Kara no Kyoukai Movie 5: Mujun Rasen

In November 1998, a double homicide occurs at the newly constructed Ogawa apartment complex in the heart of Mifune City. The murderer, Tomoe Enjou, has fled in a panic. To his astonishment, he is not pursued by the police and news of the incident has not been reported through media outlets. After Shiki Ryougi defends Tomoe from a group of thugs, she allows him to use her residence as a hideout. However, a few days later, Tomoe is shaken to discover that his mother is alive, even though he is convinced that he killed her.

Coincidentally, Mikiya Kokutou is investigating a tip that his associate Touko Aozaki receives regarding the murder at the unique apartment complex. As he uncovers more information about the incident, Mikiya takes a particular interest in Tomoe. Deciding to investigate him further, Mikiya soon discovers the disturbing truth of the foreboding Ogawa complex.

The fifth installment of the Kara no Kyoukai film series, Mujun Rasen combines an intricately constructed mystery with established themes and characters to produce a dark, thought-provoking story.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Ryougi, Shiki Main

Sakamoto, Maaya Japanese

Aozaki, Touko Main

Honda, Takako Japanese

Kokutou, Mikiya Main

Suzumura, Kenichi Japanese

Araya, Souren Main

Nakata, Jouji Japanese

Enjou, Tomoe Main

Kakihara, Tetsuya Japanese

Kokutou, Azaka Supporting

Fujimura, Ayumi Japanese

Alba, Cornelius Supporting

Yusa, Kouji Japanese

Enjou, Takayuki Supporting

Yamanoi, Jin Japanese

Akimi, Daisuke Supporting

Touchi, Hiroki Japanese

Enjou, Kaede Supporting

Itou, Miki Japanese

Iwakami, Atsuhiro Producer

Kondou, Hikaru Producer

Hariu, Masayuki Producer

Toba, Yousuke Assistant Producer

Reviews

Feb 6, 2009

Archaeon

Recommended

Kara no Kyoukai review Part 5

Wow. I have to say that this movie is enough to leave one speechless at times, and for a variety of reasons.

The fifth installment of the Kara no Kyoukai series, Mujun Rasen (Paradox Spiral), is somewhat of a departure from the previous four outings not just in terms of its running time (almost two hours), but also in terms of art direction and story.

Set around two months after Fukan Fuukei, the tale begins with a disjointed sequence of events that are gradually cleared up as the movie continues. The story itself centres around a boy named Enjou Tomoe, who is ... saved from a group of thugs by Ryougi Shiki. She invites him to stay with her after he begs her to hide him somewhere as he believes that he has committed a crime and appears to be on the run.

During this time it seems that Kokuto Mikiya is away on some business, and Aozaki Touko is investigating an odd rumour she has heard from a policeman she knows.

Now the main problem with the story direction is that many people will be confused by the path it takes. There are numerous sequences that are repeated several times, and the story has a tendency to not only jump about from one time to another, but also from one event to another (a style similar to that used by Luc Besson at times). The result is something more along the lines of a Satoshi Kon production, and while there will be many people who enjoy the numerous twists, turns, loops and whorls that take place in the story, there will be just as many who will be put off by the overwhelming amount of information one has to process at times.

The art and animation throughout the series thus far has been top notch, however there is a noticeable drop in quality in this Mujun Rasen. Given the length of the movie it may be that Ufotable were forced to cut some corners with the designs and animation, but there are quite a few scenes where their normal quality really shines through. The CG is, as always, of a very high standard and runs smoothly in conjunction with the normal animation. The backgrounds and backdrops are well designed, and a lot of thought has gone into ensuring that certain elements in this area follow the concept of the story.

Unfortunately, the drop in quality I mentioned is noticeable in several scenes, and in one in particular, the character looks constipated rather than hysterical. In addition to this the animation of the action sequences, whilst being excellent overall, suffers towards the end of the movie, with one key sequence being more dizzying than breathtaking. That said, the sequence in question will appeal to those who like roller coasters at the very least.

The sound is on par with the other movies and is well executed overall. The effects are extremely good throughout, but the old problem of the noise sometimes being too overwhelming has reared its head once more. The score used throughout the Mujun Rasen lends to the general atmosphere, however there are times when the music seems a little out of sync with the on-screen action.

