Weathering With You

"This is the story of the world's secret that only she and I know."

- Hodaka Morishima; Tagline

Weathering With You (天気の子) is a 2019 Japanese animated romance/fantasy film written and directed by Makoto Shinkai. The film was produced by Genki Kawamura, and the music was composed by RADWIMPS.

The film was released in Japan on July 19, 2019, one day after the publication of the light novel. A manga adaptation illustrated by Watari Kubota was first serialized in Kodansha's Afternoon on July 25 the same year. It was released in 140 countries throughout the world, earning over US$193.1 million worldwide and ¥14.06 billion in Japan. The film was selected as the Japanese entry for Best International Feature Film at the 92nd Academy Awards. It also received four Annie Award nominations including Best Independent Animated Feature.

The film received generally positive reviews. On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 91% rating, with the critics' consensus saying; it is beautifully animated and narratively engaged. On Metacritic, the film also got generally favorable reactions. Individual reviewers have also praised the film for its animation, plot, music, visuals, and use of weather to convey the story's metaphor. Some compared the film with Shinkai's previous work, Your Name., criticizing it for its lack of clarity of vision and unresolved plot threads.

Plot
Japan is experiencing a period of exceptionally wet weather. While sitting with her dying mother in a Tokyo hospital, a teenage girl named Hina Amano sees a pool of sunlight at a ruined shrine atop a dilapidated building. Hina leaves her mother's bedside and goes to the shrine, crosses its gate, and is momentarily transported to a world seemingly in the sky.

High-school freshman Hodaka Morishima runs away from his home and moves to Tokyo. On the trip, he almost gets thrown off a ferry when a freak rainstorm hits it. However, he is saved by a man named Keisuke Suga, who Hodaka then treats to a meal as a thanks for his help. Keisuke gives him his business card in case he ever needs help as they depart the ferry. In Tokyo, Hodaka struggles to support himself because he is unable to work legally due to his status as a runaway minor. He spends a few nights at a cybercafé as he asks online for job opportunities, but is ultimately unable to find a position anywhere and thus decides to save his money by staying on the streets. He briefly meets Nagi Amano, Hina's younger brother, along with Ayane and Kana on the bus, exclaiming to himself that Nagi is a player.

One night, while taking shelter in the doorway of a lift lobby, Hodaka meets a stray cat who he feeds, recognizing that he and the animal are in similar situations. After passing out there, he's awoken by the club's host, who kicks him out and sends him crashing into a trash can that spills garbage everywhere. As Hodaka's replacing the trash in the can, he picks up a package that he later opens as he sits in McDonald's. The package holds a gun, which initially scares him, until he convinces himself that it must only be a toy and decides to keep it as a good-luck charm. Hina approaches him as he sits without ordering anything, offering him a free meal out of pity.

The next day, Hodaka contacts Keisuke and is hired as an assistant to his small publishing company, K&A Planning Co., Ltd. At the office, Hodaka meets Natsumi Suga, Keisuke's niece who Hodaka mistakes as his mistress. He and Natsumi investigate urban legends relating to the unusual weather in Tokyo; from a psychic, they hear the legend of a 'Sunshine Girl' and a 'Rain Girl'—beings who can control the weather.

On a rainy day, Hodaka watches as Hina is being intimidated into working at a sketchy club by the same man who kicked him out the day before, and attempts to rescue her. He recognizes her as the girl who was kind to him, and they then run away together as the club host pursues them. The host pins Hodaka down, but he manages to shock the man by firing the gun he had found earlier. Not expecting the gun to be real, Hodaka freezes, and Hina quickly pulls him away so that the two can escape to a nearby abandoned building—the same one Hina saw as she sat with her mother. Hina chides Hodaka for interfering, explaining that she needed the job to support herself and her sibling after being fired from her previous job at the fast food restaurant. She criticizes his use of the gun before turning to leave, and Hodaka, also scared by what he'd done, throws it across the floor of the building. Seeing that he'd recognized his mistakes, Hina returns and guesses that Hodaka is a runaway before telling him that she wants to show him something. At the building's rooftop, Hina demonstrates her ability to clear the sky by praying for Hodaka. She introduces herself to an impressed Hodaka as he does the same, boasting to him that she's 17 and thus older than him. They organize a meeting at Hina's house.

