Ryuu to Sobakasu no Hime

"U" is a popular social media platform where people can create a virtual persona and start a new life. Among its five billion users, one newcomer is quickly gaining attention: Belle, a beautiful singer whose alluring melodies slowly capture the hearts of the masses. But in this space where everyone hides behind an avatar, curiosity arises over who the mysterious girl truly is.

Suzu Naito—a shy girl from the countryside—can no longer sing following past trauma, all her efforts resulting in breakdowns and illness. However, when Suzu joins U, she is once again able to project her voice. Under the alias "Belle," her vocals soon go viral, receiving both love and hatred. Meanwhile, rumors spread of a chaotic beast within U, known only as "The Dragon." After a chance meeting during her concert, Belle finds he is not as evil as the stories suggest. Now, both online and in the real world, Suzu has to face the struggles of identity, fame, and opening one's heart.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Naitou, Suzu Main

Nakamura, Kaho Japanese

Ryuu Main

Satou, Takeru Japanese

Chikami, Shinjirou Supporting

Sometani, Shouta Japanese

Watanabe, Ruka Supporting

Tamashiro, Tina Japanese

Betsuyaku, Hiroka Supporting

Ikuta, Lilas Japanese

Hisatake, Shinobu Supporting

Narita, Ryou Japanese

Yoshitani Supporting

Moriyama, Ryouko Japanese

Nakai Supporting

Iwasaki, Yoshimi Japanese

Hatanaka Supporting

Nakao, Sachiyo Japanese

Fox Supporting

Miyamoto, Mitsuru Japanese

Sinterniklaas, Michael Producer, ADR Director

Hosoda, Mamoru Director, Screenplay, Original Creator

Nakamura, Kaho Theme Song Performance

Tsuneta, Daiki Theme Song Composition, Theme Song Lyrics

Reviews

Apr 3, 2023

Domsa

Recommended

Belle is a surprising anime. No, I'm not memeing. Yes, I'll further develop. Might be because I wasn't all that informed about it and I was expecting a standard take on Beauty and the Beast, basically a remake of the classic where the relationship between Belle and the beast is the focus of the movie... or maybe because I didn't expect to get invested in a story of how J-Pop could save the world. Of course, it's far from flawless, it juggles with too many ideas and concepts for its own good and, at times, I couldn't help but 'ugh' at the rather underdeveloped take ... on cyberbullying or other topics. I wouldn't call it tone-deaf tou. It is still a delicate one when it comes to these matters (plural here because I'm also talking about loss, parental abuse and the like) and despite the idea of making a martyr out of yourself not being something I'd get behind, it is done in a sensible manner and I can respect that.

If you are not moved by anything regarding the story (and I'll be honest, it's far from perfect, but when it comes to themes, motifs, messages and symbolism - basically how it chooses to convey the story - it shines), the OST is surely going to do that, being done in a paying-homage-to-the-original way. For me, the OST did it - I'd not disregard the story tou, it was more of a mixture of both - but I'm one of those people that still listen to various songs from the '91 movie on a daily basis. You know... no one's as well animated as Belle, no one's treating internet as nicely as Belle, no one's OST's as incredibly chic as Belle's, for there's no movie in town half as trendy. Perfect, a pure bombshell! You can ask any Kaho, Takeru or Ryou and they'll tell you what movie they'd prefer to be on. It was reminiscent of it, in classic Beauty and the Beast fashion, yet it was something completely new.

As mentioned, Belle is a gorgeous anime. The maximalism of Mamoru Hosoda's portrayal of the internet is mesmerizing and can be spotted even from the opening sequence, which is, plainly put, beautiful. The true charmer of this movie lies in the details and fully taking advantage of the cinematic experience. Even a single glance at the crowds would show that. Each and every spot is unique. Long shots, it is a huge world, a world where Belle can shine. In contrast, we have a rather locked camera, a 3-min static that gave terrible tummy aches to the more seasoned anime watchers. It genuinely beats me how the same shots are highly praised when they are done in an arthouse movie - see the likes of Mungiu or Bélla Tarr for example, yet they are horrendous in our case. Close-ups, painting up a small world, that is Suzu's real life. The latter slowly expands as Suzu overcomes her struggle. I believe that this movie has some of the finest compositing I've seen in the medium. It's obvious that the cg was a choice; planned from the very beginning, as the work put into it returned some great results.

