Wednesday watch: ‘Your Name.’ and ‘Train to Busan’ back in theaters for a limited time

You’re a bored teen girl from small-town Japan. You dream of a different life, perhaps in the heart of Tokyo. You’re about to get your wish, though, because when you wake up one morning, you’ve switched bodies with a teen boy living in the heart of the city. Every night, you switch back and forth, eventually finding a way to communicate. But when he attempts to find you, you both quickly realize that things aren’t what they seem.

OR…

You’re on a train with your daughter, bringing her to see her mom in Busan, South Korea. As always, you’re more caught up in your own life as a business man than in parenting a cute little kid. But when a woman boards the train further down the line of cars and bites someone, suddenly you’re fleeing from the spread of a zombie virus. You’re in close quarters, so it’s not like you really have somewhere to go.

Today’s “Wednesday watch” is about as literal as you can get. What I’m recommending is only in theaters through tomorrow, Thursday, August 20, 2026. After that you’ll have to find a way to stream them.

Your Name. and Train to Busan aren’t new. In fact, they both came out ten years ago, which is why they’re having a limited theater run to celebrate the anniversary.

So what makes them so special? Why shout out these two movies when anniversary showings have become a weekly thing at theaters all over North America?

Your Name. bridges a substantial gap. A very large subset of moviegoers scoff at the idea of anime. They don’t take it seriously, which is a shame. But Your Name. is a good exception or even a gateway movie into turning a hater into an anime stan. It’s breathtakingly gorgeous and is perfect for people who like movies about time or want their minds messed with. And you will cry in your theater seat.

Train to Busan bridges a gap, too. At first glance, it just looks like a typical zombie horror movie. People who don’t usually go for gory horror might take one look at the poster and turn the other direction. If so, they’d be missing out on a movie with lots of heart. You root for not just the main characters, but plenty of the side characters as well. You care about what happens to them. And, like Your Name. you’ll be crying in the theater with this one, too.

Which one should you see? If you’re reading this on the day it comes out, you have time for both. If you only have time for one, look at your local theater listings or check out the websites for the anniversary showings:

Look for 'Your Name' in your area

Look for 'Train to Busan' in your area