Soon after, at K&A, Hodaka talks Natsumi about Sunshine Girls and the woman swoons at the idea of being a Sunshine Girl, then asking Hodaka when his date with her was. Hodaka protests that it's not a date as Natsumi gets up to leave. Elsewhere, Keisuke meets up with his late wife's mother, Mrs. Mamiya, in a café to discuss custody of his daughter. She rejects his request to see Moka, pointing out that he is still smoking and would give a bad impression to the child.

Later that day, he meets Hina and later her younger brother, Nagi, at their home and she cooks lunch for Hodaka as they discuss jobs. Inspired by the idea of the Sunshine Girl, Hodaka proposes that they start a business together; Hina could provide her mysterious ability to people who want clear weather for special events. Their business becomes a great success and they attract a large number of clients ranging from kindergarten students to corporate giants.

The Jingu Gaien fireworks festival is held a few months into the job which Hina is asked to provide a clear sky for. After doing so, she sits on the building's roof with Hodaka, telling him that she's really glad she started her job as they watch the fireworks together.

The next day, Natsumi writes out her resumé as she waits in the cat for Keisuke to get off the phone. Keisuke pulls out a cigarette, but doesn't end up lighting it as Ame jumps up onto the desk in front of him, then deciding to call Mrs. Mamiya about his daughter. He gets into the car with Natsumi and they discuss Hodaka and his other job together, Natsumi becoming disgusted at Keisuke as he tells her how little he pays him.

Hina, Nagi and Hodaka take a job for Fumi Tachibana at her house, clearing the sky for her so that she can light a fire for her deceased husband. Fumi says it's a shame that they're quitting the job, but Hodaka explains that they have no choice since Hina was caught on camera at the festival and thus wants to lay low for a while. Taki Tachibana arrives at Fumi's house and lights her fire for her, Fumi encouraging her to do the same for her deceased mother when she reveals her passing. Taki and Hodaka discuss Hina as she, her brother and Fumi play in the garden. Hodaka says that it's Hina's birthday in a week and Taki encourages him to buy her a gift.

Keisuke and Natsumi continue to investigate urban legends surrounding the mysterious girl who can change the weather. They visit a priest at a shrine who tells them a legend of a weather maiden whose power comes at a great price. Elsewhere, Yasui and Takai chase the host who cornered Hina and ask him what he knows about Hodaka, showing him a CCTV picture of Hodaka pointing his gun at him. The policemen then discuss Hodaka over ramen.

As he watches Nagi's school soccer match, Hodaka asks online what the best gift to get an 18-year-old girl would be, receiving no useful responses. Nagi finishes his game and sits with Hodaka, Hodaka explaining to him that he doesn't know what to get Hina since Natsumi and the Internet had been no help. Nagi asks him if he's in love with Hina, and he blushes furiously as he denies it. Nagi coaches Hodaka on love as the two discuss Hina together. Hodaka eventually decides to buy a ring for Hina, and heads to a jewellery store to make the purchase. He asks the saleswoman, Mitsuha Miyamizu, if she thinks Hina will like it, to which Mitsuha responds that she's bound to considering how long Hodaka took to pick it out, then wishing him luck.

At the park, Keisuke and his daughter Moka Suga are playing together with Nagi as Hina and Hodaka sit and watch them. Hina's last job had been to clear the sky for Moka so she could go outside and play despite her asthma. Keisuke comes over to sit with the two and Hodaka asks him how he knew this was his job and about him having a daughter, but he's ignored as Keisuke instead praises Hina for her abilities. The trio talk for a while until Natsumi arrives, at which time Hodaka exclaims, turns to Keisuke and asks him if he'll be in trouble with her since he has a wife. Keisuke laughs at his misunderstanding and Hina and Natsumi accuse him of being a pervert. Nagi and Moka call Keisuke and Hodaka over to them as the girls discuss the departed men and their similarities. Natsumi asks Hina how she's been, telling her of the dangerous Sunshine Girl rumour the priest informed her of.

