by 
In reading the reviews of Katsuhiro Otomo’s Memories (1995), one might be particularly struck by what is not said: that, for all the ways that titles might recapitulate, refract, or even turn away from a film’s content, there is almost no discussion of what the title means to the work at hand. Yes, the word is uttered early on, and has an obvious, ham-fisted, 1:1 relationship to the first of the collection’s three anime shorts, but what about the rest? There is very little to say, really, since the others tackle different tropes, and have only a slipshod connection to one another in the fact that they’re the film versions of three of Otomo’s previously written stories. In brief, whereas the title could be said to cohere too neatly with the work’s first forty minutes, the last eighty, well, cohere not at all, despite containing some of its best material. Is this an issue? Perhaps, but since it’s the least of the film’s faults, I do have an idea of what it all means, and why Otomo made these artistic decisions. Yet instead of positing an unpopular claim, first, and bracing for the fallout, I will present the evidence, bit by bit, precisely as the film presents it, so that the sum is unassailable, and that the work’s poetic status might get the treatment of a more mechanical eye.
Memories begins with Koji Morimoto’s Magnetic Rose, a highly stylized tale of an opera singer, Eva, and her chief fixation: her prior life with Carlo, a famous tenor with whom she went on to win world acclaim. They are happy, briefly, until Eva loses her voice, then Carlo, and ultimately murders her former love in order to trap him in a cycle of unchanging memories. The details are slowly discovered by a crew of scrap collectors, of whom Heintz, a father seemingly on leave from family life, is the mysterious protagonist. They witness an SOS signal in deep space as Heintz and another crew member, Miguel, go on to investigate. Once landed, the two enter a Victorian-style mansion propped up by holograms and ‘genuine fakes’ that, once discerned, crumble and disappear. At first, they do not realize who the owner of this place is, as Eva zips in and out of the landscape, inducing hallucinations that tangle up her own life with theirs. In time, however, another crew member radios from their spaceship, and informs them of what he’s found. The hallucinations grow violent, culminating in the ‘death’ of Heintz as if he were Carlo, Miguel’s imagined fling with Eva, and Heintz’s own probe into his family, leaving the viewer unsure on the question of his daughter’s death. Magnetic Rose ends with Heintz floating in space amidst rose-petals, possibly dying, and possibly even accumulating, in Eva’s manner, his own memories, and waiting for the cycle to be broken by future explorers.
It is, to be sure, an anachronistic setting: the ‘past’ is presented in Victorian, almost steampunk terms, replete with holograms, vast living spaces, decadence, robotic cherubim, and silly, exaggerated interactions. Yet it also looks towards an equally anachronistic future, full of huge, junky spaceships, cigarettes, and a 1950s-style home Heintz’s family apparently lives in. It is also unclear what world Eva’s world refers to: there are references to Tokyo, for instance, but her own memories swirl into a rose-shaped cosmic graveyard that is clearly not Earth, with even contradictory referents in the memories, themselves. The ‘Victorian’ world is not the world of the 1900s, yet Carlo (as well as others) are twentieth-century inventions, and opera festivals in Tokyo imply a diverse, modern world. Thus, we get three typical anime tropes right off the bat: steampunk, cyberpunk, and a re-iterated present, but without any deeper reason for these permutations, for the tale, as told, is banal, marred by poorly drawn-out characters, and leads to neither revelation, change, nor regress. This is because, for all of Magnetic Rose’s stylishness, the basics of ‘what a good story is’ is never respected. Eva, for example, is a prototypically sick, spurned woman, not only murdering her lover, but shacking up in a crumbling mansion to undo some prior hurt, a la Charles Dickens’s Miss Havisham. That Morimoto (or Otomo, as executive producer) wishes to plumb fiction for archetypes is not the issue. The issue is that these archetypes do little but bump heads in predictable ways, and say predictable things, in trite, ridiculous ways. Eva, when complimented by Carlo, that roses make him think of her, actually becomes sad that he doesn’t “always” think of her, like she thinks of him, and Carlo, instead of being dumbstruck by her emotionalism, simply accepts her ‘sweetness’ with a grin: a kid’s middle-school fantasy of what romance is ‘really’ like, what with the ever-yielding woman, and a man who gushes at her mannerisms. Just ignore, for a second, the irreality of two rich, famous, and talented artists behaving like children in their love lives, and focus on the writing, itself, and how poorly its clichés communicate even the lowliest love. In other words, the short not only downplays genuine human behavior when it most needs crystallization, but also does little with the material it hoists in its stead. The first is in some cases forgivable. The second is a universal fault, applicable to ALL arts, really, and can only be undone with the film’s undoing.
Nor does it get better when other characters are thrown into the mix. There’s Miguel, for one, who is broadcast as a womanizer so ridiculously horny that he tries to court Eva, a potentially dangerous apparition whom he knows to be unreal. There’s the old, ‘hard-boiled’ ship captain, who grumbles of “execs” that know not a thing whereas the crew is always in the thick of things. And, of course, there’s Heintz, around whom the tale’s depths are now expected to turn. As he discovers Eva’s strategy of keeping herself stuck in a loop, Heintz is hit with an epiphany which he feels the need to shout at her, and at himself: “Memories…aren’t an escape!” Well, no shit, for if Otomo and Morimoto thought their audience was too dumb to get the film’s prime philosophical thrust, there it is, swinging for their jaws, just in case they’d missed it. Worse, a potentially interesting aside – the relationship between Heintz and his daughter – is never treated as anything more than a plot device, as the viewer merely asks whether or not she is alive: a superfluous detail, really, if one were to actually have well-developed characters that often say more in their stasis than they do mid-action. Yes, there are some interesting parts: the fact that Eva, despite being so set in her decisions, sends a distress signal; the idea that cyclical memories are a kind of contagion, inducing others to follow suit; and the implicit assertion that Heintz is little more than an Eva ‘type,’ for the one time he is asked about his daughter, prior to all of these events, he is noticeably silent, as if he is trying to suppress the kind of thoughts Eva must have suppressed prior to her mental break. Unfortunately, none of this is explored, most is conjecture, and little of it’s justifiable by what is actually on-screen, for the directors are comfortable to merely let the film rest on its stylishness and the willy-nilly permutations of tropes.
