The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (1983 film)

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (時をかける少女, Toki o Kakeru Shōjo) is a 1983 Japanese science-fiction film directed and edited by Nobuhiko Obayashi, with a screenplay by Wataru Kenmotsu. It marked the film debut of idol Tomoyo Harada in the lead role. Adapted from a 1967 Japanese novel of the same name, the film was released by Toei in Japan on July 16, 1983. It has since been released internationally on DVD with English subtitles under titles such as *The Little Girl Who Conquered Time*, *Girl of Time*, and *The Girl Who Cut Time*. This was the first film adaptation of the story, centering on a high-school girl who acquires the ability to time-travel and experiences a time loop, reliving the same day repeatedly. The film was a major box office hit in Japan, earning the second-highest gross among Japanese films in 1983. A sequel followed in 2010.

The plot begins at school in spring, where Kazuko Yoshiyama discusses her dream boyfriend with friend Goro Horikawa, and they encounter childhood friend Kazuo Fukamachi. A teacher uses a folk song Yoshiyama recognizes from her childhood. After school, the three are assigned to clean classrooms and are told to lock the laboratory due to chemical misuse during spring break. While Horikawa and Fukamachi dispose of rubbish, Yoshiyama enters the lab, faints after a flask breaks and releases a lavender-scented liquid, and is taken to the nurse’s clinic. Walking home, a bike nearly hits them, but Fukamachi pulls Yoshiyama aside. He invites her into his greenhouse, where she recognizes the scent of lavender from the lab. That night, she recalls the bike incident and begins falling for Fukamachi. Later, she returns Horikawa’s handkerchief; his parents want him to attend university, but he prefers to help the family soy sauce business. At school, Yoshiyama experiences strange premonitions. After embarrassing herself in class, she studies at home. An earthquake strikes, and buildings near the Horikawa shop catch fire. She wakes on April 19, sees Horikawa on the way to school, then wakes again as roof tiles nearly hit them. She goes to school, mistakenly thinking it’s still April 19, and relives the day in dreams. She tells Fukamachi what happened, recalling a childhood incident where they sang together and a mirror fell, cutting both their hands.