This animation revolves around the struggles of a trio of best friends that do their best to explore the world. They plan to make a plane to explore the tall tower in Japan and know about it's secrets after the Second World War.
I suspect that in 20 years, film buffs worldwide will be pointing to The Place Promised in Our Early Days as the introductory work from one of cinema's first-rate directors.
Shinkai Makoto, who made the 30-minute 'Voices of a Distant Star' by himself on a laptop computer, has written and directed an anime that favors human emotions over robot battles.
Eschews the standard deathdroids and fuzzy critters for a more grounded, hard SF approach. Shinkai's debut ... falls prey to a frustrating feedback loop of a plot.
Seattle Times
June 17, 2005
By any standard it's impressive anime; as a feature debut it's a remarkable achievement.
