Ranked #182

Sweat Punch: Kigeki

Kigeki or Comedy is just the opposite of that. Don't be misled by the title. This is a deep, dark and grim fairy tale of an anime, and possibly one of the best short films I have ever seen.

The story pulls you in right from the get-go. Set in a feudal Ireland, it's quite refreshing to see an anime with such a fairly original setting. It gives us a tale, in its short duration, of a young girl, a mysterious and very shady swordsman, books and a war. This is definitely one of the most unique and engaging storylines you will ever come across.

I do have to commend the artists and animators behind Kigeki. It looks wonderful. The art is beautiful and has these very suitable tones of black, white and grey to give it a very Gothic appeal. The animation is superb. It is fluid, with realistic character movements and an amazing battle sequence.

The background music is haunting and well-timed. The score quietens when the scene calls for silence, intensifies when the atmosphere has energy. There is the Ave Maria, I believe, with its haunting vocals permeating throughout the anime. It really sets the mood. Also, the religious overtones of the music reflects the setting. Ireland was at the time, I believe, an intensely Catholic nation.

Characters. Now, there are only two characters. And they only appear for ten minutes. But my, what good characters they are. The little girl and the swordsman are both enigmatic characters, he more so than she is. But there is an aura of mystery around them both. She is innocent, naive, and he--he is not exactly what he seems. I cannot say what makes him different from your standard silent stoic swordsman. I will leave it at 'It's a shocking surprise.'

Kigeki was brilliant. It didn't lose steam for one second, and it caught me from the first few opening seconds to its chilling conclusion.

I definitely recommend this. It may be very violent, and that's my only real warning away from it, if you are averse to violence. Other than that, this is a deeply psychological, very haunting anime that's worth those ten minutes of your time. read more

Wow. I don't really know what to say. It's good, that much is certain. It's basically a dark fairy tale about a swordsman and his hobby, and the little girl who finds out about it. I really can't say much more than that without spoiling anything, since it's so short. Just go watch it, there really isn't any excuse since it's just 10 minutes. The animation is very breath taking, in fact it is hauntingly beautiful, and appears as though it was shot through an old film camera, you can see all the artifacts and the fleeting frame inconsistencies-- very atmospheric. The artists who did this did a superb job, the effect is not cheesy, surprisingly. Like the other reviewer said, the art is so dark and yet so bright at the same time. The animation is just indescribable. The only thing I didn't like was the rather exaggerated portrayal of the "evil English," which made me laugh. But it's a minor quibble and does not ruin the overall effect. As for the story, it is not very innovative, but it's simple and well executed, as a 10-minute fairy tale should be. Thumbs up. read more