50
Considering it's anime, Summer Wars starts out more like a bad romantic comedy.
We hate to say it, but we can't find anywhere to view this film.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
80
The Hollywood Reporter by Frank Scheck
Running almost two hours, its increasingly convoluted narrative may be too difficult to follow for younger viewers. But its thematic ambition and dazzling visual style ultimately make it one of the more rewarding anime efforts to reach these shores.
80
Los Angeles Times by Kevin Thomas
Hosoda, who directed the cult film "The Girl Who Leapt Through Time," has made a sophisticated yet poignant family entertainment with an appeal beyond Japanese animation buffs.
78
Austin Chronicle by Marc Savlov
Summer Wars is a magnificently manufactured piece of film entertainment that goes beyond the obvious and manages to comment, often obliquely, on everything from Facebook to virtual war and/or terrorism without ever seeming heavy-handed or strident.
80
Summer Wars surprisingly celebrates togetherness and bravery as much as binary-mathematics expertise, all helped along by a kick-ass synthesis of traditional hand-drawn scenes and fluid, rainbow-explosive CG artistry.
40
Village Voice by Nicolas Rapold
It's hard to appreciate things like the character detail amid the insufferably squealy voicing and arbitrary suspense.
75
San Francisco Chronicle by Peter Hartlaub
It's the kind of fun and quirky film that you don't see very often in art houses this time of year.
70
The New York Times by Rachel Saltz
There's a lovely, unhurried quality to Mr. Hosoda's storytelling, which nicely matches the clean, classically composed images of his outer story.
75
Philadelphia Inquirer by Steven Rea
An enjoyably trippy Japanese animated feature.
75
In Summer Wars, it's what's old that's made to seem refreshingly new.
I've seen this movie so many times, for fun and for a class. It's visually, thematically and emotionally rich, managing to make the cold future of technology so much warmer. It's about family, by blood and otherwise, and the triumph of the human spirit over all. I find that I always cry a little bit when I watch this movie, and it's grown on me in the 15 years since its original release.