I'm not going to do a summary of the plot, but I might dwell into some spoilers further on, so beware. I won't spoil you too much tou, but I can guarantee that it makes for an enjoyable experience of new meets old, of 'a tale as old as time' meets near-future tech. You have the mandatory ballroom sequence and the cheesy, heartfelt (and a tad bit subversive, 'tad bit' being an understatement; it's not another Beauty and the Beast, it's a standalone movie; heck, I wouldn't even consider it a romance and that's good) finale I cannot help, but enjoy each time I see done. Of course, it's not your standard Belle getting her beast, but it's Suzu getting her mother, as in she finally understood why she did what she did for a stranger. At the same time, you have a crazed search for a virtual persona's RL identity, dodgy crowd-funders, 'ENHANCE!' software, and a story about fixing the internet (to some extent at least). It is a lot to take in. It's a fairly standard Hosoda work, but it strikes home for me. I am big on both SF and fairy tales, thus I had some hints that I might end up liking it.

It is a story portraying the ugliness of the online world, but with a twist and this twist is the main reason why I'd easily overlook the flaws this series might have: a sincere belief in the potential and beauty of the internet. Most series that are remotely related to the wired share a common trait: they are made by technophobes, for technophobes, for those people are genuinely scared that Bill Gates will steal their personal data and do evil things with it. What will he do? Beats me. But at least Belle has the decency to portray the internet in a positive light, a moderate take, with ups and downs, how it should be, for the internet has been, in part, one of the leading actors of the rapid technological growth we've seen in the past 30 or so years. Of course, it's much more fun to watch a dystopic take, with all the implications, but at the same time, it gets tiring to watch the same bs again and again. Sometimes, I just want to see people do great things on the internet. I just want to see people finding happiness on the internet, for it definitely played a part in mine. I just want to see people being nice to strangers on the internet, just the way Suzu was to Ryuu, and I think this is the reason why I feel that their relationship was developed well enough, for they are strangers... being kind to strangers.

Of course, not everything's pink and nice and so on regarding the internet. There are downsides to it, but if I were to make an analogy to human interactions for example, I'd go for this one. Everybody might seem like a jerk, for it is really difficult to express our thoughts perfectly unless we wrote a whole novel on it. Misunderstandings on top of misunderstandings lead to some rather interesting conversations for the voyeuristic third parties. I want to believe that most people on the internet or outside of it are rather nice and it isn't their intent to harass others, but it's rather difficult when someone just says that 'X anime is bad, why did you like it?'. It's hard for the virtual to be as close a portrayal as the genuine, but, at the same time, it creates a possibility that didn't even exist in the first place: being able to connect to the person you're interacting with. Your world is no longer spanning 30 kilometers. Back to interacting with people, I'm not saying that you should be looking for excuses for everyone - some people are genuine jerks - plus that takes some effort and energy. But maybe that person was just trying to start a friendly debate with you or he was genuinely curious about it and he didn't pay enough attention to how he might come across to others. Just... let it go. I feel like the same is true for the internet, for it's more common and much easier for it to be portrayed as a genuine source of negativity instead of the amazing concept that it is, especially because the underlying tones of a conversation are hard to pick up in written format.

Such is the internet stories paradigm, it's much easier to write a one about the internet being the big bad wolf without the risk of seeming overly idealistic. Belle dodged this pitfall imo. That 'mask off' sequence among others might seem like something out of High School Musical the cynics would laugh at uncontrollably and brand it as cringe-worthy or utter garbage. I loved it. I'd rather be cringe if that's what's deemed cringe nowadays by the lowest common denominator.

It is a story of acceptance of others and yourself, of coming to terms with reality told through a virtual one, of self-actualization. U is another reality. AS is another you. You can live as another you. You can start a new life. You can change the world. But is it truly another you or just a means for you to further develop, to better express yourself?