But while the first short is bad in its attempts to do so much, the second, Stink Bomb, directed by Tensai Okamura, is little more than an intermission, with neither negatives, nor pluses. The short follows Nobuo Tanaka, a low-level laboratory technician who ends up ingesting an experimental medicine which causes a fragrant cloud of gas to emanate from him, knocking out those who breathe it. Nobuo wakes up from a nap, finds his colleagues unconscious, and doesn’t connect the gas (which he cannot smell or even see, evidently) to what’s happened. This is discovered by the director of medicine in Tokyo, who orders him to find the medicine, some files, and deliver the package to him as soldiers mobilize to deal with the threat. In time, it becomes clear that Nobuo is the source of the problem, as the military attempts to kill him but cannot. Yet for all that, Nobuo cannot connect his own behavior with the contagion, and is merely confused at the plot to kill him. In fact, he neither comments on it, nor seems to think about it, at all, in a nod to yet another anime trope: that of an awkward, pathetic young man who is suddenly embroiled in a series of events that affect the whole world, wherein he becomes the key to its undoing. This all leads to a peculiar ending, wherein Nobuo, neutralized by a group of armored soldiers who dress (and therefore contain) him in the same armor and helmet, is stuck in a suit that seems little more than a game to him, as he removes the gas-filled helmet and causes a stampede in corporate headquarters, failing, per trope, at the easiest part of the task he’s given.
This is all presented in a light-hearted way, a 40-minute sequence that is little more than the ‘action’ portion of combat-oriented anime writ large. No, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it does mean that Stink Bomb can neither be discussed as art, nor even as a cultural artifact, really, given how little it pushes boundaries, and how interchangeable it is with fan-fiction of an equally lifeless, ambitionless sort. The characters are all one-dimensional, from Nobuo’s stock character arc, to the ‘tough executive’ in Kyoichi Nirasaki, the sneaky military commander, and on and on. Perhaps it captures a milieu, but so do even the worst parts of Neon Genesis Evangelion, in Japan, and schlock like Power Rangers in the West – the bloodlessness of one 1990s subaltern aesthetic against another, yet emanating from the same void. Perhaps worst of all, there is so little fun in the art direction, itself, that even a surface reason to watch the film is no reason at all. It is drawn in a vanilla ‘manga’ style that neither shows things as they are, nor as they could be: a state of limbo that, if you really think of it, damns ALL bad art into doing nothing much at all. One sees, for instance, ‘genre’ faces, ‘genre’ explosions, ‘genre’ attire, and no image or shot that can be deemed symbolic, ambitious, or reaching for something a little higher than the thing itself. Yes, the scene where Nobuo is finally neutralized has an almost pre-natal quality to it, what with the frightened child, heavy colors, and an inability for either viewer or character to make sense of it all, but that is a tiny stroke in an otherwise blasé canvas. And for all the faults of Magnetic Rose, there was clearly an attempt to be something: both in the deeper, narrative sense, as well as in its grand stylistic flourishes that, while going nowhere much at all, could at least function as a pretty illusion for others to see through, and build off of, do better than, and better from. For that, too, is an art-work’s function: to act as a stepping-stone into the past, the future, and even serve as a key to its own undoing, when something better, grander, inevitably comes along. By contrast, Stink Bomb – in Otomo’s own admission – offers nothing to engage with, and nothing to supplant.
Happily, the last short, Cannon Fodder, is not only the best sequence here, but also a corrective on what animation could be, particularly when it comes to the aesthetic both Stink Bomb and Magnetic Rose attempt to mine. This is because it does the most with the least, opting for a narrative where ‘nothing happens’, yet still manages to not only sketch its characters quite well, but also give them a few dead-on emotional moments that come through intellectual engagement. The viewer is left to fill in some blanks, for instance, when the film’s protagonist – a nameless boy – wakes up, salutes a huge, never-explained portrait, and goes off to have breakfast with his family before arriving at school. It is, as far as the viewer can tell, another steampunk universe ruled by an authoritarian government. The city (or kingdom) the boy is part of is at war, but against whom is never said, nor the enemy ever shown. ‘Soldiers’ merely load up cannons and shoot into the distance, almost sardonically shown by way of pretty skies and limitless beaches. There is, then, an almost diegetic ‘need’ to do what they are doing, which is only hammered home in a great little scene at film’s end wherein the boy asks his father who they are fighting against, and the father merely answers that he’ll understand when older. And, just in that exchange, one sees not only how the boy’s father is without answers, himself, and lacks the curiosity to even wonder, but that his son, in saluting the portrait once more, then promising that he’ll do better than his father, and be a cannon shooter, as opposed to merely a ‘loader,’ has pretty much given up his own curiosity, too. More, one gets the sense that if the curiosity does remain, it will be beaten out of him: a window, really, not only into father and son, but into most of the odd, off-human creatures which populate this world and eerily refract ours. The boy goes to sleep, and alarms sound. It is impossible to know whether it is all a drill or something serious, but the more important thing is that the boy sleeps through it, and the portrait, which piques the viewer’s curiosity, is never named, and does nothing, really, but give a face to something that we know is not ‘the’ thing itself.
It is ironic, then – albeit predictable – that while most of the film’s praise has been heaped upon Magnetic Rose, the most puzzlement has been expressed over Cannon Fodder, due to the unconventional art style as well as a lack of ‘story’. Yet whereas criticisms of its art style are silly, given that the images in fact mean something, as opposed to fulfill a “cool” aesthetic, the idea that it lacks a story are absolutely true – and irrelevant. That is because there is a difference between narrative and plot, where plot is merely the details of ‘what happens,’ and narrative, by contrast, is how it all coheres. Clearly, it is the latter that counts in art, and it is done well, here, for the reasons given. Some might also wonder whether it is accurate to call Cannon Fodder’s society “authoritarian,” since, in what seems to be an embarrassing oversight, the viewer sees protestors and agitators who long for better working conditions and the like, none of which is possible in a ‘true’ dictatorship. Yet even in these seemingly banal snippets, there is an implicit comment: that despite their protestations, all The People ever seem to seek is better hours, fewer toxins in the materials they are handling, and the like, while the biggest issue, the issue of WHAT they are doing, and WHY, every single day, is never a concern. One may extrapolate a deeper social comment from all this, or one may not. It doesn’t matter, really, but the point is that one can. It would be legitimate to do so precisely because the viewer’s given a great deal to look at and interpret on a higher level than Stink Bomb’s action-driven narrative, or Magnetic Rose’s trite attempts at poesy and depth. Cannon Fodder, from its enigmatic, often symbolic visuals, to its scant dialogue, delivered only to convey serious narrative arcs, means the film must respect its audience in order to succeed, whereas the first two pander to some of anime’s nadirs, and are therefore trapped by them.
This brings us, then, to the original claim. If the film’s title has an explicit connection only to its first episode, what does it mean for the whole, and why? My guess is that Katsuhiro Otomo is simply referring to his own life or state when the tales were first written, as manga, but lacks any means to communicate the value of this state to others: and, naturally, a one-out-of-three batting average, here, entails two immature stories and one happy accident, with no proof that the accident can be replicated at will. This is visible in its fandom, too, which is quick to love the insular for no other reason than it being ‘different,’ yet jumps all over innovation – as with Cannon Fodder – that takes from art, first, and attempts to broaden it beyond its comforts. In fact, the more I watch anime, the more I see glimmers of depth and power marred by fluff insisted upon those who have never quite grown up. And the beauty of this theory is that while the first part is likely true, yet untestable, it is wholly irrelevant, for the second part, the part that hits upon a brilliant stroke here and there, then nothing, is what makes anime so infuriating as an art-form, and so easily tested. Yet one suspects that it is the future – or a part of one – that there are things, here, the world must inevitably run with, if only because the worlds it depicts and their ever-sharpening distinction between truth and reality are the worlds that must follow. But unless they are communicated, and given a deeper reason to exist than aesthetics alone, it is pointless to discuss. No doubt pieces of Katsuhiro Otomo’s Memories show where this is all going, in time. And the rest, well, must drag it backwards, time and again, for regression is a part of this aesthetic just as well.
