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Mar 14, 2021
Think My Neighbor Totoro meets When Marnie Was There but just not as captivating as the aforementioned films and a bit too by the book for its own good. There are several elements about A Letter to Momo that feels clichéd and familiar which isn't necessarily a bad thing but the problem is that the film doesn't do anything to add to these particular tropes that hasn't already been done before. That being said I can't really find anything about it that I really dislike either though the pacing can be really slow especially at the start. Though I have to be honest, I didn't
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care about the three Yōkai who are essentially the Totoro-esque mascot characters. I did not find them all that funny or endearing whatsoever. In fact, after a while they just got really annoying to watch. In the end, A Letter to Momo feels like a desparate Ghibli wannabe that does kind of work though without ever reaching the stellar heights of many of it's precursors.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Feb 19, 2021
Imagine if M. Night Shymalan had directed a science fiction Studio Ghibli film using many of the characters from Castle in the Sky. I know that might sound like a very bizarre way to describe a movie but that's exactly how Patema Inverted felt like to me.
From the writer-director of the ONA series Time of Eve, this is a much more ambitious and competent science fiction film that takes hold of a concept that's so ingeniously original that you are compelled to watch the film just to see in what direction the plot moves forward. The idea shares some similarity to the 2012 Canadian
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film "Upside Down" but from what I have understand, Patema Inverted executes this concept with much more proficiency and likeability.
The characters are a bit generic and a lot of them do feel like they are straight out of Castle in the Sky such as our male protagonist who shares a backstory that's very similar to Pazu and especially the antagonist who is one step away from being a full blown Bond villain and not one of the good ones either. At least in Castle in the Sky, the antagonist benefited from an excellent performance by Mark Hamill in the dub which is why only watch that movie in english. Richard Epcar does a decent enough job as the villain but it's just not that memorable.
Speaking of which, the dub is actually really good for anyone who's especially interested in checking out this film in English. The music though can be a bit underwhelming as it just failed to capture the majesty and grandness of the world that the filmmaker has crafted.
But despite its many flaws, Patema Inverted is a very unique anime film that's worth watching just to witness how these concepts unfold on screen. While I do think the film could have benefited from a much more grandiose narrative, I am still quite satisfied with the end product even though the film certainly left a lot of questions unanswered.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Feb 6, 2021
32
“It’s good that he made one movie. With that, he should stop" - Hayao Miyazaki after watching Tales From Earthsea
God, I wished Gorō had listened to his dear old dad. Why Gorō? Why do you insist on making it difficult for me to root for you? I want him to succeed and prove his father wrong but so far, as much as I hate to say this, he has been consistently failing to upheld his father's incredible legacy. With Earwig and the Witch, Studio Ghibli returns after a 6 year hiatus for a TV production and their latest offering turned out to achieve a new
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cinematic low for the prestigious animation company that looks to rival both Gorō's own directorial debut and the last made for TV film that the staff at Ghibli worked on.
The truth of the matter is if this movie was made by just another random studio, nobody would be talking about it as "enthusiastically" as they are. But it's not made by just another random animation studio. This is Studio Ghibli and just the thought that their fingerprints are plastered all over this movie just hurts my soul. I know this is technically a made for TV film but the movie makes it so hard to do so. The fact that we finally saw the lovable image of Totoro for the first time in front of a film after 6 long years and this forgetting dump of a film is what followed afterwards is downright upsetting.
3D animation in general always gets a bad rep and most of the time, especially in anime, people just hate on it not because it's actually bad by any means but mainly because they had to resort to 3D or CGI in the first place(cough Attack on Titan: Final Season cough).The truth of the matter is the actual 3D animation isn't really all that bad as I thought it would be. But for the most part, every single character in this film exudes the same presence reminiscent to that of an ugly doll completely devoid of any life or some semblance of a soul or heart.
I would also advice staying away from the dub for this movie. It's not because I am some sort of a sub elitist who believes that watching English Dub should constitute as a war crime nor is the actual dub bad by any means especially with the likes of Richard E. Grant and Dan Stevens part of the cast. In fact, it's quite solid and I would have enjoyed the dub even more if the dialogue actually tried to sync up with the lips of these characters half the time. The fact that it's 3D kind of makes it even more obvious.
