Rascal Does Not Dream of a Dreaming Girl

Rascal Does Not Dream of a Dreaming Girl is a 2019 anime movie and a direct sequel to the TV series Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai. The TV show covered the first five books of Hajime Kamoshida's light novel series. This film adapts books six and seven. It was made by the studio CloverWorks, directed by Soichi Masui, and brings back most of the same staff and voice actors. It opened in theaters in Japan on June 15, 2019.

The story is set in Fujisawa, a seaside city south of Tokyo. Sakuta Azusagawa is a second-year high school student. He is honest, a little rude, and often sarcastic, but he cares a lot about others. In the TV series, he helped many girls around him who were struggling with Adolescence Syndrome. This is the name people in the story give to strange, almost magical events that seem to happen to teenagers when they are under great stress. Most adults do not believe it is real.

At the start of the film, Sakuta's life finally feels calm. He is dating Mai Sakurajima, an older student at his school who is also a famous actress. Their time together is happy and full of playful teasing. His younger sister, Kaede, is part of his daily life at home as well. For once, nobody seems to need saving.

Then Shoko Makinohara comes back into his life. Shoko was Sakuta's first love, a kind girl who helped him in a dark time when he was younger. Now she appears again, but something is very wrong. Sakuta meets two versions of her at the same time. One is still a young middle school girl. The other is a grown woman. Neither one can be explained in a normal way, and the older Shoko pushes herself into his daily life in ways that put a strain on his relationship with Mai.

As Sakuta tries to understand what is happening, he learns that the younger Shoko is very sick. Her heart illness is serious, and her future is uncertain. Sakuta, Mai, and the people close to them must face hard questions about love, loss, and what someone is willing to give up for another person. The film does not explain everything at once. It lets the mystery grow until the big emotional choice near the end.

This is a quiet, talking-heavy drama, not an action movie. Much of its power comes from small, honest moments between the characters. It is best watched after the TV series, since it builds on everything that came before. The film earned about 377 million yen in Japan, and Anime News Network reviewer Kim Morrissy called it a real tearjerker and gave it an A-minus. Many fans see it as the true ending of the first story arc of the Rascal series.