The fandom will come for you.
As with Neon Genesis Evangelion (which I’ve, admittedly, never watched), this seems mostly flair, minimal substance. I do agree with you about the anime part, in that it’s full of artists who have intriguing visual style but lack maturity to deepen it. I’ve watched my fair share of anime and read tons of manga and, while fun to read, are just so embarrassing most of the time. I am honest about their “guilty pleasure” function in my life, but the most ardent fans will always attempt to justify their admiration with wafer-thin points.
What do you think of the American outings in the genre? The old Disney classics, the recent Pixar collaborations, animated shorts, etc. It wasn’t a long while ago that “Inside Out” got praised up the ass by everybody, everywhere. My opinion is that most of them are feature-film-length PSAs on teaching children how to grow up. Very intent on moralizing and preaching rather than crafting a great story. “Inside Out” was nice to watch, I guess, but mature? I don’t know.
Yeah, I recall a girl I dated in high school was a big fan of manga. I looked through these books, and even had I not been a reader, already, the fact that a person on the cusp of adulthood would be interested in this as anything more than silly entertainment is odd.
Overall, America animation has probably been the best that I’ve seen. “South Park,” for one, ranges from good to great, the best of Disney is really well-written and well-drawn, stuff like “Ratatouille” has some staying power. I’ve not watched classic anime from the 60s-70s, so I can’t comment on that vis a vis American material.
I recently turned on one of those Disney shorts collections, and the first cartoon was a horrible, preachy, anti-racism thing to counteract, I guess, Disney’s more racist outings.
I think Inside out was a good kids filmed, over-praised by those who refuse to grow up.
Have you read about the “sakuga” perspective of anime criticism?
Basically, evaluating anime on the merits of animation as a medium as opposed to a genre.
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/feature/2015-09-30/the-joy-of-sakuga/.93579
https://wavemotioncannon.com/2016/01/08/why-over-sixty-years-of-animation-history-still-remains-obscure/
https://wavemotioncannon.com/2016/02/21/at-least-its-an-ethos/
The latter two articles might come off as a bit pretentious, but the dude’s a Rosenbaum fan and apparently used to spend a lot of time on video game forums boasting about having read French literature in high school, so just keep that in mind if you decide to read through them. Anyway, he’s written a lot about anime and sakuga and in the most articulate manner I’ve seen.
I don’t necessarily agree with everything he says and I don’t know much about anime anyway, but I was just curious if you had any thoughts on this school of criticism.
https://twolongfourtwitlonger.wordpress.com/
https://ogiuemaniax.com/2016/01/22/sakuga-fans-need-more-carl-sagans/#comment-16325
(An old blog of his and a recent comment on someone else’s blog for better understanding how he approaches artistic criticism.)
Sorry- only saw this comment now.
I’ve not heard of this before, but it strikes me as the equivalent of obsessing over meter in poetry and photorealism in painting. Yes, things like ‘impressive effects’ and novel uses of this or that technique have their place, but it’s merely an intensification of happenstance, not much else. Looney Tunes might seem clunky compared to some of the gifs in those articles, but the best Looney Tunes are incredibly well-drawn and deliver humor, depth, and narrative with just a few basic elements. By contrast, the most impressive anime delivers all sorts of fancy crap that might be appealing to the eye but has no connection to meaning, or the like.
And perhaps there’s some parallel to video game graphics as well. Classics like Chrono Trigger and much of the SNES period never really becomes dated, even when we have hyper-realism with ENB and graphics mods for stuff like Fallout 4. And while the latter may be pushing game realism to its end-point, it is paradoxical that the best of the SNES era is not dated whereas in-between games like Morrowind and Diablo 2 are almost unplayable at times. That’s because SNES had to do a lot with little, whereas the period between N64 and Playstation 3 had to do a lot with ‘some’, creating lots of gaps that the imagination couldn’t be asked to fill in. The latest games are lucky in that they have to do a lot *with* a lot, yet the danger there is that even less will be left to the imagination, and more attention will be paid to detail rather than design. This is why Skyrim and Fallout 4 have been accused of being ‘soulless’ even when player agency is pretty high.
Hello.
Have you watched/read Otomo’s main piece: Akira, and if so, what did you think of it?
Hi, yes, I watched “Akira” a few months ago and thought it was mediocre. Some good visuals (as is usual with ‘classic’ anime) and clearly influential on the medium, as well as video games, and the like, from the 1990s onward, but average otherwise. The dialogue isn’t very good and the characters are all pretty much stereotypes. It is a classic “just because”; Otomo was lucky in this regard that the culture latched on to him like that.
So whats your general opinion on anime? Is it sub-par compared to its western counterpart, would it been better if it hadn’t exist. Should eastern animator scrap down most of its ideas and tropes in the medium?
Hi Robert,
It’s both sub-par when it comes to specific classics (for example, there hasn’t been anything as good as MR. MAGOO’S CHRISTMAS CAROL), but better in terms of general thrust and ideas. Western animation is very niche and hasn’t evolved much over the years, whereas anime often has a mature demographic in mind yet lacks proper execution. If you put the greatest artists behind Western animation and anime, I can see anime coming out with more interesting, better-executed, and boundary-pushing material in the long term. This is partly why I follow it.
Did you really just call Magnetic Rose bad? are you like… ignorant? The story telling is masterful. The way they set up the foreshadowing of Heintz’s past wast beautifully executed. Watch Anime Abandon’s review on the whole movie please for another take to possibly show you your errors.
Though seeing how you view anime, you probably don’t think highly of any anime thats ever been made. You come off as someone who considers it a childish medium not really worth your time. Which i find frustrating, like you’re stuck in the mindset that anime, due to it being animated, can’t be mature or adult.
I suppose in the end that assessment is true if you cant see how mature Magnetic Rose is so… That answers everything. Still, Give this a try.
https://youtu.be/tke-cSo39OM?t=47s
Bonus, your ‘issues’ are nitpicking and personal things. What is wrong with a spurned woman? What is wrong with a child dying? None of these things are bad in fiction. here is my take:
If She killed her lover out of spite and no more, then its dull, but she did it to preserve some semblance of what was left of her life, its adds depth. She did it out of some delusional idea of love.
A child dying is as common a thing in any media. But the father’s despair, and how its used against him, but also saves him is touching and left me in tears. I do not think i could do what he did and reject the delusion. I am Miguel. I want fantasy over reality.
