Non Non Biyori Movie: Vacation

With summer vacation coming to an end, the girls are having as much fun as they can with their remaining time. However, their daily shenanigans are cut short when Suguru Koshigaya wins the grand prize of a lottery—tickets to Okinawa! After hasty preparations, the Asahigaoka group embarks on a three-day trip for their final summer getaway.

Upon arriving in Okinawa and checking into an inn, the group comes across Aoi Niizato—the young daughter of the inn's hostess. Despite being of similar age, her mature demeanor leaves Natsumi Koshigaya reflecting upon her own childish nature. With the sign of an unexpected friendship blooming on the horizon, the girls waste no time diving into their ambitious sightseeing plans and regional activities!

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Miyauchi, Renge Main

Koiwai, Kotori Japanese

Koshigaya, Komari Main

Asumi, Kana Japanese

Ichijou, Hotaru Main

Murakawa, Rie Japanese

Koshigaya, Natsumi Main

Sakura, Ayane Japanese

Kagayama, Kaede Supporting

Satou, Rina Japanese

Koshigaya, Suguru Supporting

Miyauchi, Hikage Supporting

Fukuen, Misato Japanese

Miyauchi, Kazuho Supporting

Nazuka, Kaori Japanese

Fujimiya, Konomi Supporting

Shintani, Ryouko Japanese

Niizato, Aoi Supporting

Shimoji, Shino Japanese

Gou, Fumiyuki Producer

Iizuka, Aya Producer

Yamashita, Shinpei Producer

Kaneko, Hayato Producer, Planning

Reviews

Jul 14, 2023

ClMarshmallow

Recommended

What a lovely movie! I sat on this for over a year before finding the perfect time to watch it, and I’m happy to say it exceeded my expectations. Based on the promotional art I thought it would feel like the beach episode, but it’s a more well-paced, more well thought out adventure that uses the runtime wisely to create a satisfying arc throughout the movie, something longer and more immersive than what is possible in one episode. And I liked the character focus as well (won’t spoil who), but all of the main cast gets a chance to shine multiple times throughout the movie. ... I appreciate that they don’t oversell this, the main priority is just a fun vacation with the characters, this is just to tie it together.

Writing, dialogue, jokes, etc are all great and feel really good in the moment-to-moment, which is the main reason I give this 1 point over the rest of the series (for now). Animation is nothing special compared to the main series, but there were no moments that I felt were lacking and there is a decent amount of character animation in there. I also appreciate the minimal amount of CG, I can imagine if the movie was more ambitious some intrusive CG could have easily snuck itself in.

Look up watch order for best experience, but you can put this after season 2 if you don’t want to bother with OVAs. But definitely don’t skip this. If you saw the series a while ago like me, still a perfect time to watch right now. Easily gets you back into the world of NNB.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Aug 14, 2021

ktulu007

Recommended

Here we are at the close of another year's film festival. I've decided to close things with a look at a film based off of an anime I've reviewed, Non Non Biyori. It's a very solid slice of life and I honestly just wanted to see more of it.

Story:

We open with our girls, Renge, Hotaru, Natsumi & Komari, just hanging out and trying to make the most of their summer vacation before it ends. That's when they spot Miss Candy Store, Kaede, and Renge's oldest sister, Kazuho, driving to the department store. The four of them convince the older women to take them ... along due to Kaede's soft spot for Renge, picking up Natsumi & Komari's older brother on the way. While at the store, the older brother wins a raffle and gets four tickets to Okinawa. Naturally, they all go along with Konomi and Hikage.

The narrative is pretty simple and it's also really well executed. The whole thing is very cute, full of funny moments and just a fantastically executed slice of life. It has strong pacing, a lot of memorable parts and a little side story about Natsumi experiencing her first love with Aoi, the girl who works at the inn.

Characters:

My biggest issue with the characters is with the side character, Konomi. She just doesn't have much personality nor does she really contribute much to the humour. I have the same issue with her in the series proper. She has that one memorable scene where she and Hotaru talk about things that go over Komari's head and make her feel childish. Most of the scenes she's in would be just as good without her. Aside from that, this is a great cast with strong interactions and great comedic chemistry.