It gets dark and the rain begins again so the six depart and split off, Nagi going with the Sugas to a restaurant and Hodaka and Hina walking back to the Amano abode together. As Hodaka walks along behind Hina, he worries over giving her the ring and confessing his love to her, but before he has the chance, Hina interrupts to tell him something. She's cut off as a gust of wind spirits her away, shocking Hodaka as she floats back down to him from the sky. He realizes that she's turning invisible due to the Sunshine Girl's curse. Hina tells him the story of how she became a Sunshine Girl at the rooftop shrine as they walk back to her place, the ring and confession forgotten.

At Hina's apartment, Hodaka hides in the bathroom as the police interrogate Hina about Hodaka's whereabouts. It is revealed that Hodaka's parents filed a missing person report and the police officers are investigating his use and possession of illegal firearms. An officer informs Hina that social services will be called in to take away Nagi, Hina's younger brother, because they are minors with no legal guardian. Once the police officers left, Hodaka visits Keisuke in his car, who fires him from his job and gives him severance pay. Keisuke apologizes for his inability to help Hodaka any further because he doesn't want any complications that could deter his filing for custody for his daughter.

Hodaka decides to run away with Hina and Nagi, but the weather worsens even more abnormally as it starts to snow. On the streets, the three are apprehended and Hodaka is caught by two police officers as he attempts to run away but is saved by Hina, who distracts the police by praying for lightning to strike nearby. This then allows the trio to escape to a hotel.

They spend the night at the hotel. As they're about to sleep, Hina confesses to Hodaka that her body is slowly being turned into water, and that she learned from Natsumi about the story of the weather maiden who becomes a living sacrifice; the weather will only return to normal if she disappears permanently into the clouds. He refuses to let this happen and promises to protect her. But the next day, Hina goes missing and the rains have consequently stopped. Hodaka sets out to find her but he and Nagi are taken by the police before they can leave the hotel. Hodaka manages to escape the police station to find Hina and gains the help of Natsumi as she is passing by. The police chase Hodaka until he reaches the building with the shrine, where Hina first got her powers. Inside, he encounters Keisuke, who attempts to stop him from running away any further. The police manage to infiltrate the building and has Hodaka surrounded. Driven by his concern for the desperate Hodaka, Keisuke helps him escape from the police, followed by Nagi appearing and stopping Yasui. Hodaka manages to reach the top of the building and jumps through the shrine. He is then transported above the world in the sky and rescues Hina. As they fall to earth, Hodaka begs Hina to start living for herself and the rains resumes with no foreseeable end.

Three years pass; Hodaka, who has been on probation, graduates from high school and immediately returns to live in a now half-submerged Tokyo. He goes to meet Fumi, who talks to him about the rain, and then Keisuke, who has expanded his business to talk regarding seeing Hina. He then looks for Hina whom he has not spoken to in the last three years. While walking on a rainy day, he finds Hina praying on the other end of the street, and the two are finally reunited.

Hodaka Morishima

 * Voiced by: Kotaro Daigo (Japanese); Brandon Engman (English)

Hodaka Morishima (森嶋 帆高) is a freshman at Kōzu-shima high school. He ran away from home by ferry to Tokyo. There is no detailed explanation of the reason for his running away from home in the film. Because he was a runaway and could not present his identification, he could not get a part-time job so he had to spend his days at an Internet cafe. He accidentally picked up a gun believed to have been discarded by Shibata, a criminal who had been arrested for possessing a large number of firearms. Later, he got into trouble with a club owner who was trying to recruit Hina, who was looking for a high paying job. He accidentally fired the handgun, trying to threaten him, but the bullet missed. After finding Keisuke, he was hired by him and got food and shelter. His life in Tokyo was smooth sailing, but he was pursued by the police for two reasons: the fact that the shot was caught on security cameras and his family had reported him missing.

