The theme I got in 5cm was that “Searching for love is a lonesome and depressing interaction, yet it’s poignant and worth every pain you have to endure.”

Shinkai is really strange director. Voices was passable but not that great. I half watched Promise at a theater, later becoming incredibly bored and confused on what’s going on. (I do actually intend re-watching it soon.)

Then he creates 5cm and it’s one of my favorite films I’ve seen lately, but my real gripe about him is that he kind of does the same thing over again. I shouldn’t be too hard on him, since his films are mostly done by one man.

@Zyl: hmm, interesting connection. That’ll be another book to add to my ‘to read’ list then! The title was allegedly inspired by Clarke ‘Songs of Distant Earth’ but I’m not sure if the similarities go any further (it’s one of his that I’ve still yet to read) I really appreciate good sci-fi…if you like space opera the Crest of the Stars novels are worth a read. I finished Peter F Hamilton’s Night’s Dawn trilogy recently, and was blown away at the ‘genre bending’.