Kara no Kyoukai Movie 1: Fukan Fuukei

A series of eerily similar suicides occupy newspaper headlines in late '90s Japan. Amidst all the bizarre resemblances, there is one detail that stands out above the rest: the victims have all taken their lives by leaping from the Fujou building, a run-down abandoned structure rising high above the city.

Shiki Ryougi, a cold-hearted girl living in an empty apartment, suspects that these sinister events have a supernatural cause. Possessing a mystical power herself, Shiki works to investigate the incidents alongside Touko Aozaki, a doll-making detective specializing in magic, and her friend Mikiya Kokotou who works as Touko's assistant.

Shiki unravels the mystery as she ventures through an enigmatic world to uncover the dark secrets surrounding the strange phenomenon.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Ryougi, Shiki Main

Sakamoto, Maaya Japanese

Aozaki, Touko Main

Honda, Takako Japanese

Kokutou, Mikiya Main

Suzumura, Kenichi Japanese

Fujou, Kirie Main

Tanaka, Rie Japanese

Kokutou, Azaka Supporting

Fujimura, Ayumi Japanese

Reporter Supporting

Nakao, Eri Japanese

Iwakami, Atsuhiro Producer

Kondou, Hikaru Producer

Hariu, Masayuki Producer

Toba, Yousuke Assistant Producer

Reviews

Jan 24, 2025

Ketamigo

Recommended

Kara No Kyoukai, or Garden of Sinners, is a series of movies based on a classic light novel series of the same name, created by NASU, the originator of Tsukihime and Fate series. While that is enough for most anime fans to get behind a project, KnK really stands on its own in every conceivable way. It is a perfect masterpiece, which delves deeply into subjects like psychology, the occult, romance, existentialism, and it includes a very grounded, gritty magic system.

KnK absolutely shines as a standalone series, so there is no real need to be familiar with Nasu's other works, as beautiful as those are. ... All you really need to know is that KnK excels as a piece of adult anime that is highly cinematic, emotional, gorgeous, and contextually deep.

With all that being said:

Art, Direction: 10/10
KnK is at the absolute peak of artistic seinen anime, often feeling more like an arthouse indie film project, who's sheer cinematic and directorial brilliance is unmatched in either modern or golden age anime productions. This is a film series that I often recommend to non-anime fans and film-buffs alike due to its ability to be universally admired for its artistry and absolutely masterful execution and story.

Story: 10/10
It is a story of forbidden and tragic love, of magic practices past down for generations by blood, of mystery, murder and the tragedy of everyday life. It's a story that lulls you into a calm hypnosis, only to pull you into utter melancholy, and then finally, drag you out into emotional peaks and valleys like no other anime could.

The film's in the KnK series are also intentionally out of order, allowing the story to have a mysterious, almost patchwork-mystery design which always keeps the viewer guessing, never quite sure how the pieces fit together- until suddenly, they do.

On first watch, it is often suggested that you watch the films in release order (non-chronological). However, I do not think that it greatly reduces the mystery or greatness of the films to watch them in chronological order, either. I often re-watch the series chronologically, and it is still incredibly brilliant.

This is the first film in the series, and it is NOT something you can just keep on in the background while you are doing work or engaging with other media. As I mentioned, the films in this series are not in chronological order, and the film itself is a very slow paced, pensive and atmospheric work. It requires your full attention, and you will be rewarded for it through intense characterization, beautiful mystery elements that open up more and more as the series goes on, and you will witness characters that mature and grow like real-world people do. If you don't pay attention and get absorbed into the drama and the story, you will be left bored and listless, and I imagine, you will end up like the other reviewers here who did not understand or enjoy the film.

With all that being said, if you are a fan of FATE, Tsukihime, or more pensive anime like the original Ghost in The Shell, Akira, or Perfect Blue, you will absolutely love this series. However, the key is patience. You will be confused, maybe even sometimes totally lost, until you are not. That is how this series was intented to be watched. Watching in Chronological order is probably a much more pleasant first watching experience, but it is up to you to decide if you want to go against the artist's wishes.

