Ocean Waves (1993)

As a young man returns home after his first year away at college he recalls his senior year of high school and the iron-willed, big city girl that turned his world upside down.

Director:

Tomomi Mochizuki

Writers:

Saeko Himuro (novel), Keiko Niwa (screenplay) (as Kaori Nakamura)

Stars:

Nobuo Tobita, Toshihiko Seki, Yoko Sakamoto

Cast

Credited cast:
Nobuo Tobita	...	Taku Morisaki (voice)
Toshihiko Seki	...	Yutaka Matsuno (voice)
Yoko Sakamoto	...	Rikako Muto (voice)
Yuri Amano	...	Akiko Shimizu (voice)
Kae Araki	...	Yumi Kohama (voice)
Jun'ichi Kanemaru	...	Okada (voice)
Ai Satô	...	Taku's mother (voice)
Aya Hisakawa	...	Girl (voice)
Tomokazu Seki	...	Minarai (voice)
Hikaru Midorikawa	...	Tadashi Yamao (voice)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Rin Mizuhara	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Sumi Shimamoto	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Reiko Suzuki	...	(voice)

Storyline

The main character travels to his hometown for his high school reunion. During the trip, he recalls the memories of the days in high school. Friendship, subtle love, a trip to Tokyo and so on all came back to him as the film evolves.

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Plot Keywords:

studio ghibli | two word title | love | friendship | high school reunion | 

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Genres:

Animation | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some thematic material

Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

5 May 1993 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Ocean Waves

Filming Locations:

Kochi, Japan

Company Credits

Production Co:

Nippon Television Network (NTV), Studio Ghibli, Tokuma Shoten

Technical Specs

Runtime:

72 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This movie has two English titles. Unlike other movies, Ghibli didn't give it an official English title for a long time. Ghibli finally titled it "Ocean Waves", but most people in the U.S. know it as "I Can Hear the Sea" (a direct translation of the Japanese title).

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Connections

References Porco Rosso (1992)

User Reviews

Why can't our TV programming be this good?

TV movie or not, this was an outstanding film. Terrific direction, animation, and writing. As others have stated already, it is a film with a great deal of subtlety, so if you think great acting is Julia Roberts screaming at the top of her lungs, then you might not appreciate this film fully. It ranks among the best animated films I have watched, at least in the top 15 or 20. It's not quite in the same league as The Grave of the Fireflies, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, Akira, My Neighbor Totoro, Whisper of the Heart, Only Yesterday, or a few other excellent anime I have had a chance to see, but it is easily better than 99% of the rest of the animated films out there. Highly recommended. At least an 8/10.