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Set in an alternate ending to World War II, when the islands of Japan are divided into Union-controlled North and the US-controlled South, and the island of Hokkaido is annexed. A tall tower was built on Hokkaido, which could even be seen from Tokyo. In the summer of 1996, three middle-school students make a promise that they'll cross the border with a self-constructed plane and unravel the tower's secret...
I suspect that in 20 years, film buffs worldwide will be pointing to The Place Promised in Our Early Days as the introductory work from one of cinema's first-rate directors.
Shinkai Makoto, who made the 30-minute 'Voices of a Distant Star' by himself on a laptop computer, has written and directed an anime that favors human emotions over robot battles.
Eschews the standard deathdroids and fuzzy critters for a more grounded, hard SF approach. Shinkai's debut ... falls prey to a frustrating feedback loop of a plot.
June 16, 2005
Seattle Times
By any standard it's impressive anime; as a feature debut it's a remarkable achievement.