I honestly need to leave now as this is just angering me, and its not worth getting angry over. I don’t expect to return.
Did you really just call Magnetic Rose bad? are you like… ignorant?
Only, I suppose, to an ignoramus who has yet to wean off of a diet of manga and Mountain Dew.
The story telling is masterful. The way they set up the foreshadowing of Heintz’s past wast beautifully executed.
The story telling is flawed for the reasons I noted. If you’d like to actually, ya know, actually engage the specifics of my criticism, you are certainly welcome to.
Though seeing how you view anime, you probably don’t think highly of any anime thats ever been made. You come off as someone who considers it a childish medium not really worth your time. Which i find frustrating, like you’re stuck in the mindset that anime, due to it being animated, can’t be mature or adult.
Where do I say this? “Mr. Magoo’s Christmas Carol” is one of the best films ever made, as is the first South Park film. I’ve positively reviews other animations on this site. That said, no, on average, the best animations have yet to compare to the greatest films. It has nothing to do with the fact that they’re animated, and everything to do with how they’re made, and the people making them. Instead of bitching about it, though, it would be more fruitful to actually address the good and bad, and go from there, for the sake of respecting- and improving- the craft.
Bonus, your ‘issues’ are nitpicking and personal things. What is wrong with a spurned woman? What is wrong with a child dying? None of these things are bad in fiction.
They are not nitpicks, unless you are misreading. No, there is nothing wrong with a spurned woman, or a child dying in and of themselves. There is plenty wrong, though, if they are done in trite ways that have been done before. Cosmetic differences do not count as meaningful differences, either.
I honestly need to leave now as this is just angering me, and its not worth getting angry over. I don’t expect to return.
If you are getting angry over this, you need to step back, and re-assess things that go well beyond this essay. Herman Melville died in obscurity, yet I do not cry about it today. I suspect Otomo is a big boy, and could take a little critique.
Thanks, I guess, for ending your comments on a halfway respectful note, though. Perhaps if you did not kick things off with an insult, I would not have to respect in kind, and you’d be less resistant to actually learning something and broadening yourself.
Thanks for reading.
https://youtu.be/tke-cSo39OM
Sorry, I’m not interested in regurgitation.
YOU came into MY article, sniped from the sidelines without ever getting specific, got pissy over nothing, had some weird, hyper-emotional reaction, then hid behind a video you’ve implored me to watch because it supposedly articulates all the points that you, yourself, are too lazy to. I’m not conversing with a video, though. I was talking to YOU. So, you can either debate the points, as written, or walk away. But you’re not doing yourself any favors by acting as if you have nothing going on in your own head.
I like Magnetic Rose, but Cannon Fodder is the artistic masterpiece of the collection in my opinion. The art direction and background design is mind blowing and strange. I love how it was edited to appear as a single, continuous shot.
I actually think Cannon Fodder has a great story. It does a fantastic job of fleshing out a culture that feels very real, and manages to do so within just 20 minutes. I think it’s a solid short film, with an ending that is as disturbing and effective as George Orwell’s 1984.
I’d not call it a masterpiece, but it’s certainly the most daring of the 3 (and of most anime, for that matter), and the best put together.
Hello, this was an interesting take on this somewhat obscure movie.
Have you seen the movie Your Name? If you have, what do you think of it?
I watched it the other night, and it was tough getting through the first half-hour. The writing was bad, the music was worse, I guess it was drawn well, but so is photorealism in the fine arts- which is equally unexpressive, despite being technically competent. I’m also surprised that anime is still so sexually infantile, with its sex jokes always unfunny and really embarrassing.
And you? What did you think?
I was unimpressed by Your Name when I first saw it (I have to admit that the hype surrounding the film was getting on my nerves, so I can’t admit a great deal of objectivity, here) but was willing to give it a bit of a pass because I liked the visuals, and largely dismissed it as adolescent popcorn-fare.
Watching this video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrVzXQriMww) illuminated some of the key issues I had with the film without changing my general assessment. I guess I have a soft spot for Shinkai’s aesthetic, as well as the emotions he’s keen on portraying, but that shouldn’t get in the way of a good critique. The film is NOT good.
I thought Your Name was below mediocre definitely. I found it emotionally manipulative by having all these magical things happen conveniently so we can see the characters cry and such, then see them have a happy ending. The first half was meh. I guess it was sort of funny seeing the two characters affect each others lives (outside the dumb and overused breast grab gag) but nothing I’d consider more than above average since the characters were so two dimensional and it never felt like there was any theme. Then the second half kicks in and the time travel nonsense leaves many questions to be asked. The art was colorful but unremarkable, and the animation was above television I suppose. In the past I think there was at least some more effort placed in the visual department beyond raw technicality. Even in a narrative and theme as distilled as Akira’s, the impressive technicality and artwork felt inseparable.
I was disappointed by it a lot, I was a fan of 5 centimeters per second, and admired the unorthodox approach to its romance. It felt like the same director this time was just trying to cater to the audience without having them think too hard about it.
I feel bad for renting it. Thought I’d take a gamble, and got burned.
“Akira” was definitely better than this trash, but honestly it wasn’t that good either. This little film is way better, and more daring. I’ve yet to see any anime that comes close to great cinema.
I’ll take a look at 5 Centimeters Per Second.
Did you read my review of Evangelion?
Yeah, Akira is very overrated. Pretty sights and sounds, but as a whole its an empty box wrapped in pretty paper. A total compromise of its source, feeling very simplistic and at times stupid.
I’d consider Legend of the Galactic Heroes one of the best anime has to offer as a whole as of now, probably my favorite space opera next to Babylon 5. I admire Royal Space Force (from the same staff of Evangelion but long before it), although it still fumbles in a few areas.
I’m definitely interested in reading your thoughts on Eva. Your takes on anime are a very nice breath of fresh air and the community who watches it needs more critical minds like yours. Anime has definitely developed since its birth, but I think modern developments like the internet, social media, and computers have stifled its growth and its largely becoming sexual deviancy and cheaply produced escapism. Too many people are becoming scared to be critical about it and lack confidence in their takes. But I remain optimistic about the medium, hoping someone will come along and continue pushing it to reach greater heights, far beyond what Otomo, Miyazaki, or Oshii achieved in their days.
How does Legend of the Galactic Heroes- the animation- compare to the book? I tried reading the book and had to put it down. It was very badly written.
Here’s my take on Eva:
https://alexsheremet.com/neon-genesis-evangelion-place-animation/
Thanks for the link.
Id say the animation of LOGH goes above anywhere the novels went, there’s lots of original material in the animated version as well as some small changes to the source. I only consider Babylon 5 slightly better than LOGH.
Thanks, I’ll take a look then.
What do you think of Space Battleship Yamato?
I liked Yamato a lot growing up, since I was largely used to seeing comedies as a kid and watching a cartoon with continuity between episodes was awesome at the time. It’s pretty outdated now though, most of the female characters barely had screentime (they were too hard to draw) and the cast had internal conflicts far too long down the road.
