The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya

The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya is a 2010 anime film by Kyoto Animation, the studio behind the popular TV series The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. Tatsuya Ishihara was chief director, with Yasuhiro Takemoto as director, and Fumihiko Shimo wrote the script. It opened in Japanese theaters on February 6, 2010. The film is very long, about 162 minutes, and at the time it was one of the longest animated films ever made. It is based on the fourth light novel by Nagaru Tanigawa. A light novel is a short Japanese novel for young adults, usually with some anime-style pictures.

To enjoy this movie, it helps to see the TV show first. The story is told by Kyon, an ordinary high school boy with a dry, joking voice. At school he gets pulled into a strange club started by Haruhi, a loud, bossy girl full of energy. Haruhi wants to meet aliens, time travelers, and people with special powers. What she does not know is that her wish already came true. Quiet Yuki Nagato was made by an alien intelligence, shy Mikuru Asahina comes from the future, and smiling Itsuki Koizumi has powers of his own. They stay close to Haruhi, because she may be able to reshape reality without realizing it.

The movie opens in a calm, cozy way. Winter is here, and Haruhi plans a holiday get-together, so the gang starts on decorations and outfits. Then, one cold morning, Kyon walks into his classroom and everything feels off. Haruhi's seat belongs to someone else. Classmates stare at him blankly when he says her name, as if she was never born. Koizumi has vanished as well. Mikuru treats Kyon like a total stranger, and even seems scared of him. Yuki is now just a timid bookworm, with glasses, who sits alone in the old club room reading. The club Kyon knew is simply gone, and he appears to be the one person who still remembers how things used to be.

From here, the film turns into a mystery. Kyon has to work out what changed and whether he can get his old life back. The pace is slow at times, with long quiet scenes and lots of Kyon's inner thoughts. This slowness makes his loneliness and confusion feel very real. Along the way he must face a question he always avoided: does he actually like the wild life Haruhi dragged him into, even though he complained about it all the time?

The film is also an important story for Yuki Nagato. In this changed world she seems warmer and more human, and many fans see this movie as the moment she became one of the most loved characters in the series. The music helps a lot. The orchestra score uses pieces by Erik Satie, and the theme song, "Yasashii Boukyaku," is sung by Minori Chihara, the voice of Yuki.

The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya was a hit in Japan. It made about 830 million yen, won Best Theatrical Film at the 2010 Animation Kobe Awards, and is still often called one of the best anime films of its era.