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For some people, music is just something to have playing in the background at work—and art is just something to hang on the living room wall. But the animated coming-of-age story The Colors Within (Kimi no iro) explores music and art through the eyes of a girl who sees them in a completely different way.
The Colors Within follows the story of a Catholic boarding school girl with a special gift. Totsuko (voiced by Sayu Suzukawa) was born with the ability to experience colors differently, seeing everything from music to the people around her for the colors of their energy. Totsuko has always felt different—and she spends a lot of time alone in the chapel, praying for serenity. But then she befriends Kimi (Akari Takaishi), a guitar-playing school dropout, and Rui (Taisei Kido), a shy but talented musician, and the three decide to start their own band.
As these three lonely teens meet each week in an abandoned church to work on their music, they eventually open up about their challenges and secrets. Kimi hasn’t told her grandmother that she’s dropped out of school, and Rui is struggling with the pressure to become a doctor and take over his mother’s clinic. But they find friendship—and an escape—through their music. It’s a sweet story of three kids who find each other at just the right time, when they’re trying to figure out their direction in life.
Meanwhile, instead of the usual anime art, the artwork here is more fluid. The Colors Within uses a different kind of color and movement—and music, too—making it both playful and artistic. The animation almost feels like the work of an Impressionist painter, blurring the lines with scenes of moving shapes that slowly transform into the people around Totsuko, this lovable outsider who’s quiet and often anxious but also full of wonder.
Admittedly, the story and its pacing sometimes feel a little uneven. At times, it seems to skip over important development—while, at other times, the story seems to drag. But, in the end, it comes together to tell a charming story about friendship and music—about figuring out who you are and what you want out of life and finding the courage to move forward.
The Colors Within isn’t the typical vibrant, lively animated film for younger children. It’s more understated—a beautiful work of animated art, exploring colors and music and movement while telling a story about three teens and their valuable friendship.
Explore friendship and music with these three bandmates when The Colors Within arrives in theaters on January 24, 2025.
Listen to the review on Reel Discovery:
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