I thought the 2199 reboot was quite serviceable for modern time. Its still campy and promotes justice and patriotism, feeling more like propaganda than theme exploration, but it bothered fleshing out the cast and setting a lot more. Between major events the show dwelled on characters on both sides of the conflict, not complicated but their stories are tragic without victimization for gaining the audience’s sympathy.
I guess I missed the “kill or be killed” scenario of the original, since the remake had humans conquer hundreds of planets.
Overall I think the remake good. One of the best modern anime of the last decade. It has it’s trappings and is outdated in a few ways, but it fleshes itself out enough to be an engaging watch without any cheap tricks like most of its contemporaries.
Looks like you’ve been following anime with some seriousness. I feel like I’m just tossing darts, though, with almost everything I come across being garbage. What are your top 10 anime films or shows? I’d not put anything of Miyazaki there, which surprised me, since I figured his work would be more than middling, and it’s not.
I’m not particularly a miyazaki fan, I thought he was a competent action movie director until he directed lots of dull inconsequentional mediocrities in the wake of Spirited Away.
My personal 10, in no real order, are Legend of the Galactic Heroes, Royal Space Force, Vampire Hunter D Bloodlust for no nonsense rule of cool action, Serial Experiments Lain, Tatami Galaxy, Ghost in the Shell 1995, the Robot Carnival short “Cloud” by Mao Lambo, FLCL (the original, not the cash in sequels coming out now), and finally Dangaioh and Transformers the 1986 Movie because they are campy and dated as all hell and it’s the sort of spectacle I’m biased towards (not that I’d recommend them at all).
I think most of my favorites are genuinely good, with a couple of them being great in my eyes. Theres a number of titles I left out that I really enjoy, but wouldn’t consider more than mediocre or downright bad. As a whole, from what Ive seen since childhood, I think most anime are very mediocre. Not enough awful schlock like Mars of Destruction or MD Geist, and only a handful of titles could be put in the good range, with even less going into great. Its all passable then quickly forgotten by everyone. However, I think the number of downright bad titles has increased in the past decade, with the shift to quantity over quality in seasonal airing, and the industry recruiting “otaku” to become its payed slaves ala the marines targeting hormonal teens. So many shows repeat the same high school setting with the same jokes with the same art style with the same cute girls with the same cheap tricks. It seems like anyone who expected any form of quality gave up on anime and now the people who watch it seem like mostly sex deviants, people escaping reality, people tired of Western entertainment, and people who hype and shill for their favorite ongoing series. Seeing movies like Your Name and Koe no Katachi topping databases made me think about the priorities of the current audience of anime. So many discussions about who the cutest girls are or how certains scenes gave people “the feels” made talking about anime a waste of time for me. I think the general acceptance of mediocrity and even shite, along with derision of negative opinions, will end up pushing more talents into the industry as a result. But it will likely have to collapse in on itself creatively and financially before being reborn.
What do you think of everything before Spirited Way? I figured Nausicaa would have been better as it hearkened back to a ‘purer’ time, but it wasn’t any better nor worse than anything else of his I’ve seen: https://alexsheremet.com/review-hayao-miyazakis-nausicaa-valley-wind-1984/
I’ll take a look at some of those.
In reality, the only way anime could do better (and I think it will, in time) is if the genre in part nurtures the sort of curious, broad-minded mind that is willing to go way beyond anime for its influences. Anime needs to start modeling its sequences on great cinema, for example.
I enjoy most of his pre Spirited Away movies as pretty exciting action movies for their eras and nothing else. Nothing is done stupendously but theres enough to make some of them a little better than rule of cool. Some aren’t exciting enough like porco rosso and I don’t like the kids stuff like Totoro or Kiki because they’re too dull.
Anime has a habit of looking to other anime for a mold to imitate which its been trapped in several times. I admired miyazaki a lot for discouraging this behavior despite not liking most of his filmography. It seems a lot of the classic directors like Oshii, Otomo, and even Anno all acknowledge the issues of the industry today and it being the reason they don’t contribute to it much today. Its quite sad, on the surface it seemed like the industry had a market for different kinds of animation but it seems like its shrinking to being almost exclusively for the otaku, with the occasional family and kids stuff. Many studios are shrinking and subsidizing, most get their money back from selling merchandise. The otaku route is lucrative.
Really nipped it in the bud with the execution over embellishment point. I’m a sucker for visuals and you swayed me with your arguments. If there was given more time to develop the characters outside of the 44 minutes, I feel like it could have been more impactful but I have a few minor things I disagree with. One aspect you didn’t mention was the intentional use of the two operas used in magnetic rose. Specifically the part where Heintz “dies”. That scene is actually a verbatim recreation of a scene from Puccini’s Tosca (Vissi D’arte) while the rest of the opera score is borrowed from Madame Butterfly, (also Puccini). I am also a little curious about your speculation of Eva’s state in the film seeing as how she is deceased and her ships computer has assumed her will by luring in victims like a siren and killing them off. I did find the characters pretty predictable but for me the enjoyment mostly came from the questions raised By the setting and technology, like the sort of nanomqchines or liquid that is able to create Victorian style architecture at will (the scene where Heintz is trying to reach Miguel in the brown water). I do agree it was underdeveloped but flaws and all it was a fun little sci fi romp. Thanks for reviewing this and being honest.
I’m not really up on opera, so I missed the usage, but its use still doesn’t say much about overall effectiveness. If, for example, the film reiterates another work of art’s cliches, or melodrama, or whatever, that’s not a plus.
I agree, many of the ideas in anime are interesting (so are the ideas in various works of philosophy), but the issue is whether these ideas are translated well into art- which in the end depends on characterization, phrasing, and the like.
Thanks for reading.
You sound like a conceded twat.
conceited*
You sound like a conceded twat too. Choke faggot.
conceited*
“manga and anime are childish”, “anime are more fluff than anything”, etc etc etc.
So, you accuse Memories and in particular Magnetic Rose of clinging on stereotypes and cliques (which I can admit they’re part of the package, no problem about that) but you fall into the trap of cliques yourself. No, Manga and anime are not childish, no more no less than western comics and animation. Manga can get really phylosophycal quickly (see Planetes on that), while anime such as Belladonna of Sadness DEFINITELY are not for children, unless feminist storytelling coupled with reflections on the nature of evil and good that go well beyond the cliquè of black-and-white Star Wars moral dycotomy are childish. Or something like princess Mononoke with its focus on the relation between humanity and nature. If you still think that those are cases of “childish” thinking, than why you still give a fuck about manga or anime is beyond me. But hey, from someone telling me that a Mr. Magoo movie (?????????????????????????) is the best western animation has ever done I cannot expect any type of consistency whatsoever.
