When Arima returns from the kendo tournament, he doesn't brag about winning the national championship. He's more interested in picking things up with Yukino where they left off--and taking them further. Arima is haunted by his unhappy childhood, and a family reunion reopens old, imperfectly healed wounds. The new school year offers unexpected challenges, including the return of Arima's old friend, Takefumi Tonami. The lumpy adolescent has grown into a striking young man, to the delight of the freshman girls. Director Hideaki Anno ( Evangelion) continues to employ shifting visual styles: when a paper cut-out of Yukino gets mad, she bursts into real flames; an obnoxious character's face is processed live-action footage of one of the studio artists. His and Her Circumstances captures the charm and awkwardness of teen-age relationships with an almost painful honesty. (Rated 13 and older: minor profanity, cartoon violence, suggested sexual situations) --Charles Solomon
