Alternative TitlesEnglish: Aim for the Ace! (1979) Synonyms: Ace o Nerae: Theatrical Version, Aim for the Ace! Movie, Aim for the Best!, Jump High Hiromi! Japanese: エースをねらえ！
Information
Type: Movie
Episodes: 1
Status: Finished Airing
Aired: Sep 8, 1979
Duration:
1 hr. 30 min. Rating:
PG-13 - Teens 13 or older
L represents licensing company
StatisticsScore: 7.121 (scored by 302 users)
Ranked: #25662
Popularity: #4693
Members: 666
Favorites: 4 1 indicates a weighted score
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SynopsisHigh school freshman Hiromi joins the tennis club because of her admiration for Ryuzaki. Ryuzaki is a senior, who's the best tennis player on the team and also nicknamed "Ochōfujin", ("Madame Butterfly"), because of her elegance on the tennis court. However, the new coach, Jin Munakata, wants the inexperienced Hiromi to play in a forthcoming tournament.
Due to this, Hiromi considers quitting tennis for good but, in the depth of her soul, she soon realizes that she loves tennis after all. She returns to the club and, under Munakata's coaching, her talent starts to bloom.
In the end, Hiromi develops a strong emotional bond with her coach, not knowing that Munakata is risking his life because of a chronic illness.
(Source: AnimeNfo) |
Related AnimeAdaptation: Aim for the Ace!
Full story: Ace wo Nerae!
Characters & Voice Actors
Staff
Reviews
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Skadi
58 of 87 people found this review helpful
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1 of 1 episodes seen
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| Overall |
9 |
| Story |
8 |
| Animation |
7 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Character |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
Ace wo Nerae! is without a doubt the most under-viewed and unappreciated film listed on this site. At the time of this writing only 53 people have scored this? Truly shocking as I found this to be one of the best sports themed anime I have ever seen.
This movie serves as a recap for the television series from the early 70s. Since I went into this movie not seeing the original series, I can’t compare how this film does justice to it or the original manga. However as a standalone story it’s a very good one. Hiromi Oka is a freshman member of her high schools tennis club, which also happens to have many of the best players in the country. On her first day a new coach is introduced and Hiromi is quickly picked by him as a top new prospect, though no one else seems to see this talent including Hiromi herself. He pushes her with a brutal training regiment and slowly she becomes better and more confident leading up to the ultimate goal of making the national squad to compete internationally.
The movie features great sports action and even though I am not particularly a fan of tennis, I found the action to be both realistic and exciting. It also does a great job of keeping it simple. Often movies, particularly recap ones, try to do too much and cram so much information in them that they end up not making a lot of sense. That’s not the case here as we are given just enough background on the supporting cast to make you care for the characters. While the focus of the story remains fixed on the tennis aspects, Ace wo Nerae does a good job of mixing in a little romance and some compelling dramatic plotlines.
I really loved the cast and in particular the lead, Hiromi Oka. She is a bit of your standard leading lady but I found her to be a very interesting and likeable character. I can imagine that she has influenced many of the anime heroines that have succeeded her over the years. The strict coach Jin Munakata, is your typically stoic man with a mysterious past. Though his motivations are hidden from the audience for almost the entire film when they are revealed I felt that they worked pretty well. The rest of the cast is good and the character archetypes will be familiar. Reika who is the best player on the team and is idolized by Hiromi, is aloof and tough on Oka because she doesn’t think she deserves what the coach gives her. She’s a pretty good foil for Hiromi though you can’t really call her a villain. Unlike a lot of sports stories where the rival of the hero or heroine is usually a total asshole, Reika doesn’t come across that way nor will be hated by viewers. Toudou is the best male player on the team and is the love interest for Oka. He’s a likeable character though the romance elements take a backseat to the sports action.
For a movie from the late 70s, the animation holds up remarkably well to today’s standards. The art and character designs are top notch and it is quite beautiful to watch. The only thing that really is painful to view is some of the god awful hair styles and clothing. The acting is very solid as well, though the music is typically 70s but neither particularly good nor bad. There are some really great sound effects however, the tennis matches sounded exactly like they should.
I strongly encourage everyone to go out and try to find a copy of this movie to watch. Anyone who considers themselves a fan of anime should give this a shot. Don’t let its age fool you, Ace wo Nerae! is classic.
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Hias
8 of 16 people found this review helpful
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1 of 1 episodes seen
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| Overall |
9 |
| Story |
9 |
| Animation |
8 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Character |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
Ace wo Nerae!(Or 'Aim for the Ace!') is an exotic gem, if anything. Not only was it one of director Osamu Dezaki's earlier works(Along side one of his more famous works; Ashita no Joe), but it paved the way for what was coming in the near future. His trademark theatrics combined with Akio Suginos wonderfully lavish, gorgeous character designs create nothing short of some of the most compelling animated drama around. While the film version of Ace wo Nerae doesn't really provide the full experience due to liberties taken with the character development and subplots. It's a more then adequate alternative while waiting for more episodes of the original tv series to be english subbed - and even giving out the positives of having a faster pacing with a theatrical budget to boot. And it should be thought of as of just an appetizer, really.