If there is one thing that I can always count on Gorō to nail, it's the music. It's the one constantly consistent factor prevalent throughout his films and Earwig is no different. The music possess a much more western aesthetic and works well for the most part. But even then that I would argue that I much prefer the soundtrack of his previous two films. I would also argue that the film concludes on a very abrupt note but frankly I just wanted it to be over and done with so I will take it as a blessing in disguise.
As a whole, I wouldn't say Earwig and The Witch is a complete atrocity. It is certainly better than a lot of other films of it's kind but it still come across as nothing more a cheap excuse of a kids film. Even if you take away the Studio Ghibli logo, what you're still left with is a completely disposable animated film that will probably appeal only to its targeted demographic. And what made Ghibli films so appealing is its ability to allure both kids and the little child inside all of us with its gorgeous art and likeable characters. Earwig barely possess any of these factors and it's why I find it to be their worst film to date.
Reviewer’s Rating: 4
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Jan 31, 2021
A couple of days back, I had the distinct honour of watching the last remaining film in Stanley Kubrick's filmography who I believe to be one of the greatest filmmakers who ever lived. And today marks another such occasion as I have once again completed the filmography of a director that I hold in much esteem(not counting any of his short films that were less than 10 minutes long of course).
Maybe not as much as Kubrick but the impact that Makoto Shinkai had on me should be obvious for anyone who's known me long enough as not only did he make what I consider to
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be my all time favourite movie with 2016's Your Name but he also delivered what would eventually become the very first anime film that I have ever seen with 2007's Five Centimetres Per Second. (I am not counting the The Digimon Movie because I didn't really have a clue what anime even was back in the day)
I remember instantly falling in love with Five Centimetres Per Second and further cementing my affections for a medium that I was only starting to really get into. And now I have the pleasure of seeing his very first film, Voices of a Distant Star, which is a 24 minute short that he made almost completely on his own. And once you consider that fact, it is impressive how much he was able to accomplish in such a short time and with so little man power. His fingerprints are clearly evident throughout the film's runtime. I mean Shinkai sure does love a story about star crossed lovers doesn't he? I really want to know who was the girl that broke this man's heart as I actually want to thank her as it resulted in a director who's keen eye for visuals remains unmatched by any other artist working in anime today.
There are a lot of things about Voices of a Distant Star that doesn't work. Because of its length, a lot of the themes and story beats do feel underdeveloped and half baked. It's undoubtedly ambitious and I am afraid that the film's length just doesn't allow it to fully expand on many of the ideas that's seemingly touched upon here. And the film is clunky in terms of how everything is presented as well. The music is fine and the animation, while having that dated 2000s edge to it, is still impressive considering it was all done by a single person eventhough the character designs feels lackluster.
All in all, Voices of a Distant Star is an admittedly clumsy albeit an inspired mess of a film that definitely showed the signs of an up and coming artist trying to find his own voice
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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Sep 20, 2020
5/10
Japan Sinks 2020 was one of my most anticipated anime shows to come out this summer mainly because it has Masaaki Yuasa's name attached to it. For those of you who don't know, Yuasa is in my humble opinion one of the most unique anime directors of our time and whose credits include Ping Pong The Animation (which I consider to be the greatest sports anime ever made), Keep Your Hands off Eizouken, Devilman Crybaby, The Tatami Galaxy and its spin off film, The Night is Short, Walk on Girl. His style is very distinct and far different from what you would get from a
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standard anime.
Even if some of his shows might not be that great, you can at the very least expect something that is probably better than most other anime shows out there. And when I heard that this was going to be his next anime project, my hype was through the roofs. I couldn't wait to watch it especially considering how dry the past anime season was due to countless shows being delayed thanks to COVID-19. And having finally watched the show on Netflix, I have to say that I am quite...... disappointed.
I would argue that Japan Sinks 2020 is the worst show that Yuasa has ever done if in fact that he was solely responsible for the show but that would not entirely be the case as eventhough it is advertised as a Masaaki Yuasa show, he was actually not the only director who was working on this project. You see it was only after I finished the series did I find out that the show was also directed by Pyeon-Gang Ho who up untill this point only worked either on storyboards or as an episodic director while also working under Yuasa on The Night Short, Walk on Girl, Ping Pong The Animation and Devilman Crybaby.