Reviewer’s Rating: 10

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Jun 11, 2024

LevixAckerman

Mixed Feelings

Title: Garden of Sinners

This is a summary review of Garden of Sinners. Having finished all the parts, I wanted to share some thoughts. First of all, I watched the anime Garden of Sinners chronologically and not by release date. In my opinion, this is also the best way to watch it to have the proper sequence. The story is set in a real world but with magical abilities.

The year is 1998, and news of a series of suicides is spreading through the media. Our two main protagonists, Shiki Ryougi and Mikiya Kokutou, attend the same class and often hang out together on the school roof ... during breaks. Both seem interested in these incidents. Shiki appears to be a complex person, making it often difficult for Mikiya to reach her. We soon learn the reason: Shiki has two personalities. One of them is a normal girl, while the other is a cold and very distant person, even driven by thoughts of murder. Mikiya has a contact in the police who updates him on the latest developments in the investigations whenever he visits. We learn that the bodies have been dismembered, so the authorities now suspect murder instead of suicide. As Mikiya begins to suspect that Shiki might be behind these incidents, he starts to watch her. He sits outside her estate every night until morning to ensure she doesn't leave the house. One evening, Shiki has had enough and confronts him, attacking him with a knife and attempting to kill him. Something happens, and she is stopped at the last moment. To avoid spoiling the plot, I’ll leave it at that and encourage you to watch it yourself.

The first film begins chronologically with the second episode.
Overall, Garden of Sinners has a very dark story, with intentionally rough and dark colors. The atmosphere is intense. With Touko Aozaki, we get another main character who is a magician and now acts as a contractor. Her character seemed serious to me. Nevertheless, she cared a lot about Shiki. When there were new cases, she assigned the missions. She often used Mikiya to gather information, and Shiki's task was to apprehend the murderer.
I liked the animation and character design, and the sound was excellent in some scenes.
But no review is complete without criticism.
The supporting characters in each episode felt like they were only there to be defeated at the end. You knew there was a new murderer to be defeated in each film, making it quickly monotonous and predictable. They were neither interesting nor could you connect with them because you knew little about them. There were also often unnecessary conversations that were quite lengthy, so I had to skip scenes several times. I also felt that Mikiya was merely an instrument to shape Shiki's character. Without him, she would have probably ended up as a murderer. He always reasoned with her. Shiki's character only changed somewhat towards the end of the film series, so I wouldn't talk much about character development here. The film series also had its ups and downs. The episodes were not always exciting enough to captivate you.

Here’s how I rated the films (in chronological order)
Film 1 (7/10)
Films 2-5 (6/10)
Film 6 (5/10)
Films 7-8 (6/10)

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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Dec 25, 2023

4MAD3US

Not Recommended

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Do yourself a favor, and don't start watching this franchise from the first movie. This first move is completely skippable, and a painful 50 minute experience if you don't know the backstory already.

First time watchers are recommended to watch in release order, if that really is the best way, watching onwards from the second movie and leaving this movie for the last seems a lot better. Honestly though, just not watching it at all is even better.

Let's break it down then.

Art: Good, as one would expect from ufotable.

Characters: Extremely bland, could have been swapped with cardboard cutouts in this movie.

Plot: The movie intentionally has the ... viewer not knowing what is going on. That would be fine if executed well, however in this movie that falls flat on it's face. The lack of backstory and development, with a plot so shallow it feels there isn't one, makes watching this straight up boring.

Sound: Fine, sound effects and the OST wasn't impressive in any way.

Reviewer’s Rating: 5

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	Poll: Kara no Kyoukai: Fukan Fuukei Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) dtshyk - May 20, 2008	378 replies	by Chuckiemuffin »» Jan 17, 12:05 AM
	Poll: Ranking all movie entries Ghost_Davo - Sep 15, 2024	15 replies	by RyogiSHIKI7 »» Nov 7, 2024 2:31 AM
	Kara no kyoukai: Can someone give me a summary of the first movie? Yaaceen - Jun 1, 2024	7 replies	by LoveYourSmile »» Jun 1, 2024 10:15 AM
	What would you recommend in the Kara no Kyoukai series if I were to see it in a movie theater? kihel - Nov 18, 2023	16 replies	by kihel »» Dec 4, 2023 4:42 PM
	future KnK movies similar to this first one? (spoilers maybe) yoru987 - Sep 8, 2023	21 replies	by Zane_0 »» Oct 25, 2023 5:51 PM

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