Overall, I'd say it's an experience that draws a part of its beauty from its flaws. It's not for everybody. It requires something more than surface-level watching in order to be enjoyed. It requires you to start from a simple premise: everything happening in a movie is deliberate, meant to be there. A certain camera movement means something, certain compositing means something, a certain action means something, a certain omission means something. Why do we belittle people so much that we start from the idea that if it doesn't make sense for us, they've probably forgotten something/they're dumb/they couldn't figure out how to create a story like the one in our delusions, what I expected to happen vs what happens? By CinemaSins-like critique standards, this is trash. But so is Return of the Jedi. Do what you want - it's an individual choice how people want to perceive art and obviously, no one else should have a say in that. Neither you nor I.

PS: by far, the best thing Belle does is being a good engine for the train that is anime globalization, especially as it is not that bound by the standard tropes your usual western movie watcher might expect out of anime + it's dropping in A LOT of places right as the metaverse's got kinda mainstream, but why that's bs is a story for another time.

Reviewer’s Rating: 9

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Jul 16, 2021

The_Ruise

Mixed Feelings

Disclaimer that I am conversational-but-not-fluent so there were parts I didn't understand. That being said I also didn't entirely get what was going on in Summer Wars even with English subs and this is very much Same Energy. Anyway maybe it would help if I saw it again, but I found the story difficult to follow. It cuts between scenes really abruptly at times and things just seem to happen without a whole lot of buildup (Belle's fame and her/Suzu's relationships to Ryuu and other characters for instance). Also what are the mods doing? People are just getting doxxed left and right and no one ... is having their account frozen. The future is wild? It was also strange how in the ending, Suzu's friends and adult figures let her go out and do the Thing That Will Not Be Spoiled without any backup or any real plan. The visuals were pretty cool and the music was great, not very diverse but beautiful and cinematic. The characters are fine, but plain. Actually the support/background characters were more interesting. Also artistic references to Beauty and the Beast but only on a visual level. Basically if you liked Summer Wars back in the day also by Hosoda Mamoru (I did not), yes, this is definitely extremely similar but upgraded for 2021 with less family drama and more...family drama? But also singing.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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Mar 5, 2024

BigOat

Not Recommended

Ryuu to Sobakasu no Hime reinforces the idea that a gold-covered turd, is at the end of the day, still a turd. This sorry excuse for a Beauty and the Beast inspired film falls short in many vital aspects, calling into question exactly "whose idea was this?" and "did anyone really read the script?".

Watching this film felt as though the director had cut out chunks from the storyline at random. Frequently, scenes would fail to adequately flesh out the narrative, resulting in an extreme lack of explanation for character motives or general functionalities of the world. Also present, was an excessive absence of continuity. In ... one scene, the main character, Suzu Naitou is running while putting on her device that allows her to connect to the world of "U". As it turns on, she continues running, despite the fact that the app redirects her literal EYESIGHT in order for her to live in this separate world.

The animation is fairly good, however, at times was very underwhelming. In particular, one scene later in the film ( a side character confession scene) has the female involved stand completely still for about a minute straight. It's as though she didn't disconnect from the app, but from life itself, reminding the viewer of the feeling of losing a teammate in an online game.

The music composition is lovely, but is juxtaposed against an utterly mind-numbing script. If the soundtrack of the movie is on Spotify, I would highly recommend checking that out instead of watching the movie.

Overall, this movie was a serious letdown, but was somewhat entertaining to laugh with friends who are just as confused about what is going at any given moment.

P.S. All you have to do to stop abusive parents is stand in between them and their children, say some heartfelt words, and then let them live together like normal. Bing Bang Boom Pow, problem solved.

Reviewer’s Rating: 3

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	Poll: Ryuu to Sobakasu no Hime Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Noodle070 - Aug 16, 2021	148 replies	by Forgiven57 »» 8 hours ago
	Who does Belle end up with?? Miyuki-K - Feb 3, 2022	36 replies	by vi6ya »» Jun 24, 4:20 PM
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	Nobody knows Hosoda's news? ihavenojob - Mar 26	1 replies	by YukiPwns00 »» Mar 27, 11:34 AM
	i hate that it took me this long for me to figure it out mydaddy - Apr 20, 2022	11 replies	by little_shiz17 »» Nov 11, 2023 4:09 AM