And from what I can gather, Japan Sinks 2020 was probably her first time working as a series director. So in reality, Pyeon-Gang Ho was the actual director of the show and Yuasa was just there to help her long the way as a mentor perhaps. And if that was the case, then that would surely explain a lot of the show's shortcomings. It might look like a Yuasa show but it lacks almost all of the fundamentals that makes his works so appealing.
Let me get the positives out of the way first which in the show's case is the music composed by Kensuke Ushio who is another frequent collaborator of Yuasa's and whose works includes Ping Pong The Animation, Devilman Crybaby, Space Dandy, Liz and the Blue Bird and A Silent Voice. And there were several musical cues in this show that reminded me of some of the tracks from A Silent Voice. The opening is a very soft and mellow song that provided a stark contrast from the chaotic nature of the show while also reminding us of the peaceful beauty that can sometimes be found in this story. The soundtrack for the show is essentially the best thing it has going for it. Nearly everything else though either ranges from meh to downright terrible.
The characters for the most part are fine and I did get attached to a lot of them as the show progressed though some of the decisions that they make at times can be a bit mind boggling. Our main protagonist, Ayumu, is a bit of a brat and I have to admit she got on my nerves on countless occasions. I get that it was part of her arc but man she can be insufferable at times. There is also her little brother, Gou, who has this knack for sprouting out English whenever he gets the chance and everytime he did I just couldn't take it.
In fact, I was so done with this kid's schtick that on episodes 3 I shifted to the dub just so that I didn't have to hear his god awful attempts at english. Unfortunately for me the dub for the show didn't fare that well either. Most of the performances were meh to say the least and worst of all Faye Mata's portrayal of Ayumu made some of the more unlikeable attributes of her character even more unbearable and so I got back into the sub by episode 5.
Now as the show progressed I did hope that most of them would make it out okay; only for that hope to be immediately crushed usually by the end of an episode. Now this is also something that I will give this show credit for; it is unafraid to kill off characters. With a premise such as this, you can't chicken out on killing characters and I will applaud Japan Sinks 2020 for making me believe that any one of these characters can die at any moment. The down side to this is that at times some of the death sequences can range from being unnecessarily gratuitous to almost comical. Admittedly, I did laugh at some of these death scenes and that's probably not a good sign.
The animation also feels very cheap and looked like it was in dire need of more polishing. There is the occasional background art and even some landscape shots that are quite impressive but as a whole the animation is very underwhelming and there were several moments that felt choppy.
Now initially, my biggest concern for this show was the possibility that it might have fared better as a movie. I had a similar problem with another show sharing similar attributes as this one i.e Tokyo Magnitude 8.0. And much like the aforementioned series, I think this would have worked better as a film as it really did feel like they were trying to add more story elements to fit into 10 episodes. I mean there was even a subplot involving a cult that occupies about 2-3 episodes and while I did find it interesting, ultimately it just felt like more padding than anything else.
With all that being said though, I was surprisingly satisfied by the way the show concluded. To me the ending to a series makes or breaks it and the conclusion to Japan Sinks 2020 did at the very least made the whole journey kind of worth it. As much as I ragged on the show, it does definitely improve by the final stretch of episodes as I was much more invested in these characters. Japan Sinks 2020 is not a great show. Hell, I even hesitate to call it a good one but it did leave me satisfied and even hopeful for things to come. And considering the state the world is in right now, a little hope isn't too much to ask for.
But I don't think any ending can fully make up for everything that came before it, so I would recommend everyone to SKIP this anime and move on to better things. As for some alternative recommendations, I would advise you to check out the aforementioned Tokyo Magnitude 8.0. While it isn't a great show by any means, it is still a decent watch if you are looking for a series that deals with natural disasters and even make you shed a tear by the end.
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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Sep 20, 2020
7/10
The lack of Arthur, Orange Boy and Pizza Hut was disappointing.
But in all seriousness, I have heard so many conflicting reports about the new Code Geass film that I had a generally idea what to expect. Though the sub came out a couple of months ago, I waited eagerly for the dub to be released because that's how I watched the show and it is one of the best dubs out there. Code Geass has and always will have a special place in my heart. It was one of the first anime shows that I have ever watched and for the longest time it was
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my favourite series untill Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood and Attack on Titan came along. One of the biggest reasons why I love the show is because it has what is in my opinion not just one of the best endings to an anime series but one of the greatest conclusions to a story in general. And the very idea that they would make a sequel after delivering what is arguably the perfect conclusion seemed pretty pointless. It's like doing a follow up to Breaking Bad with a story that serves as an epilogue more than anything....oh wait! We did get that. It was called El Camino and against all odds it turned out to be better than we could have ever anticipated it to be. So I went into Resurrection with very low expectations and hoping to come out of it feeling unscathed or not robbed of that incredible ending.
