Alas I really had some pain in the end of the movie...

thanks for your videos!!

thank you for this explanation and video!

Super interesting video, very well made. Also your english is easily understandable. Thanks a lot!!!!! Cheers from Brazil 😁😁

Excellent video, Cinema Tokyo. I liked your insight! Makoto Shinkai is brave with the topics he picks and makes very meaningful films. I appreciate his team even more because of your video. Thanks!

Wow. I am glad found you. Can not wait. Another video of you break down another aspect from this move or even all makoto movie. Especially age gap romance garden of word.

thank you for your tasteful insight I was very confused about the many plot holes in this movie but this explained and cleared up some of them😄

loved suzume. seen it twice. great insight about the movie, daijin and sadaijin. the most interesting is people's relation to abandonned places and earthquakes in japan. people, land, feelings, memories. thanks

Thank you for this amazing video.

as a french who discovered this movie and then this video. You've bring light on many thoughts. Thank you!

good video bro- exactly what i was looking for after seeing the movie

Thanks for the much needed added context, I feel like I understand the movie a lot better now. I'm curious if the Japanese audience generally had this information on hand or it was just western audiences left confused. Also I'm curious why you chose to refer to the underworld as "Hades" instead of Yomi, or just "underworld".

It's nice to hear your voice in this one!!

Thank you for the video! It's very interesting to know more about Japanese mythology and all the historical and cultural references. Your English is very good (My first language is Spanish). I loved this movie and I'm waiting for your video about Miyazaki's last film! ☺️ Greetings

I didn't realize it was your first video, I have to say It's really well done

Awesome analysis! You helped me understand a lot I didn’t get about the movie! It’s great to have a Japanese perspective about this movie cause I thought a lot was missing by not understanding the folklore. Would love to see more videos from you analyzing other anime!

Thank you for the great explanation suzume prompted me to search for earthquake info that occurred in Japan I'm truly happy I got more aware.

I just saw this film at the CGV Cinema in Buena Park. I thoroughly enjoyed the story. Your explanation of the characters and mythology really brings it all together. I'm going to see it again with an even better understanding. Thank you.

This explanation about daijin made me tearbend again ❤😢

Thank you

Love your analysis. Gave me new perspectives on the film. Also your English is great!!! Keep it up

I once thought that these two cats, especially Daijin, were a kind of metaphor of "Schrodinger's cat" because i think in several plots in this film is quite close to some phenomenas in physics such as the 2011 nuclear disaster, the "superposition" in Ever-After, and the time paradox when Suzume meets herself in the past.

Suzume seems to have very good understanding of symbolism in general and how the ralation between the natural and supernatural works. Probably because it is rooted in actual mythology. I must say that the movie really evoked feelings in me that I haven't felt in some time. It reminded me of the fantasy/adventure stories I watched/read long ago, felt nostalgic even though I watched it for the first time.

Cool

Good job on the video. Your English is very easy to understand as well.

Excellent explanation video

I was 17 in march 2011 and suzume was 4. I felt so old 😅

Thank you so much for shedding some light on this movie from a Japanese perspective! I just finished watching it for the first time, and while I loved it and was emotionally moved by it, I was left with many questions and knew I had to be missing something culturally that would be more obvious to a Japanese audience.

Italian viewer here, we got to see the movie during these days in which we have a couple of holidays. I really want to thank you for this explanation because I have a major in Japanese language and culture but I would have needed some time to put all into words as smoothly as you did. There's a lot behind this movie (actually behind every Shinkai's movie), but most people could not understand it or grasp something without basic knowledge about Japanese culture. I think that's why I was so frustrated reading a review on an Italian website where it was clear the writer didn't catch anything of the true meaning of the movie. I assume they thought it was about the disaster happened in 2011 and they got kinda disappointed because it wasn't really brought up but only showed the date. Luckily, I'm talking with other people who really liked the movie as I did, I think I appreciated it almost as much as Your Name and more than Weathering with You, which maybe I just have to rewatch. With all this being said, this was a very good video, I like your way of thinking and I hope to see more from you, so I happily subscribed to your channel :D greetings from Italy!

So there was a dialogue in the movie where they said, that cats don't come to anyone like dogs do, that really resonated with me and touched me to the core, because in hinduism, cats enjoy a a very spiritual and respectful status and it is believed that form of mother goddess, as in, all the female dieties are linked to them, and arrival of cats, or say a specific cat, may symbolise coming of the mother goddess Durga on the household, which is considered as inflow of wealth and protection of family members, morover also prosperity in knowledge and study. Considering that probably udaijin and sadaijin is from Shinto, and that shinto is connected to hindu, i think there is link there.

Ah, thank you for this! We saw Suzume last night and I left feeling like Daijin was kind of a jerk. Your explanation made much more sense to me.

I fell so sad for daijin 😭

Subscribed! I’d love to see video essays on many more anime films.

Hey, sick vid. Your english was understnadable, i would reccomend using soem cloth or towels on your walls for sound proofing. The captions were such a nice touch. Thank you for explaining this as it was kind of confusing while watching.

Thank you for this! This movie made me so profoundly sad for daijin even though it seemed like he was kind of a villain at times and I wanted to understand why!

I loved this movie so much before watching your videos, and knowing some extra references and interpretations from the Japanese mythological and modern culture point of view, I appreciate it even more! I know some of the modern Japanese issues you talked about but some others like the still lingering trauma of the Tohaku earthquake was new to me. I will be going on my 21st watch later today and some of the extra references you made will be interesting to re-watch with that in mind. Also good job with the video. I didn't like the auto reader you used for the first one though the content was very good. I think your real voice sounds nicer and more natural. Keep up the good work. I am not Japanese so to see the Japanese shinto and mythology references are very useful. It is not needed to appreciate and enjoy the movie but it still enchances it. I look forward to your future content, whatever you decide to make.

It was really lovely to watch this video.