Hina Amano

 * Voiced by: Nana Mori (Japanese); Ashley Boettcher (English)

Hina Amano (天野 陽菜) is a third year junior high school student, born on August 22. She started working part-time at a McDonald's restaurant in Kabukicho, but later she was fired because she falsely represented her age. She was 14 years old when she first met Hodaka, but she told him she would be 18 on her next birthday. By passing through a small shrine gate on the roof of an abandoned building in Yoyogi, she gained the ability to temporarily clear a localized area by praying. But it also came at the cost of her body gradually becoming more transparent with each use of that ability, and turning into water at the end. Initially, she was unaware of this, and even considered the "100% sunshine girl" business to be her calling, but she later realized this when Natsumi showed her a video of a priest of a weather shrine recounting weather maiden lore.

Keisuke Suga

 * Voiced by: Shun Oguri (Japanese); Lee Pace (English)

Keisuke Suga (須賀 圭介) is a middle-aged man who runs a small occult magazine publishing company. He writes articles for weekly occult magazines, but he makes fun of superstitions and the like, and he thinks his readers do not believe in the content of his articles as much as he does. On his way to Tokyo, he rescued Hodaka from almost falling off the ship, which the latter then bought a meal and beer for him in the ship's dining room. When disembarking from the ship, he gave Hodaka his business card. Later, he hired Hodaka as his assistant when he came to visit him. He used the "100% sunshine girl" service to meet his daughter Moka who had been taken in by his mother-in-law Mamiya. Mamiya wouldn't let his daughter visit him on rainy days because she has asthma.

Natsumi Suga

 * Voiced by: Tsubasa Honda (Japanese); Alison Brie (English)

Natsumi Suga (須賀 夏美) is Keisuke's niece and a college student working part-time at his office. Hodaka at first thought she was Keisuke's mistress because of her bewitching appearance, her behavior, calling Keisuke "Kei-chan", and the fact that she raised her little finger when explaining her relationship with Keisuke. In addition to working at the office, she worked hard to get a job, but she was not successful.

Nagi Amano

 * Voiced by: Sakura Kiryu (Japanese); Emeka Guindo (English)

Nagi Amano (天野 凪) is Hina's younger brother studying in fifth grade. At first, he had a bad impression of Hodaka, but when Hina and Hodaka started the "100% sunshine girl" business, he became friends with him. He also became friends with Keisuke's daughter on the very first day they met. Due to his childhood experience, he makes mature comments that are not typical of elementary schoolers. Hodaka calls him "sempai".

Yasui

 * Voiced by: Sei Hiraizumi (Japanese); Mike Pollock (English)

Yasui (安井) is an old, experienced police officer who works with Takai on the investigation. He is a relatively calm man and adopts a persuasion-oriented policy. In the abandoned Yoyogi building scene at the end of the film, he was the only one who holded his gun down when Detective Takai and the others surrounded Hodaka.

Takai

 * Voiced by: Yuki Kaji (Japanese); Riz Ahmed (English)

Takai (高井) is a young detective who works with Yasui on the investigation. He has a high sense of duty as a police officer, but his youth makes his blood easily rise to his head, and he is willing to use any means necessary to arrest Hodaka, even pointing a gun at him or punching him in the face.

Fumi Tachibana

 * Voiced by: Chieko Baisho (Japanese); Barbara Goodson (English)

Fumi Tachibana (立花 冨美) is Taki's grandmother. She wrote on the website of the Sunshine Girl service requesting that the first day of Obon ceremony for her husband be sunny. She then told Hodaka and others, who visited her for the request, that dead people come back from the sky in August. Afterwards, she moved to an apartment west of the submerged area (around Takashimadaira station) because the area of her house was submerged due to heavy rain. She again sent a request to the website. When Hodaka visits her house to inform her that her request could not be accepted, she told him that she believed that the submerged area had been in the sea before the Edo period, and that it had simply returned to its original state. A kumihimo bracelet could be seen on Fumi's right hand in this scene.

Mitsuha Miyamizu

 * Voiced by: Mone Kamishiraishi (Japanese); Stephanie Sheh (English)

Mitsuha Miyamizu (宮水 三葉) is a jewellery saleswoman in the store LUMINE who helps Hodaka figure whether the ring for Hina is suitable. Mitsuha previously appeared in Shinkai's previous film Your Name.

