Amin Abbas

The Japanese anime blockbuster ‘Suzume’ is now showing in cinemas across the Middle East. Empire Movies & Crunchyroll Middle East released the film on April 27, in the original Japanese version with Arabic and English subtitles.

The movie, written and directed by Makoto Shinkai, is about Suzume Iwato, a 17-year-old high school girl who lives with her aunt in Kyushu and can see supernatural forces that others can’t. The fate of Japan rests on her shoulders as she embarks on a perilous journey to close the mysterious doors spreading chaos across the land.

Released in Japanese theaters last November, ‘Suzume’ has grossed $299.7 million worldwide, including ¥14.51 billion in Japan. It is the fourth-highest-grossing anime film of all time. The film debuted at number one at the Japanese box office, grossing ¥1.88 billion ($13.49 million) during its first three days, surpassing ‘Weathering with You’ to become the biggest three-day opening for a Shinkai film. In Japan, it is the fourth-highest-grossing film of 2022, the eighth-highest-grossing anime film of all time, and the 14th-overall highest-grossing film of all time.

Produced by CoMix Wave Films and distributed by Toho, ‘Suzume’ features the voices of Nanoka Hara and Hokuto Matsumura, with character designs by Masayoshi Tanaka, animation direction by Kenichi Tsuchiya, art direction by Takumi Tanji, and music by Radwimps and Kazuma Jinnouchi.

The film began production in early 2020, eventually being announced as completed by October 2022. A novel adaptation, also written by Shinkai, and a manga series illustrated by Denki Amashima, debuted prior to the film’s release.