And on the second point of “anime being fluff”, it’s a trite argument. It can be said for a lot of live-action western movies considered as founding of entire genres like Blade Runner or 2001 a space odissey, but I don’t see their importance or relevance diminishing at all. Is an accusation as stupid as it can get.
Also, Mr. Magoo Christmas Vacation DEFINITELY is not the best animated western thing ever, I think that goes safely to Batman The Animated Series and everything related to it which was aired during the same time of Memories. And you know what? Magnetic Rose on a mere thecnical point by itself beats the crap out of Mask of The Phantasm and such, even If I’m a fan of it.
No reply for the person above me??????? Haha, mostly just wanted to see one for the laughs, though I find you ability to respond to bullshit impressive, not to mention educational. When I see stuff like that recent comment on your NGE piece (fancy academic- and philosophical-sounding psychoanalysis stuff), I just lock-up unsure how to respond and get frustrated. I think part of it is that no matter what I say, even if I may be wrong, the other person will never elaborate, so either one or both of us will stay wrong.
Though, I’m wondering what you think of the Camus/LCL tank comparison. A lot of people try to prop up art with philosophical concepts. There are like dozens of Youtube videos of people trying to apply Marx or Nietzche or Foucault or concepts like “the sublime” to stuff that absolutely doesn’t warrant it like comic book movies and shonen anime and I’m sure even to Total Recall. It can be difficult to address or debunk these kinds of critiques (whether they be praise or criticism) because you might not have read the source work or have understood it all that well.
Reading WA: R-t-R, you mentioned that Antz is an excellent film, but not a great one. How do you distinguish “excellent” from “great”? I always considered the two more or less synonymous, since to be excellent is to excel, which for me implies a certain greatness.
But the thing I’m more curious about is that you’ve brought up the term archetype multiple times in your various essays on animation (incl. those on Antz and NGE), arguing that animation is not film, therefore it can’t have really characters, but archetypes only. Can you elaborate on this? What do you mean by “archetype”? Do you mean the term in a Jungian sense? What about animation prevents the characters from being comparable to actual humans? What about film makes well-written characters from being archetypes? Even the most interesting film characters with the most depth in their portrayal are technically a ‘type’ or person or character, no? My understanding is that you think archetypes are not realistic (not that this is necessarily a bad thing), but I don’t agree. Even in something with poor writing like NGE, there are still attempts at realistically portraying characters. Do you have any reading material on archetypes (in art or otherwise)?
Also, why did you find Antz that good? I thought it was an entertaining enough film, but excellent? You predict how the story would end right from the start. It had a lot of good moments and by virtue of being animation, they could have the story played out by non-humans, which let them incorporate a lot of visual gags (like the magnifying glass as a UFO, as you mentioned), but do you really consider that enough to offset the pretty cliche story?
There’s no reason whatsoever to make a Camus/LCL comparison. Why would it be? Tons of action and kids’ movies have some sort of battle or struggle (physical and not) that leads to some sort of major decision/realization from the protagonist. To track this backwards to Camus (or anyone, really) is absurd. Nietzsche had his own concept of life-affirmation that fits even more neatly into much of NGE. So, should I just call it Nietzschean? Just dumb. I realize NGE has far more ‘mythos’ and plot machinations than my essay suggests, but I’m focusing on the big things- good and bad- so that I don’t have to deal with nitpicks and all these fans going ‘yeah, but…’ so they themselves don’t have to deal with the big picture.
Did I say animation can’t have characters? Maybe I misspoke, but animation can certainly have good/great characters. It’s more so that animation lends itself better to archetypes and ‘stock’ tropes, which itself is not necessarily a bad thing either. The emergent art will be different though. Is Mr. Magoo ‘not good’ because he’s not as a rich and multifaceted as Gena Rowlands in Another Woman? It’s different, and it would be odd to have her character in a cartoon- again, not because it can’t be done, but because having the choice between Gena Rowlands in a film vs. in an animation, why would anyone choose the animation, or put Mr. Magoo’s Christmas Carol into a film? They have different strengths and therefore different roles to play. Animation isn’t simply “film that has been drawn”, and the odd part is that so much beloved animation by Miyazaki (to take one example) assumes it is. That’s why entire books are written about Miyazaki’s “style”, and the big picture gets lost once again.
By ‘archetype’, I mean characters that exist mostly to serve a function as opposed to being highly realistic human beings. Look at a novel like The Remains of the Day- it has some of the best characterization of any book. Yes, the characters are familiar since they share the foibles and traits we see all around us, but that’s not really enough to make them an archetype. At a certain point, you can make pretty much all terms meld together, but all that does is ignore the distinctions which remain.
I’d say excellence has more to do with technical strength than overall quality. But it also does assume quality all-around.
I haven’t seen Antz in a long time, so I can’t really comment on that. Nor do I see predictability as necessarily bad either- especially when it’s an ending. What’s in between can count a lot more. You can, for example, imagine a genre that simply rehashes old stories (thus, all endings are known) and it wouldn’t be a knock against it.
No, you mentioned the labyrinthine plot near the start of your essay and you’ve made the plot/narrative distinction a number of times in other essays, so I get that you weren’t focusing on it (because it’s not really important), but I just wanted to get a better idea of how one should respond to arguments/claims/nitpicks of that sort. You’ve surely seen the dozens of videos trying to tie action movies, kids’ shows, etc. to some political or philosophical idea or framework, and it can be hard to dismantle these arguments, due in part to them being unanswerable in a sense.
No, you didn’t outright say that animation can’t have characters, but said that it can get away with having archetypes in a way that film usually can’t, and so it’s better to work to it’s strengths. I guess I mistook that as you saying animation can’t have characters, so my apologies.
I agree that predictability in a sense isn’t a bad thing. There are actually a few comments elsewhere on your site where some guy tries to criticize 2001 for being predictable, saying that it was obvious that HAL would turn on the ship’s crew. But that’s missing the point. Killer robots were a sci-fi trope well before 2001 and have been used countless times since in various forms. The difference is in HOW 2001 uses the killer robot trope- it was completely unlike anything that’s been done before (or since, for that matter). I mean, HAL and its red ‘eye’ has become a cultural icon now and most people either know how scene plays out even if they haven’t seen the movie or they’ll know more or less how it will play out because of all the ripoffs and imitations since. But the dialogue, the shots, the sounds and music (or lack thereof), etc. result in a scene that’s totally unique and imparts various subtleties on subsequent viewings, something a simple plot twist could never do.
That said, I do think that Antz does have an overall fairly predictable plot and narrative, and though it does a lot of unique things, I don’t think it’s quite enough to offset the overall predictability of the plot. It is definitely among the better animated fare, especially when compared to other CG stuff from Pixar and DreamWorks . I had only seen parts of it on TV as a kid, yet I still recalled more of it’s scenes (the UFO magnifying glass, the worm rollercoaster in frutopia, the personalities of Z and, Christopher Walken’s character, Col. Cutter) than I could for Disney/Pixar stuff I’d seen to completion. I can’t recall a single image or snatch of dialogue from Bug’s Life. Even the most memorable parts of Bee Movie, which is sort of a cult classic, are derivative of Antz (notably, the alien-ness of human environments to the bees).