Art:

The character designs are good and the animation moves smoothly. Even the ending card is super cute. But where Silver Link really kills it is with the backgrounds and nature scenes. There's always so much detail and effort behind them. I could pretty much make any nature still from this film my background and it would look really nice. I also appreciate that when you see Renge's drawings they look like a child's drawings.

Sound:

All the actors from the series proper do a fantastic job. There are a lot of talented ladies in this cast. The main person who joins them is Shimoji Shino as Aoi. You may also remember her as Beaver from Kemono Friends. The music is really nice too. Very pleasant and soothing.

Ho-yay:

Hotaru's blatant crush on Komari is still going strong. In addition to that, we have Natsumi and Aoi. They have that dynamic where it very strongly comes across as attraction. Right down to them getting all flustered and blushing a lot. I will say, their dynamic could have worked a bit better if we'd gotten a few more scenes with them.

Areas of Improvement:

1. They could do something with Konomi's character.

2. The ending credits could have shown cute vacation snapshots instead of scenes from the film. Provided a little more impact.

3. We could have stood to see a little more of Aoi.

Final Thoughts:

I actually enjoyed this film a lot. It's pretty much everything you want out of a slice of life. It's endearing, entertaining, and very adorable. It also does feature some of the best nature scenes I've seen in an anime. So, I'm going to go so far as to give it a 9/10.

Reviewer’s Rating: 9

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Jul 27, 2021

undamoth

Recommended

I got to say, this movie has been better than the main series itself.

NNBM:V is an extended episode of Non Non Biyori, a series about a bunch of girls living the best of their lives in a rural village which was an absolute paradise. My impression of the series is that apparently everyone in the world is good and free from any hints of evil, thus it is probably one of the most lighthearted shows ever, albeit probably too idealistic. The movie further reinforces the same ideals as the series proper but this time, they are on another paradise and with their capers much more ... fun this time.

The story as usual is bare bones but what fuels the show has been how each character bounces their quirks with each other on their excursions. As slice of life shows go, the movie definitely gave each character a moment to shine. In the movie, Hikage, who was merely sidelined before was definitely my favorite here due to her hilarious antics and unfortunate situations she gets in. Likewise there is a bit of feels too with Natsumi and her new friend. Renge remains the darling as she is and the rest keeps up with their own shenanigans as well and as with tradition, the guy remains mute. So sum it up, this is a standalone movie which encapsulates the show's strengths only with a higher production value.

Production-wise, this definitely takes the cake. Everything looks gorgeous, particularly with the whole village of Okinawa which was highly detailed and immersive. Seeing the character just mess around the village was fun and being used to the series, it was probably the best one yet. They better pay those background artist well.

Sound was good i think. Voice actors remain good at delivering their lines, particularly Renge and Hikage who were particularly featured this time around along with Natsumi. OST was ok.

Characters do a lot this time and with the whole crew united, it did feel like a family trip where the audience was a spiritual member. Everyone remains idealistically good-mannered and Okinawa is still a paradise of good folks. The sideplot of Natsumi was particularly packs in some feels but never quite reached the strong note like other drama shows.

By the end of the movie, seeing some get emotional on returning back to their village did paint the same feelings I have whenever I come back from a vacation. It felt satisfying just like how the second season ended and truly worth its 'vacation' title.

If you ever want to feel refreshed and want a light, easy watch, this is probably one of the better anime movies for such. Light drama, just people having fun, and exquisite sceneries to chew. Sometimes this ingredients are enough to call something great.

Reviewer’s Rating: 9

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	Poll: Non Non Biyori Movie: Vacation Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 ) shanimebib - Feb 28, 2019	97 replies	by rainsinz »» Sep 22, 11:05 PM
	Love this, recommend me more please Avigoku - Nov 25, 2023	14 replies	by xXGoreGrinderXx »» Dec 9, 2023 2:12 AM
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