demo movie recommendations

The List

Not ranked. If it's here, it matters. Reviewed under ideal conditions, wrapped in a blanket, with at least one dog asleep on my legs.

• Yuru Camp (2018) — Girls go camping. That's it. That's the show. And it's the most peaceful thing you'll ever watch. The scenery alone could lower your blood pressure.
• Barakamon (2014) — A calligrapher moves to a rural island and learns how to be a person again. The kids in this show are the most realistic anime children ever written. Naru is a national treasure.
• March Comes in Like a Lion (2016) — Yes it's about shogi. No, you don't need to understand shogi. It's really about depression, found family, and the tiny moments that pull you back from the edge. Will make you cry. A lot.
• Mushishi (2005) — A wandering healer deals with supernatural creatures in feudal Japan. Every episode is self-contained, atmospheric, and deeply calming. Perfect background anime. Perfect foreground anime. Perfect anime.
• Flying Witch (2016) — A witch moves to the countryside and... not much happens. She makes pancakes. She flies on a broom sometimes. A mandrake screams. It's wonderful.
• Sweetness & Lightning (2016) — Single dad learns to cook for his daughter after his wife passes away. Every episode centers on a recipe. I've made at least four of them. I've cried during at least six episodes.
• Non Non Biyori (2013) — Kids in an extremely rural Japanese village do kid things. The pacing is glacial in the best possible way. Renge is the funniest character in anime and she's seven years old.