Review of “The Garden of Words” (2013)
Shinkai Makoto (writer-director).
Seen in 2013.
Excellent special-effects animation. The original title, 「言の葉の庭」 (Koto no ha no niwa), is visually styled to highlight an etymological correspondence between the words (「言葉」, kotoba, in modern Japanese) and the garden: The Japanese word for “word” means and is written as “leaf of speech”. A conversation would then correspond symbolically to a real garden with leaves in it.
References here: Your Name (2016), No. 7 Cherry Lane (2019).