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The Colors Within

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Kennedy Unthank
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Movie Review

In the pews of her Catholic boarding school, you’re likely to find Totsuko, praying that God would grant her peace regarding the things in her life she can’t change. And the biggest thing she can’t change is her unique ability to “feel” the colors of the people around her.

Totsuko, for her part, is fascinated with the various hues that exude from others. But she also learned rather quickly that other people think she’s weird, since they can’t see what she sees.

And then, Kimi passes by, covered in the most brilliant blue she’s ever seen. It’s so beautiful that when Kimi suddenly drops out of school, all other colors seem dim. That’s why Totsuko sets out to find her.

It’s not long before she locates Kimi behind the counter of a bookstore, practicing on her guitar. And once again, there it is: that dazzling blue color.

Caught staring, Totsuko quickly pretends to have been looking to buy a nearby piano book, which sparks a conversation about their mutual interest in music. It’s overheard by another customer in the store, Rui (exuding a lovely green), who asks if the two are in a band.

Totsuko, enraptured by their colors, fumbles out an answer.

“Actually, we’re looking for band members,” she mumbles, before realizing what she’s said.

Still, Rui and Kimi agree to it. Pretty soon, the trio is jamming out on a mixture of guitar, keyboard and theremin. And Rui challenges them all to start writing original songs.

And Totsuko knows exactly what she wants her song to be about: Kimi’s beautiful color.


Positive Elements

The Colors Within is, ultimately, a story about finding love and acceptance. Though initially reserved, the story’s three main characters eventually open up to each other about elements of who they are—elements that they felt were meant to be kept hidden from the world. Likewise, each band member also suffers from the burden of a respective secret. But through the affirmation and friendship they build, they’re each comforted enough to reveal the truth.

Totsuko, for her part, feels isolated from the rest of the world because of her unique ability. Having been embarrassed about it before, she doesn’t let others know about her color vision. However, when encouraged not only to accept the things she can’t change but also to learn and act upon the things she can change, Totsuko writes about the joy she feels when experiencing colors in a way that others can understand.

Kimi, meanwhile, hides from her grandma the fact that she’s dropped out of boarding school. Her deceit flows from good intentions: Kimi’s grandmother has raised her and done so much for her that she’s afraid of hurting her by not following the same path she took. However, Kimi eventually decides that it’d ultimately be better to tell her grandma the truth.

Finally, Rui comes from a family that expects him to become a doctor and to work at the family clinic. Rui, however, finds far more joy in repairing instruments and playing music; that’s something he’s kept hidden from his mother, since she views any time spent outside of prepping for a medical career to be, essentially, a waste of valuable time. Like Kimi, however, Rui eventually admits his desires to his mom, telling her that, while he plans to be a doctor, he’d like to have time to pursue his passion.

Spiritual Elements

Totsuko attends a Catholic boarding school. She often prays alone in the pews the first part of the Serenity Prayer: “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change.” However, Sister Hiyoshiko encourages her to likewise pray the rest of the prayer: “ … courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.”

Totsuko frequently worries whether things she’s done are worthy of going to confession, such as sneaking a friend over for a sleepover or starting a band with a boy. She also prays to God for forgiveness after faking being sick to avoid a school field trip. Later, after Kimi gets caught spending the night, Totsuko is given community service as penance. Though school officials don’t require anything of Kimi (since she’s not a student there), Kimi helps Totsuko with her community service.

And in speaking about sin, Sister Hiyoshiko tells Kimi that both deceiving her grandma and sneaking into the dorms were—at the same time—both sins and not sins. She explains her idea deeper, saying that they’re sins because she did something wrong, but they’re also not, since she did them out of consideration for others.

Hiyoshiko claims that “if the music celebrates the good, the beautiful or the truthful, it could be considered a hymn.” And when Totsuko asks if songs of sorrow and suffering count, too, Hiyoshiko says that she believes they do. “Perhaps your song will protect you,” Hiyoshiko finishes. A couple of the songs Totsuko’s band writes contain phrases such as “God Almighty” and “amen.”

Totsuko and Kimi discuss a carving made on Totsuko’s bedframe by a previous student, which depicts the words “God Almighty” next to a cross. Totsuko says that she prays to it every night. Totsuko occasionally signs herself. A choir sings “What a Friend We Have in Jesus.” The band meets in an abandoned church to practice their music. We see a stained-glass depiction of an angel and a few statues of Mary and Jesus. People quote Psalm 121:6-8 and Isaiah 43:4a.

Some may view Totsuko’s color-seeing ability as being similar to the New Age spiritual concept of seeing spiritual auras. However, it can just as easily be interpreted as the medical condition known as synesthesia.

Sexual & Romantic Content

Many online fans of this film posit that Totsuko and Kimi’s relationship contains romantic undertones. Given director Naoka Yamada’s previous stories that hint at lesbian relationships (such as Tamako Market and Liz and the Bluebird), this isn’t a rumor we can completely ignore.

And certain moments within the film could be used as evidence—when the two share a bed together; when they embrace in an after-credits scene; and certain lyrics in Totsuko’s song, such as “the two of us to the end of the universe,” and “your color has pierced through, my brain is spinning.” And it’s certainly true that Totsuko finds Kimi’s color to be more beautiful than any other she’s seen.

However, whatever Yamada’s intentions, we never see overt confirmation one way or another. And it is entirely possible to interpret the two as simply being good friends, brought together merely by Totsuko’s fascination with Kimi’s color.

A rumor circulates that Kimi dropped out of school after defying a teacher when the teacher discovered Kimi had a boyfriend (we never see evidence of such a claim). Kimi changes from her uniform into more casual clothes, though nothing is seen.

Violent Content

Totsuko takes a dodgeball to the face, causing her to fall over and her nose to bleed.

Crude or Profane Language

None in the English subtitled version.

Drug & Alcohol Content

None.

Other Noteworthy Elements

Totsuko says that living things perceive color because of evolution. People lie to others and hide secrets.

Conclusion

Note: We received a screening for the film’s English-subtitled version. Spoken content issues may vary in the English dub.

The Colors Within (in the original Japanese, “Kimi no Iro,” meaning Kimi’s Color or Your Color) washes the screen with a splash of bright and calming hues, giving us a glimpse into the world as Totsuko knows it.

Totsuko sees them intimately connected to each person. Rui radiates a bright green, and Kimi, a deep blue. She knows how innately beautiful these people are on the inside, even if they don’t.

And, to be fair, it’s not always easy to see. Totsuko’s never seen her own color, for instance—it’s only when she begins to truly find acceptance that she catches glimpses of it. And as Totsuko, Rui and Kimi grow closer to each other and start to apply the concepts of the Serenity Prayer to themselves, that’s when their colors shine brightest.

There’s little drama to be had in the coming-of-age story behind The Colors Within. But what may concern parents are the claims that Totsuko and Kimi’s relationship goes beyond friendly. But they’re also claims that, since they’re never affirmed clearly in the film, will be up to the viewer’s interpretation.

The only other content concern to note is an occasional, vague Christian musing on what counts as hymn or a sin. But given Japan’s typical indifference-to-hostility towards Christianity, viewing any generally positive depiction of it onscreen seems like movement in a positive direction.


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kennedy-unthank
Kennedy Unthank

Kennedy Unthank studied journalism at the University of Missouri. He knew he wanted to write for a living when he won a contest for “best fantasy story” while in the 4th grade. What he didn’t know at the time, however, was that he was the only person to submit a story. Regardless, the seed was planted. Kennedy collects and plays board games in his free time, and he loves to talk about biblical apologetics. He thinks the ending of Lost “wasn’t that bad.”

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