On the plus side it seems my prayers have been answered as more is revealed about Touko, especially as the antagonist in this film, Araya Souren (who appeared briefly at the very end of the previous movie declaring himself to be a magus), has a history with her. In addition to this, there is a secondary character named Cornelius Alba who also has a history with both Touko and Araya. In addition to this the viewer can finally see some different sides to Shiki, as well as gaining some insight into why Touko was so interested in her during the events of Garan no Dou.

The downside is that Mikiya continues to be more of a supporting role in this movie, and Tomoe, while generally being a decent character for the most part, may annoy some people.

Even with those flaws, this is still an excellent movie (especially if you can get your head around the plot). Fans of Kara no Kyoukai should generally be pleased with this latest addition to the franchise, and although it does drop a little in terms of animation and artwork, Mujun Rasen will hopefully herald a new direction for the series.

I'm expecting good things from the sixth movie...

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Jul 30, 2015

RakiRaki

Mixed Feelings

Given that I haven't rated any of the other Kara no Kyoukai movies below an 8, the harsh drop here certainly disturbs the graph. Indeed, a 6 might seem incongruous—and for the acclaimed fifth movie of all things! Rather than waste everyone's time by ill-advisedly trying to compress this movie's problems into a pithy introductory hook, I'll simply quote the antagonist, Souren Araya, as he expounds upon his villainous motivations in a dying speech near the end of this movie, the second-lengthiest in the Kara no Kyoukai franchise. Read aloud in sonorous tones for full impact.

"Humans are hopeless. This is a story from long ago. ... You can't save every human, so how can you save the ones who weren't saved? There is no answer. But if I can open [the spiral of] origin and end the world—if I can record and observe all deaths until the end of the world—if I can observe the unredeemed and unsaved from the start, then the ones who died meaninglessly would obtain a meaning. I would be able to know their happiness."

When I was watching Mujun Rasen, one of the guys I was with asked if the unfortunate fellow had dementia at around this point in the dialogue. I couldn't blame him.

Contrary to popular belief, this is not the best Kara no Kyoukai movie. It's not even the second-best. Actually, it's the worst. How this particular instalment of a truly great film series became widely celebrated as the best of the bunch is beyond comprehension. It preserves Kinoko Nasu's worst—underline WORST—storytelling instincts, and precious few of his finer ones. Reams of incomprehensible expository dialogue flow like cement from the flapping mouths of its characters; I shudder to imagine what was left out. This movie pulls the drag chute hard innumerable times over the course of its two hour length. Perhaps because of the cinematic medium, it was even more excruciating than is usual for Nasu—at least when Kotomine wanted to bust my balls with lore for two hours in a church at the beginning of Fate/stay night, I could click through fairly easily.

Some cynics may argue that this movie's popularity is thanks to flashy, well-directed action scenes that appeal to the simple-minded. My response is that most of the ADD-addled audience that they're imagining for this movie would be instantly put off by the constant talking head interruptions that deemphasize said action, and equally by the unending flow of esoteric chuunibyou fodder, especially during the second half of the movie—when most of those great action scenes take place. The truth is that I don't understand why this movie is the most critically acclaimed of the Kara no Kyoukai series, and I'm not sure I ever will.

On that note, this is possibly the chuuniest thing I've ever seen. This movie has an invisible character, and its name is Choony. This specter haunts the screenplay, possessing characters at will to use them as its mouthpiece. Choony's delight in fuelling the adolescent imagination with mind-melting Nasuverse esoterica is so great that he troubles nearly the whole cast of this movie, speaking through them at regular intervals and ruminating on such vital concepts as the Swirl of the Root and the Counterforce for five to ten minutes. Once Araya and Cornelius Alba show up, Choony goes into overdrive, barely allowing the viewer more than a few minutes between its droning interludes.

Mainstays Shiki, Mikiya, and Touko, when not possessed by Choony, are as likeable as ever, and the tortured Tomoe, a new character introduced in this instalment, is a welcome enough addition to the cast. Naturally, the central mystery revolves around Tomoe, and his connection to a strange apartment building in which his impoverished family once lived. Convinced that he killed his parents in said building yet unable to decipher his own memories, he runs away from home and encounters Shiki when she saves him from some thugs in an alley. His arc is compelling if predictable. On the other hand, Araya is the least relatable antagonist in any genre film I've ever seen. Calling him a magical practitioner of human experimentation is altogether too bound to the chains of reality, so I'll just refer to his little speech above if you want to get to grips with his character.