Since you mentioned Ghibli. what you think of Spirited Away? Compared to Alice in Wonderland and Wizard of Oz?
Also, do you intend to post any reviews or short comments on Wonder Wheel and Crisis in Six Scenes?
No, you mentioned the labyrinthine plot near the start of your essay and you’ve made the plot/narrative distinction a number of times in other essays, so I get that you weren’t focusing on it (because it’s not really important), but I just wanted to get a better idea of how one should respond to arguments/claims/nitpicks of that sort. You’ve surely seen the dozens of videos trying to tie action movies, kids’ shows, etc. to some political or philosophical idea or framework, and it can be hard to dismantle these arguments, due in part to them being unanswerable in a sense.
In most cases, they’re just watered-down, simplistic versions of some philosophy. Other times, they just invoke some loftier name to refer to some element of philosophy. You can call NGE “Camus-like” or Nietzschean or heroic or whatever, it still wouldn’t matter, and many other names would qualify.
No, you didn’t outright say that animation can’t have characters, but said that it can get away with having archetypes in a way that film usually can’t, and so it’s better to work to it’s strengths.
I still agree it’s better to work towards the medium’s strengths. A white canvas with a red dot in the middle is a shit painting precisely because it doesn’t tap any strengths/advantages of this medium. Animation works well with caricature, exaggeration, etc., and so it’s just odd to want a hyper-realistic character in the same way that film can provide one.
That said, I do think that Antz does have an overall fairly predictable plot and narrative, and though it does a lot of unique things, I don’t think it’s quite enough to offset the overall predictability of the plot. It is definitely among the better animated fare, especially when compared to other CG stuff from Pixar and DreamWorks . I had only seen parts of it on TV as a kid, yet I still recalled more of it’s scenes (the UFO magnifying glass, the worm rollercoaster in frutopia, the personalities of Z and, Christopher Walken’s character, Col. Cutter) than I could for Disney/Pixar stuff I’d seen to completion. I can’t recall a single image or snatch of dialogue from Bug’s Life. Even the most memorable parts of Bee Movie, which is sort of a cult classic, are derivative of Antz (notably, the alien-ness of human environments to the bees).
Maybe, I’ll keep your critique in mind whenever I get the chance to re-watch it.
Since you mentioned Ghibli. what you think of Spirited Away? Compared to Alice in Wonderland and Wizard of Oz?
Have not seen it, but didn’t think much of Nausicaa, Howl’s Moving Castle, or Princess Mononoke. Oh, never got a chance to discuss it, but Paprika sucked, it’s the perfect example of anime writers and anime fans finding ‘depth’ in the most obvious bullshit.
Yeah, Satoshi Kon is way overrated. Paranoia Agent also sucked. It and Paprika have sort of turned me off from watching any of his other stuff, namely Perfect Blue and Tokyo Godfathers, which are fan favorites.
I’m surprised you haven’t seen Spirited Away. It’s widely considered to be Miyazaki’s best film and, if nothing else, it’s arguably his most popular, what with it being an Oscar winner and all. It gets a lot of praise in part for being, like most Ghibli films, a “tasteful” example of anime (that is to say, none of the more obnoxious anime conventions like fanservice and excessive monologue-ing and histrionics), but more than most Ghibli films, it has a level of ambiguity in what’s going on. That said, I think this is largely intrinsic to the setting (the story takes place in a Shinto-based spirit realm), and not really due to any deeper artistry or anything. The narrative is a fairly unremarkable coming-of-age tale with similarities to Alice in Wonderland and Wizard of Oz. Most of the praise seems to come from people who are just taken with the exoticism of the visuals and setting (I know I myself prefer it over Wonderland/Oz and such), as well as what you said about Paprika, with anime fans getting duped by obvious shit and pretty visuals.
There have been some attempts at viewing the film under a political lens, but this is all debatable and, more than that, has little import (if any at all) in relation to what’s actually happening on screen. As you’ve pointed out many times, a lot of these types of readings tend to be too myopic or narrow, focused on the here-and-now or on something that is/was relevant only to a specific time and place, and will eventually become little more than trivia if it isn’t already. But anyway, if you’re interested:
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/2e/f1/2e/2ef12ec1c75363f3c91fac569aee5935.jpg
https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/602/278/701.jpg
A terrible PC article covering various interpretations: https://www.vice.com/en_ca/article/8geg4b/spirited-away-ghibli-miyazaki-15th-15-year-anniversary-best-animation-hannah-ewens
Someone who disagrees: https://preview.redd.it/s6ej0zr0hp8z.jpg?auto=webp&s=318e207f2b981646c51839a55c3623e81a7c4a49
The funny thing is that for all the praise that people like the writer of that Vice article heap on Spirited Away/Miyazaki/Ghibli, they inadvertently reveal how childish anime and it’s figureheads are. I mean, seriously, “we must listen to the voice of young girls because they know better than their parents” and “kids are actually really smart”? Ok.
At any rate, I’d still recommend giving it a watch. It’s an absolutely gorgeous film, and not too long or filled with annoying histrionics. I can make an educated guess, but I’d still like to hear your comments on the film, however short they may be.
Have you watched Alice in Wonderland or Wizard of Oz?
Did you like anything about Howl’s Moving Castle? It’s probably Miyazaki’s worst film, just a terribly preachy anti-war cartoon. Fun fact: it’s the only Miyazaki film Ebert has watched and hasn’t liked: https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/howls-moving-castle-2005
What did you think of the four-colored dial that changed where the door opened to? Mamoru Oshii (GitS, Angel’s Egg) had this to say: https://soranews24.com/2015/10/06/director-of-ghost-in-the-shell-shares-his-favorite-hayao-miyazaki-movie-and-scene/
“The scenes with the dial are great. For the first time, I thought ‘Ah, Miyazaki really made a good point.
One part of the disc is pitch black. When you turn the dial to that and open the door, there’s a war going on. In the battlefield burning with hellfire, Howl has transformed into a monster and is flying around the sky. Then he comes home covered in blood, and the fire spirit tells him, “You shouldn’t go overboard,” and “You won’t be able to change back to your old form.
Men have about four worlds…One is something they can’t even show their families or wives. They have a dark side that they couldn’t even show their own daughter. That dark side makes up about one fourth of who they are. Well, for some people it’s half of them. Miyazaki understands that, just like you’d expect him to. I was impressed by that part of the film.
If you go to that dark place, you might turn into a monster and die that way. When you come home, you’ll be staggering. Men have something like that. I think it’s probably the same for women, but it’s definitely something any man can sympathize with.”