And I got to say much like El Camino, it is better than we ever thought it would be. Not certainly great and nowhere close to being as good as the show but beggars can't be choosers here. I gotta say it was kind of nostalgia to return to this world in particular for some new content even if it is completely unnecessary and I probably would have lived peacefully without it. Whether this film turned out to be good or not, I am happy that the creators decided to set this story in an alternative universe as it was the best precaution one could take to preserve that beautiful ending. All I knew going on from the changes made in the recap films where that Shirley was alive and the entire mini-arc with Mao never happened in this timeline. But after watching this film, I don't understand why they bothered to make Shirley alive in the first place as she really doesn't do a single thing in this film. The only contribution that she gives to this film happens off-screen and it is something that happens even before the movie ever happened. You could have just replaced that role with any other character in this movie and it would have remained more or less the same.
The plot for the most part is okay. There is a lot that I couldn't understand but that really comes with the territory when dealing with this series. I just went along for the most part and hoped everything would be made clear by the end. Somethings does and some don't. The animation has certainly improved with that movie budget though some of the body movements felt rather clunky during the first half. Coming to the dub, what can I say it felt so good hearing these familiar voices again and they did a great job casting the newer characters. Though Johnny Yong Bosch's voice feels more different than before but I guess that's going to happen considering it's been over 10 years since he last voiced this character.
There are still things about this unneeded but frankly enjoyable sequel that doesn't work. The villains are very forgettable though they did pose a good threat and I generally didn't have an idea how Lelouch was going to resolve the storyline with them. Coming to Lelouch, they do some things differently with him that I didn't think they would and I quite enjoyed it. Some of the pacing do feel rather muddled at times. You can certainly see that this was supposed to be a full season that was diluted down to a two hour film. But I do have this feeling that maybe this movie might have benefited from being a 25 or even 13 episode show. There were so many moments in this film that feels rushed and I wouldn't have mind a full season.
As for the way the film ends, again it fortunately doesn't detract anything from that original ending. In fact, it made me appreciate that ending even more than I initially did. This film has no right being as good as it is but I am not going to complain about it either. I even admit that I got a little teary eyed by the end as the film offers some much needed closure to a certain character that I loved from the show. So yeah Code Geass: Resurrection wasn't the collosal disappointment that I feared it would be. Just go in with the lowest of expectations and you will come out of it feeling mildly satisfied. The story isn't anything special but it was a good excuse to revisit these characters that I loved and I am just happy it didn't totally suck. Sure, it isn't amazing but I never expected it to be.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Sep 20, 2020
When Made in Abyss first hit the anime community back in 2017, it was met with overwhelming critical acclaim for its originality, mystery, atmosphere, characters and soundtrack. It was hailed by crunchyroll as the best anime of the year and received a slew of other accolades, most of which it absolutely deserves. I myself wasn't a huge fan of the series. I thought it was really good eventhough I had a lot of problems with the pacing. I found most of Made in Abyss to be solid and I only started to love it by the last 4 episodes with the 48 minute finale being
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one of the best episodes of anime that I have ever seen and one that never fails to make me cry every time I show it to a friend.
Nowadays a lot of anime series have started to go in this pattern where they continue their story on the big screen before having us wait for a season 2 that will probably never come. Examples of this include The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya, Tanya: The Saga of Evil, Konosuba, Bunny Girl Senpai, Violet Evergarden, etc. And there are certainly merits to having a story that was originally an anime series get the cinematic treatment; the obvious one being that they will be given a much bigger budget to work with that will amount to better animation which is always a win. But a show like Made In Abyss didn't need better animation to be appreciated. You only need to watch the 2017 anime to know that. Sure, some of the action set pieces do get a phenomenal upgrade and probably wouldn't be as good if they were given a lesser budget to work with but the thing is, Made in Abyss was never about tbe action. I would even argue that the central mystery element and the tremendous shock factor isn't what made it so engrossing to so many people(though it certainly played a part) but rather it was the characters that enticed a lot of fans(such as myself) to this series.