Ace wo Nerae!, right down to it, is a classic coming of age story about giving your heart and soul into everything you do, never regretting what you 'could have' done or 'should have' done. Even if it's just a silly game of Tennis, Ace we Nerae! shows that you should always do your best, and strive to be even better. At a time when Japan was acquiring a reasonably large economic boost and expansion thanks to the growth of the manufacturing industry - giving the the nation a newborn sense of pride and accomplishment - it was clearly and truly, a product of it's time.
I think what helped make Aim for the Ace! stand out so much was the art; in almost every frame you could simply pause and observe the painting like quality. Admiring the attention to detail and the atmosphere that it provides. Like I pointed out earlier - Sugino's designs help bring out the manga's classic shoujo features into the animation medium, and brings in a theatrical flare to the tension, tone and dialogue. This title also has the classic Dezaki style - the watercolor freeze frames(There's actually a term to define his particular art style, but it escapes me currently), famously used by him to depict the most tensional moments and drive them up to an even higher stage.
The second aspect that made this film such a treat for me were the characters; Hiromi is a strong willed, positive, but naive and young girl who really only sees her skills in Tennis rather subpar. To me, Hiromi was a refreshing female lead, especially in an industry where women are treated as either bitchy tsunderes or damsels in distress who can't do anything without the male hero. Anime is dominated by a male fanbase, and it's only(unfortunately) natural that the male viewer would see something of himself in the lead male character. Pandering and catering to a sense of control and masculinity. And even though she is strong - like anyone her age- suffers from a lack of confidence and passion in herself. Something she clearly sees and admires in Reika Ryuuzaki, the star player of her schools Tennis club. And something of a rival early on in Hitomi's tennis career. But to me, aside from Hiromi, Coach Jin Munakata stole the show as the stern, patient and hard teacher for Hiromi, giving her the guidance and confidence to believe in herself, her hidden latent skills and the strength to overcome any obstacle in life through hard work and dedication.
It's a wonderfully neat fun fact that the guys at Gainax were directly inspired by Ace wo Nerae! when they developed and created what was to be known as one of director Hideaki Anno's early masterpiece works, Top wo Nerae!(Or, Aim for the Top). With characters Noriko Takaya, Kazumi Amano and coach Koichiro Ota taking common quirks and personality developments from the central cast of Ace wo Nerae! Proving that you should always respect the classics, yo.
Unfortunately, one of the more disappointing aspects was the music, in comparison to the characters and art direction. It just doesn't stand out as anything majestic, beautiful or particularly moving in general. Something that many anime's from the 70's seem to have had a reoccurring problem with. But it is good, and a lot of the tracks sound rather familiar with one of Dezaki's later works; Oniisama e... My particular favorite being the bittersweet closing song.
Overall, I found this title to be an inspiring, beautiful and moving work of art that just never seems to have gotten it's proper due because of it's age and fact that it's still an anime about Tennis, something that anime fans normally aren't crazy about. Despite that it is a sports anime; I look at in a way that the tennis is just allegory to properly depict the themes that I pointed out earlier. I'll be the first to admit that I really couldn't care less for sports in general, but Ace wo Nerae! is yet another piece of evidence that, despite first glances, it's something that shouldn't be overlooked, and some of my all time favorite anime titles happen to be sports themed.
It's a stunning work of art, and gem that depicts an earlier, more romantic and optimistic time when people in general were much more willing to give it their all in anything they do. Something that's rare to see due to technological conveniences and the world slowly adapting to a more westernized life style.
Ace wo Nerae! should not be missed, and the film only reminds us of the fact that- no matter what happens in life - giving everything you have, providing commendable strength and courage to overcome anything is all we can really do.
Never give up.
Constructive criticism is more then welcome btw, as reviewing is something I rarely do, but would like to do more of.
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Recommendations
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Both anime are about common young girls, who's talents were suddenly revealed by some mysterious person wearing black (Chigusa and Jin). Both girls feel themselves uncomfortable being put in some professional group though they are just newbies.
They both achieved a lot during a short period of time, lead by great teachers. And they devoted to tennis and acting their whole souls and feel happy just while doing it.
And the art is similar, even girls' boyfriends (i mean Sakurakoji and Toudou) look the same way.
Ace Wo Nerae!-movie is more similar to Glass Mask in some disquieting feeling in the end: if you were worried about sensei in glass mask, you'll feel the same in "aim for the best"
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Considering 'Aim for the Ace!' inspired Gunbuster, it's shocking that there's NO recommendation for the original TV series or this - its movie adaptation.
If you exchanged mecha with tennis, they are so similar that you'd feel like you've watched one already when you watch the second of the two; no matter the viewing order.
There's the instructor who says very little and picks a nobody, ignoring the arguments of the elites; there's the hard-working heroine who overcomes everything by enduring and never giving up; and there's the super-elite, naturally talented rival who, initially, is dismissive of the heroine. Even teamwork between the hard-working rookie and her skilled rival plays an important role in both stories.
In short: no matter if you like sports or mecha titles, you'll like one if you like the other. It's that simple.
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Opening Theme''Mabushii Kisetsu ni'' by Shounendanteidan
Ending Theme''Haruka na Yume'' by Shounendanteidan
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Related ClubsOsamu Dezaki Appreciation Club, The OVA/ONA/Anime Movie club, MadHouse, -Anime Realm-, Aironic's Club for the Underrated, Polski FC Anime I Mang Sportowych, Sports (Anime) Fans, Arabic Yuri/ Shoujo ai Club $~(•.•)~$, Shoujo Wonderland-少女アニメと漫画大好き
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