I do Believe that everyone judge a film base on their taste and how they react to something that they had never tried before. for you to give opinions about the Memories film and calling Otomo a lucky person for bringing this kind of thing into the culture at his time and accidentally got famous by it. Here why Akira is a masterpiece and a game changing animated film. if you truly are a good film critic, i suppose you know something about the element of suspense. and if you don’t, i will explain it anyway. the film like Memories first part and the Akira. He simply tried to attract the audience into watch closely in film and predict what would happen next. However, these 2 films actually did not let us predict what would happen in the film or what was the main plot. As the beginning of Akira. We did not even know what is Akira even it was said quite often throughout the film, yet its meaning was reveal at the end of the film and it was NOT whatever we thought it is. but if you only focus on the characters being an ass and unprofessional character design. did you even witness the characters ages and Era that they were living in and what was their everyday job. I believe they did not come up with characters within 2 or 3 hours. they were trying to design a character that fit best to the main theme and plot, so that it can go the way Otomo want it to be. In short, for you to have not written or make any great progress on the art of storytelling, you can try not to call some respected masters lucky based on how you personally feel about film without digging deeply into their story writing. and of course you should watch a film more than 2 or 3 times to observe more on how it was being created.
I see some of your points and I understand how Magnetic Rose’s characters surely could have used more characterization and depth. However, the way you handle yourself within your essay and through your comments forced me to completely devalue your opinion. It is a bit ironic to me to see someone referring to themes of romance as childish as they use all caps and underscores to yell their opinion to anyone willing to listen. Devaluing other’s stories and what their viewers take from media by stating that those who read manga and view it as anything more than just entertainment are odd and you go on to imply they are childish. Surely you do not understand humans. People will read into, and find value in, even the smallest of things. A family heirloom for example is, at its core, worthless unless value is placed upon it by a human. Ironic that the very themes of Magnetic Rose completely flew over your head as you seem to fail to understand what it means to not want to let go of something.
Do you not see how hypocritical you are? I wrote an essay detailing (notice this word- *detailing*) my take on 3 films, then addressed every comment respectfully, except for the insults. The first began with: “are you, like, ignorant?”, and yet I responded at length to every word. I don’t have to answer anyone, but I do it anyway- even the idiots. Funny how you’re policing my tone but have nothing to say about what I’m responding to, and have no objections to what’s being said of and to me in this and other anime threads. If you’d prefer not to listen to my opinion, get off this site and do not solicit my comments.
Devaluing other’s stories and what their viewers take from media by stating that those who read manga and view it as anything more than just entertainment are odd and you go on to imply they are childish.
They may be otherwise perfectly normal, good, well-adjusted adults, but if anyone thinks anime is an art form currently on par with the greatest films, etc., they’re childish- or rather, their understanding of this one subject is. Want to know why? Just look at the rest of your comment:
Surely you do not understand humans. People will read into, and find value in, even the smallest of things. A family heirloom for example is, at its core, worthless unless value is placed upon it by a human. Ironic that the very themes of Magnetic Rose completely flew over your head as you seem to fail to understand what it means to not want to let go of something.
You are literally justifying “reading into the smallest of things” whatever perspective satisfies your own personal response. In other words, forget the words, forget the animation, forget the music, forget character, forget anything that’s actually there- all that matters is YOU and what YOU like, and to even try objectively assessing any of this is some sort of infringement on your- what, exactly? Your rights? Your comfort? I don’t know why you’re offended, and so I don’t know what word to use. But the point is that it’ll have nothing to do with the subject at hand, since you’ve moated the subject away from anyone’s examination. How very adult of you.
I would recommend checking out the films of Isao Takahata (who also worked at Studio Ghibli), in particular Only Yesterday and The Tale of the Princess Kaguya. Takahata’s films come closer to being great movies on par with some of the best live action films, whereas Miyazaki’s films are kind of like Japan’s answer to Disney animation. Takahata also made Grave of the Fireflies, one of Roger Ebert’s favorite films, but I would go with either Princess Kaguya or Only Yesterday.
Thanks for the recommendation; I’ve seen Grave of the Fireflies, not great by any means but way above the typical anime film.
This was a really detailed analysis, thank you! I’ve linked your review in my article about the movie: https://alkony.enerla.net/english/the-nexus/sf-f-nexus/film-review/memorizu-memories-movie-1995-film-review-by-kadmon
You mention that Magnetic Rose is praised more than Cannon Fodder – I assume it’s because Cannon Fodder is aimed at a very select audience. You need to enjoy a plotless story, you need to enjoy long shots of technology being used, you shouldn’t be turned off by the art style that’s non-typical anime, you shouldn’t be turned off by a dystopian regime, you shouldn’t hate the mere thought of war to enjoy this piece.
This might be true, although look at how many unnecessary filters people wish to put up. Those who ‘demand’ plot (instead of, say, narrative, which is different and more important), shorter shots, more typical styles, ‘being turned on’ by the subject matter, and so on, are not really there to consume art as art. They just want various parts of themselves to be satisfied. Nothing wrong with that, but Cannon Fodder is a good work of art and ought to be recognized as such.
Thanks for reading.
What is your opinion on manga, classics such as Lone wolf and cub, Vagabond, Berserk and the works of Tezuka Osamu ?
Have not read them.
I see. You and Dan Schneider have some interesting opinions about film and literature. About literature I never saw you talking about the British author David Mitchell. Have you read some of his books like The Cloud Atlas and Ghostwritten and what did you thought of them, are they great or just good ?
I see. You and Dan Schneider have some interesting opinions about film and literature. About literature I never saw you talking about the British author David Mitchell. Have you read some of his books like The Cloud Atlas and Ghostwritten and what did you thought of them, are they great or just good ?
Have not read David Mitchell. Which of his books do you think is best?
Hard to say. The last book that I have read by him was Ghostwritten and it seemed pretty good. It is written from the perspective of numerous characters from different parts of the world that are all interlinked through coincidental events. It blends different styles from science fiction to magic realism.It is also his first novel so that would be a good way to start with him.
Regarding politics, what do you think of far-left youtube channels, like jason unruhe, badempennada, hakim, and bread tube, people like lindsay ellis, contra points and brows held high ?
Have not seen most of those, and don’t care to.
I see. I just wanted to know what do you believe of the far left in general. If they are just as dangerous or worse than the far right. Also, do you think that there is a double standard applied to the far left negationism. People like Chomsky can make excuses for the crimes of communism but nobody can do the same for the nazis and fascists.
I’m sorry, but just reading the way you reply and devaluate things that you don’t like just makes you sound like the typical hater that goes against everything that’s popular just because it’s popular. While I agree with some of your points and I’m not the biggest anime fan out there (far from it) is very easy to see how you try to look at everyone like you are better.
when you just reply with things like “I’ve seen X and while is still better than most garbage anime films is still fucking garbage” it just makes you sound cringey.
Pretty sure you are this kind of self-loving fellow that would always reject any kind of enterntaiment if it does not have any deep meaning that can make you jerk off while writing for and to yourself.
Fuck off.