The advantage that a 13 episode show has over a two hour movie is that it allows the characters to be characters and act like such. They will have some room to breathe and indulge in mundane activities that might not be crucial to the plot but it strengthens our understanding of that character which is something that I feel gets lost in an anime movie like Dawn of the Deep Soul where it does feel like they are doing everything they can to promptly advance from one plot point to another and thus making the narrative feel a bit rushed and the more quieter moments gets lost in translations. There were also several incredible revelations throughout the film whose effects were slightly dampened because of how fast the movie can flow at times. It doesn't allow us to fully comprehend the enormity of some of these reveals or to fully acknowledge them. I am also still not a fan of some of the more fan service elements of this story particularly considering how young these characters are. There is only a handful of these moments and it is probably easy to ignore them but for me it just breaks the immersion every time it happens considering how serious this story is.
If I seem like a bit negative, then I don't mean to be as Dawn of the Deep Soul is a superb movie just not a great one in my humble opinion. The story is undoubtedly amazing but a lot of it just didn't resonate with me the same way that it did in the 2017 anime. The animation is incredible and the music is still godly eventhough there wasn't any new tracks to rave about. I can't decide if the flaw lies with the source material or if it's an issue with the adaptor but either way there is a problem that hampered my enjoyment for the film. Here's hoping that the next story arc gets a proper anime adaptation.
Also while she is not featured in the film(atleast if you don't count those two weird short stories that played after the credits), Ozen is still Best Girl.
Fight me.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jul 5, 2020
You know cats can get a pretty bad rap especially if they are represented in a live action film. I mean we have a vast array of cat related films that are just straight up stinkers. 2019's Cats, The Cat in the Hat, Catwoman, Cats and Dogs, Garfield, even the live action Lion King, etc are the first things that pop up in our heads when we think about bad cat related movies. But if you try to scavenge for some good cat related entertainment, you will find that a lot of it is found in the medium of animation.
A Whisker Away is one such
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example of a cat based anime film that managed not to suck somehow. All things considered, this movie played out surprisingly better than I ever thought it would. Let's be honest this could have easily been a very generic love story and used the plotline which by the way involves a girl who can transform into a cat to win the affection of her crush to feed into some strange fetish and just catered to the lowest denominator. Thankfully, A Whisker Away doesn't do that. The film treats it's characters like actual people stuck in a very absurd scenario and the results are far better than I ever imagined. And it was only after I finished watching the film did I realize that it was actually written by Mari Okada who brought us original works like Maquia, Anthem of the Heart and Anohana.
Our main romantic duo, Muge and Hinode, felt like actual individuals with very different personalities but fortunately happens to have one thing in common and that is their inability to properly communicate their feelings. I hesitate to call them bland or just plain standard as they are far from it. Even a lot of the supporting cast get a good hefty amount of characterization to be able to latch on to. The only real issue is that I don't think they used every character or storylines to their utmost potential. I think the biggest example of this is with Muge's best friend, Yori, who actually gets a very compelling backstory behind their friendship but ultimately gets sidelined for much of the third act.
This is also a gorgeously animated film and there were certain background shots that almost looked photorealistic. The music is fine for the most part though there was this one scene where a serious arguement happens and they kind of play it for laughs with the music and I didn't think it really worked for me.
Now I was originally planning on watching the film with the original Japanese audio but when I found out that Johnny Yong Bosch was going to be playing the main male character, I decided to go with the dub. Bosch is one of my favourite voice actors. He is someone who admittedly doesn't have much range but certainly knows how to leave an impression with his incredibly distinct voice. But the star of the dub was actually Cherami Leigh who plays Muge and she nails the sheer amount of excitement and eccentricity that was leaping out of this character. Overall, this was a very good dub.
The world building was a bit muddled with several mechanics of the magic felt like they were being made up on a whim with any proper set up. And I have to admit, the film almost lost me in the last half when it kind of became a pseudo-Ghibli movie and lost a little bit of the simple charm that made it so endearing.
In the end, A Whisker Away turned out to be a far better film than I ever thought it would be with its simple but heartwarming love story that is very well paced, beautifully animated and filled with many likeable characters.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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