This is not a bad movie. As always for the series, the music and visuals are superb and often achingly beautiful. The achronological structure is interesting and clever. Nasu generally avoids playing to archetype, and though the high-concept, high-falutin', and determinedly abstract dialogue keeps this well within the field of big R Romance, the characters still emerge, at their best, as far more grounded and mundane than they have any right to. Granted, they have far fewer opportunities to display these qualities than in the other movies, but at least they're there.

Yet in spite of all that, the rating must remain 6. This movie's premise is simply too disconnected from the broader issues it desperately tries to represent. Earlier (and later) instalments in Kara no Kyoukai balanced lore with something more visceral; real human experience was integral to the philosophical babbling. This movie is defiantly obscurantist, and its ideas concerning the meaning of human life are unnecessarily wrought into the ugly template of bubble-headed fantasy concepts. It's not totally incoherent if you can understand what Choony is saying, but a truly great movie should transcend a niche audience.

"Humans are poor losers."

Shut up, Araya.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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Nov 24, 2024

YaBoiBunsen

Not Recommended

Spoiler

You may be reading this review to decide whether it's worth watching the previous four films to get to this one. No, I wouldn't recommend it. This is the worst of all five.

The non-linear structure of this story may lead you to think there's something important being said, something profound and intelligent that can only be conveyed with this kind of structure. But as it is with the entire Kara no Kyoukai series of films, the only reason this isn't chronological is to trick you. To fool you into not thinking logically about what's being said and shown in each scene. You feel control being ... wrestled away from you and naturally you think to yourself "Ah, I see. I'm not supposed to understand this yet. This will all make sense later." This doesn't happen. You can, as I did, perfectly understand this film the first time you watch it. The only purpose this structure actually serves is for Touko's twist, and even then it does it in a completely idiotic way.

The film hints at this twist by the continuity of cars parked outside the apartment complex. Touko arrives first in a red car. The film shows her opening the car door and cuts to a shot of Touko's back as she walks towards the apartments with only her red car in the foreground. Cut to a wide shot of three cars parked bumper to bumper. A red car, a light grey car, and another red car. Later on, Kotukou and Enjou are driving to the apartments in a grey car. As they pull up it cuts to a shot of Touko arriving in a red car, this time showing her parking behind a grey car and a red car. It then shows a slow-motion closeup of Touko exiting the car and then the same shot of her walking towards the apartments. Cut again to a wide shot of the three cars. Kotukou and Enjou then arrive in the grey car and it cuts to a wide shot of only two cars, the grey car parked behind a red car. A little while later after Kotukou gets beaten by Alba we are replayed the three shots of Touko arriving in the third car. This seems like a perfectly good technique to trick the audience, hardly anyone would notice. But think about it. The only way this twist can work is if both Toukos are driving the exact same car, and wearing the exact same clothes. Otherwise the audience would notice straight away it's two different scenes. We as the audience suspend disbelief when characters wear the same clothes in every scene. What this movie tells us is that the characters in this universe have Homer Simpson's wardrobe. She simply chooses to wear the exact same outfit every day and has (at least) two of the same sports cars in her garage. Even Homer didn't go that far. No wonder she was broke in movie 3! It's not as if there's some advantage to dressing her puppet up in the same clothes. Maybe she thinks if she arrives in a different outfit Araya won't recognize her like Clark Kent or he'll forgot she died. Playing with Taijitu all day weakens the mind I guess.

This twist sums up the entirety of these five movies. On the surface what might seem clever is actually moronic. What might seem meaningful is actually shallow. What seemingly makes sense is actually nonsensical. Let me remind you, the only reason this movie is structured this way is because of this twist, and this is just a small taste of this movie's problems. I haven't even talked about the dialogue because the storytelling of this one is so bad that the worst part of the first four movies isn't the biggest problem here, but I already covered the dialogue in my review of the 3rd movie. There is no depth in Kara no Kyoukai. People see a series that has good visuals with characters who pay lip service to philosophical concepts, wrapped inside a non-linear structure making it seem different and artistic and that's good enough for them to think it's "deep". Kara no Kyoukai isn't confusing because it's elaborate and intelligent. It's confusing because the plot literally doesn't make sense. It's confusing because the dialogue is idiotic. It's confusing because it makes you wonder what other people see in it that makes them think it isn't obviously terrible.

Reviewer’s Rating: 2

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