jackadam
02-07-2017, 03:21 AM
Saw this in the theater last night, and thought I'd post some thoughts.
There are many Shunji Iwais -- there's the one who makes touching dramas like "Love Letter" and the original "Hana and Alice," the one who makes arthouse films like "Swallowtail" and "All About Lily Chou-Chou." There's Shunji Iwai the novelist, the manga artist, and even the actor (he starred in Hideaki Anno's "Ritual" many years ago). And now, we've got a new one -- Shunji Iwai, anime director.
This film is a prequel to Iwai's live action film "Hana and Alice," with the original actresses returning to supply voice work. A girl named Kuroki -- no, scratch that -- Arisugawa Tetsuko has transferred to a new junior high school, where she is confronted with rumors that a missing boy -- whose seat she now occupies -- was murdered.
And that he had four wives.
And one of them did him in.
That some of this story is utter hogwash she has no doubt, but where the malarkey ends and reality begins is less certain. As she looks for answers, she's led to Hana, a hikikomori living next door who was a childhood friend of the missing boy. Together, they embark on a search for the truth, and get to know each other in the process.
The film doesn't look like a terribly expensive venture -- the characters are cel-shaded CG, and many of the backgrounds look like photos run through a few dozen Photoshop filters -- but it gets the job done for the story being told. The animation of body language and facial expressions is well-done for the most part, and while the illusion of 2D art was at times perfect, occasional scenes do jump out and scream, "I am 3D CG!!"
Where this movie shines is in the dialog and voice work, though. The narrative is long and rambling, like most Iwai films are, but unlike some of them, this one knows where it's going and gets there in its own good time. Some of the supporting characters are played broadly (particularly the classmate who performs an exorcism on "Alice's" chair), but Hana and Alice themselves are oddly compelling -- not cool girls, not wimps, not really fitting into any easy category, but smart and brave...and occasionally stupid and cowardly. In other words, fourteen. I had a smile on my face for much of the latter half, sometimes because I was amused, and other times because I was touched. The music, acting, and feel of the film are absolutely of a piece with the original, which I now plan to watch again very soon.
In short, I loved it. Highly recommended.
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There are many Shunji Iwais -- there's the one who makes touching dramas like "Love Letter" and the original "Hana and Alice," the one who makes arthouse films like "Swallowtail" and "All About Lily Chou-Chou." There's Shunji Iwai the novelist, the manga artist, and even the actor (he starred in Hideaki Anno's "Ritual" many years ago). And now, we've got a new one -- Shunji Iwai, anime director.
This film is a prequel to Iwai's live action film "Hana and Alice," with the original actresses returning to supply voice work. A girl named Kuroki -- no, scratch that -- Arisugawa Tetsuko has transferred to a new junior high school, where she is confronted with rumors that a missing boy -- whose seat she now occupies -- was murdered.
And that he had four wives.
And one of them did him in.
That some of this story is utter hogwash she has no doubt, but where the malarkey ends and reality begins is less certain. As she looks for answers, she's led to Hana, a hikikomori living next door who was a childhood friend of the missing boy. Together, they embark on a search for the truth, and get to know each other in the process.
The film doesn't look like a terribly expensive venture -- the characters are cel-shaded CG, and many of the backgrounds look like photos run through a few dozen Photoshop filters -- but it gets the job done for the story being told. The animation of body language and facial expressions is well-done for the most part, and while the illusion of 2D art was at times perfect, occasional scenes do jump out and scream, "I am 3D CG!!"
Where this movie shines is in the dialog and voice work, though. The narrative is long and rambling, like most Iwai films are, but unlike some of them, this one knows where it's going and gets there in its own good time. Some of the supporting characters are played broadly (particularly the classmate who performs an exorcism on "Alice's" chair), but Hana and Alice themselves are oddly compelling -- not cool girls, not wimps, not really fitting into any easy category, but smart and brave...and occasionally stupid and cowardly. In other words, fourteen. I had a smile on my face for much of the latter half, sometimes because I was amused, and other times because I was touched. The music, acting, and feel of the film are absolutely of a piece with the original, which I now plan to watch again very soon.
In short, I loved it. Highly recommended.
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