Taki Tachibana

 * Voiced by: Ryunosuke Kamiki (Japanese); Michael Sinterniklaas (English)

Taki Tachibana (立花 瀧) is Fumi's grandson. When he was visiting her grandmother's house for the Obon ceremony for his late grandfather, he encountered Hodaka and Hina who had visited them for the Sunshine Girl job. At that time, he suggested to Hodaka that he give a birthday present to Hina. Taki previously appeared in Shinkai's previous film Your Name.

Inspirations
Makoto Shinkai was inspired by the art of weather of this film, since it is a familiar topic for everybody. Shinkai states that he has been working on creating "a very real entertainment piece that will make you laugh, cry and say". He also says "It’s so thrilling, as well as arouse your intellectual curiosity".

Production
On August 2, 2018, Makoto Shinkai revealed that he has a new feature film in production and would be released the following year. Weathering with You was planned using the storyboarding and pre-production software Toon Boom Storyboard Pro. The film will be produced by Genki Kawamura and Story inc with the production company CoMix Wave Films. It will be distributed by Toho. Weathering with You released after the arson incident in Kyoto Animation's first studio at Uji in the Kyoto Prefecture.

Shinkai tweeted about his admiration for Shikao Suga, and that he "borrowed" the last name for the character Keisuke Suga.

Animation staff
Masayoshi Tanaka, previous character designer for Your Name., will illustrate the characters and dresses. Atsushi Tamura (The Cat Returns, Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin) is the animation director and Hiroshi Takiguchi (The Garden of Words) is the art director. Yojiro Noda is the animation storyboard script and lyrics checker. Other key roles are filled by returning crew members from Your Name.

Casting
More than 2,000 Japanese voices actors auditioned for the film's two protagonists, from which Kotaro Daigo (Sakamichi Onoda in the Yowamushi Pedal stage play) and Nana Mori (Hell Girl and Last Letter) were eventually the chosen ones. Other key roles were filled with returning crew members of Your Name. On May 29, 2019, additional cast was announced: Shun Oguri (Keisuke Suga), Tsubasa Honda (Natsumi), Chieko Baisho (Fumi), Sakura Kiryu (Nagisa Amano), Sei Hiraizumi (Yasui), and Yuki Kaji (Takai).

Recording
The film's voice recording sessions began on April 27, 2019.

Music
Like Shinkai's Your Name, Radwimps wrote and composed the soundtrack and score for the film. There are two J-Pop songs, "Koi Suru Fortune Cookie" by AKB48 and "Koi" by Gen Hoshino, used as karaoke songs in the film.

Marketing
On December 13, 2018, a press conference was held to reveal the film and announce it would be released on July 19, 2019. The first teaser trailer debuted on April 10, exactly 100 days before the premiere. The second trailer was released on May 28. Producer Genki Kawamura presented a work in process screening on June 14, 2019, at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in France that was open to industry professionals and students but not the general public. TV Asahi aired footage from the film's opening scene during a reshowing of Shinkai's previous film Your Name. on June 30. Before its screening in Japan, Uniqlo launched special t-shirts with designs inspired by Weathering with You and Shinkai's previous anime films. Weathering with You reportedly promoted multiple products and companies including SoftBank Group, Suntory and Baitoru, in television advertisements. During its screening in Japan, many convenience stores such as Lawson launched food products inspired by the film. Weathering with You screenings in 4DX and MX4D begins from September 27 onwards.

Release
Weathering with You was released in Japan on July 19, 2019, at 9 a.m. by its distributor Toho on 448 screens in 359 theaters across the country. Theaters in Tokyo's Shinjuku and Osaka's Umeda districts, however, premiered the film at midnight, July 18. Weathering with You official website announced on September 20 that the film would be shown in the popular 4DX and MX4D formats throughout Japan from September 27.

It was announced that the film would be released worldwide; on July 16, releases had already been decided for 140 countries in North America, Europe, Asia, and South America, exceeding the 130 for Your Name..

In Asia, EDKO Films released the film in Hong Kong on August 8, Encore Films streamed a Malay, Chinese, and English-subtitled trailer and announced and released the film in few Southeast Asia countries including; Indonesia on August 21, Vietnam on August 30, Malaysia & Brunei on September 5 and Singapore on September 12. Pioneer Films announced and released the movie in the Philippines on August 28. Producer Genki Kawamura said they want to release it in India because 53,000 people signed a petition requesting its release there. On August 10, director Makoto Shinkai and the official page of Weathering with You announced through Twitter the film would be screened in 20 Indian cities including Mumbai and Delhi from October 11, 2019. PVR Pictures and Bookmyshow-backed theater-on-demand platform Vkaao distributed the film. It was the first mature Japanese animated film to be screened theatrically in India. CJ CGV announced that Weathering with You would premiere in South Korea in October 30. Volga Film Company has confirmed it would release the film on October 31. Thai film distributor Major Group announced the film would open in Thailand on November 7, 2019, but was changed to September 5, 2019. The film has been approved by Beijing's censors and hit Chinese theaters on November 1.

In North America, GKIDS announced that it had acquired the rights of the film and screened an awards-qualifying run in 2019, followed by a theatrical release with Japanese and English-language options on January 17, 2020. The 44th Toronto International Film Festival, which was held from September 5 to 15 in 2019, hosted the North American premiere of the film. As part of the "Special Presentation" category, it is eligible to compete for the People's Choice award. GKIDS premiered the film in the US at Animation Is Film Festival on October 18, 2019, with Makoto Shinkai in attendance, and it additionally received a one-day IMAX showing.

In Europe, the 67th San Sebastián International Film Festival in Spain hosted the European premiere of the film from September 20 to 28 2019. Anime Limited acquired the UK and Ireland rights of the film, premiering the film at Scotland Loves Anime on October 12, 2019, with a theatrical run in Japanese and English-language options from January 17, 2020. In Italy, Dynit and Nexo Digital released the film theatrically on October 14, 2019. Selecta Visión has licensed it in Spain and screened the film on November 29, 2019. In France, the film was released on January 8, 2020 by Anime Limited and BAC Films. In Germany, the film was released on January 16, 2020 by Universum Film. In Portugal, the film was released on February 20, 2020 by Big Picture Films, with a special screening on February 14, 2020.

In Australia and New Zealand, Madman Entertainment acquired the rights of the film and began screening it theatrically from August 22, 2019, with encore screenings of the English dub from February 13, 2020.

In Middle East, the leading independent film distributor Front Row Filmed Entertainment has announced that the film will be releasing soon. Novo Cinemas has mentioned the release of July 2, 2020 on its website.

Home Media
The movie released on Blu-ray in Japan on May 27, 2020. A collectors edition included a 4K UHD Disc. English and Chinese subtitles were included. The film is also scheduled for a Blu-ray/DVD home media release on September 15, 2020 in North America, with a limited edition set for a November 2020 release. A digital release is planned for August 4, 2020.

Box Office
During its initial screening in 359 theaters and 448 screens in Japan, Weathering with You sold 1,159,020 tickets to earn ¥1,643,809,400 (approx $15.22 million) in its first three days. It was reported that Weathering with You surpassed Shinkai's previous film, Your Name., which earned ¥1,277,960,000 (about $12.51 million at the time) in its first three days of screening, earning 28.6% more. By August 25, 2019, it had sold eight million tickets and earned ¥10.73 billion (about $101 million). By September 16, 2019, it had earned ¥12.72 billion, ranking eighteenth in the all-time Japanese box-office rankings. By October 2, 2019, the film had sold over 10 million tickets in Japan, after 75 days on the market. By October 20, 2019, it had sold 10.27 million tickets and grossed ¥13.7 billion in Japan. As of 12 April 2020, the film has grossed ¥14.06 billion ($127 million) in Japan.

In China, the film had sold 8,985,208 tickets and grossed $42.4 million in its first 17 days on the market, by November 19, 2019. By the end of November 2019, the film had grossed CN¥288.65 million ($43.6 million) in China. In the United States and Canada, the film has grossed $7,798,743, as of March 15, 2020.

Critical response
Early reviews have given Weathering with You a generally positive response. On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 91% based on reviews from 85 critics, with an average rating of 7.38/10. The site's critics consensus reads, "Beautifully animated and narratively engaging, Weathering with You further establishes writer-director Makoto Shinkai as a singularly talented filmmaker." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 72 out of 100 based on reviews from 30 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews."

Brian Ashcraft of Kotaku praised the film, saying; "parts of the movie are incredibly moving and for interweaving Shinto beliefs with contemporary Japanese lifelike praying and performing rituals to god for getting clear weather" but later wrote "the biggest problem that Weathering With You has is this: it’s the follow up to Your Name.". Daryl Harding writing for Crunchyroll News praised the world-building aspect of the film, stating that Shinkai has his finger on the pulse of modern Tokyo's atmosphere, but criticized the similarity between Weathering with You and Your Name.. Kim Morrissy of Anime News Network also gave the film a generally positive review, praising its visuals and use of weather to convey the story's metaphor but criticizing the execution in the second half of the film; she wrote that "Shinkai was evidently constrained by the need to fit his story into a particular template, one that didn't seem to fit the plot this time around". Twwk, reviewing the film for Beneath the Tangles, was mostly positive as well, writing, "The movie isn’t as emotionally powerful as Your Name. due to a screenplay that plays too loose (and lazy) to earn its huge moments, but it’s still heartfelt."

Ollie Barder, writing for Forbes, described the animation of Weathering with You as "incredible" and recognized its ability to bring "Tokyo to life in a uniquely palpable way". Later, he praised Shinkai for his way of depicting "wildlife and naturalistic vistas". James Marsh from South China Morning Post praised the film for its animation but criticized it for its lack of "clarity of vision seen in Your Name.". He described the plot as more straightforward than that of Your Name. but said it has some unanswered, "dangling plot threads". A review by Alicia Haddick for Otaquest praised the film's attempts to differentiate itself from Makoto Shinkai's past work and praised its animation, story and music but said that its reliance on the structure of his last film hurt the movie overall, stating that "it's impossible to discuss this film without the specter of Your Name. hanging over your shoulder". Andrew Paredes, writing for ANC X, praised the film's characters, story, themes, and Makoto Shinkai's directing, saying; "The effusive emotion and Shinto mysticism rubbing up nicely against real-world concerns. And then there’s the animation: Shinkai has outdone himself with this follow-up, presenting Tokyo not just with detailed fidelity, but also with a glow that suggests a lush, lambert inner life." Terence Toh, writing for The Star, praised the film's characters and story, saying; "Weathering With You boasts of wonderful visual and likeable characters. The story is also right as rain."

Light Novelization
On April 30, 2019, Shinkai announced through Twitter he had finished writing a novel adaptation of Weathering with You. It was released in print and in digital format by Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko on July 18, 2019. On October 24, 2019, Yen Press announced they had licensed the novel for North American release, in print and in digital format, on December 17.

Manga
A manga adaptation drawn by Watari Kubota began serialization on July 25, 2019, in Kodansha's Monthly Afternoon magazine. It was announced that the manga would have a colored opening page.

Trivia
みんな、いそいで てるてる坊主つくって‼️ 👻👻👻👻👻👻👻👻👻✨☀️☀️
 * In the movie, a Tweet by Twitter user yui_tanaka0611 is shown during the Sunshine Girl job montage. The Tweet also appeared in real-life Twitter (https://twitter.com/yui_tanaka0611/status/1133476904718090240) and was posted on 29 May, 2019, the same day the account was created. It reads:
 * During the same montage a number of characters from other shows are featured in the cosplay snapshot scenes. These include Aqua from Konosuba, Godzilla from the Godzilla franchise, and Cure Black & Cure White from Pretty Cure.
 * The website Hodaka creates for Hina's job in the movie also exists in real life (https://otenki-girl.jp), and was put up on June 20, 2019 as a promotion site for the movie.
 * During the karaoke scene, the songs sung by Hodaka & Nagi and Hina are Koi Suru Fortune Cookie (恋するフォーチュンクッキー) by AKB48 and Koi (恋) by Gen Hoshino, respectively.
 * Interestingly, both songs' names contain the Japanese kanji for "love" (恋).