Kara no Kyoukai Movie 5: Mujun Rasen

In November 1998, a double homicide occurs at the newly constructed Ogawa apartment complex in the heart of Mifune City. The murderer, Tomoe Enjou, has fled in a panic. To his astonishment, he is not pursued by the police and news of the incident has not been reported through media outlets. After Shiki Ryougi defends Tomoe from a group of thugs, she allows him to use her residence as a hideout. However, a few days later, Tomoe is shaken to discover that his mother is alive, even though he is convinced that he killed her.

Coincidentally, Mikiya Kokutou is investigating a tip that his associate Touko Aozaki receives regarding the murder at the unique apartment complex. As he uncovers more information about the incident, Mikiya takes a particular interest in Tomoe. Deciding to investigate him further, Mikiya soon discovers the disturbing truth of the foreboding Ogawa complex.

The fifth installment of the Kara no Kyoukai film series, Mujun Rasen combines an intricately constructed mystery with established themes and characters to produce a dark, thought-provoking story.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Ryougi, Shiki Main

Sakamoto, Maaya Japanese

Aozaki, Touko Main

Honda, Takako Japanese

Kokutou, Mikiya Main

Suzumura, Kenichi Japanese

Araya, Souren Main

Nakata, Jouji Japanese

Enjou, Tomoe Main

Kakihara, Tetsuya Japanese

Kokutou, Azaka Supporting

Fujimura, Ayumi Japanese

Alba, Cornelius Supporting

Yusa, Kouji Japanese

Enjou, Takayuki Supporting

Yamanoi, Jin Japanese

Akimi, Daisuke Supporting

Touchi, Hiroki Japanese

Enjou, Kaede Supporting

Itou, Miki Japanese

Iwakami, Atsuhiro Producer

Kondou, Hikaru Producer

Hariu, Masayuki Producer

Toba, Yousuke Assistant Producer

Reviews

Mar 27, 2023

MrRedMage

Recommended

Wow. Just... Wow.

The Kara no Kyoukai series has been on my radar for quite some time, mostly due to its connection with Tsukihime and the rest of the Nasuverse. Up until this point, the series as a whole had been a solid 8, something I'll remember going forward but nothing to write home about. Mujun Rasen, or Paradox Spiral, is another matter. This movie is smarter than I am, and I don't say that lightly or to make fun of it. I sincerely mean that this film is more thought-provoking than I was able to comprehend.

As far as the writing goes, this is ... the first time I've seen any anime property in the Nasuverse really dive into the metaphysics of the Counter Force and the Root of Akasha, but it was woven into the story very well. The characters are all very well written with no real exception, and the story knows exactly what it's doing. I would have liked to see more of Ryougi, but that's probably a me problem and the story is probably better for having her on-screen way less than in previous films. Touko finally gets the attention she deserves here and it almost feels like 'her movie' in a way, though that's not to say she's the most important character, far from it.

The art and animation have stepped up astronomically from the previous movie, it really is a spectacle to behold. The music is outstanding, even for an ufotable production. It gets a 10 in this category.

Overall, I don't want to spoil the film. Go watch the Kara no Kyoukai movies, this one is my favorite thus far.

Reviewer’s Rating: 10

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Jul 21, 2020

Zelas01

Mixed Feelings

First four movies left us guessing a lot, so I expected a final info of some sort but didn't happen. A lot of raw information was displayed and it didn't quite catch my attention, as a result I wasn't fully invested.

Animation and Sound were amazing in this movie, there are some very nicely animated scenes and the music was straight outta SAO which is really good, the relationship between the characters wasn't so bad either.

Overall, it's a 6 (fine) for me, because I didn't understand the motives of the main villains, the magic powers of magus weren't explained at any point, but were ... teased at points in a slightly edgy way.

I understand that there is a certain charm in keeping the viewers guessing, but there are limits.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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Nov 24, 2024

YaBoiBunsen

Not Recommended

Spoiler

You may be reading this review to decide whether it's worth watching the previous four films to get to this one. No, I wouldn't recommend it. This is the worst of all five.

The non-linear structure of this story may lead you to think there's something important being said, something profound and intelligent that can only be conveyed with this kind of structure. But as it is with the entire Kara no Kyoukai series of films, the only reason this isn't chronological is to trick you. To fool you into not thinking logically about what's being said and shown in each scene. You feel control being ... wrestled away from you and naturally you think to yourself "Ah, I see. I'm not supposed to understand this yet. This will all make sense later." This doesn't happen. You can, as I did, perfectly understand this film the first time you watch it. The only purpose this structure actually serves is for Touko's twist, and even then it does it in a completely idiotic way.

The film hints at this twist by the continuity of cars parked outside the apartment complex. Touko arrives first in a red car. The film shows her opening the car door and cuts to a shot of Touko's back as she walks towards the apartments with only her red car in the foreground. Cut to a wide shot of three cars parked bumper to bumper. A red car, a light grey car, and another red car. Later on, Kotukou and Enjou are driving to the apartments in a grey car. As they pull up it cuts to a shot of Touko arriving in a red car, this time showing her parking behind a grey car and a red car. It then shows a slow-motion closeup of Touko exiting the car and then the same shot of her walking towards the apartments. Cut again to a wide shot of the three cars. Kotukou and Enjou then arrive in the grey car and it cuts to a wide shot of only two cars, the grey car parked behind a red car. A little while later after Kotukou gets beaten by Alba we are replayed the three shots of Touko arriving in the third car. This seems like a perfectly good technique to trick the audience, hardly anyone would notice. But think about it. The only way this twist can work is if both Toukos are driving the exact same car, and wearing the exact same clothes. Otherwise the audience would notice straight away it's two different scenes. We as the audience suspend disbelief when characters wear the same clothes in every scene. What this movie tells us is that the characters in this universe have Homer Simpson's wardrobe. She simply chooses to wear the exact same outfit every day and has (at least) two of the same sports cars in her garage. Even Homer didn't go that far. No wonder she was broke in movie 3! It's not as if there's some advantage to dressing her puppet up in the same clothes. Maybe she thinks if she arrives in a different outfit Araya won't recognize her like Clark Kent or he'll forgot she died. Playing with Taijitu all day weakens the mind I guess.

This twist sums up the entirety of these five movies. On the surface what might seem clever is actually moronic. What might seem meaningful is actually shallow. What seemingly makes sense is actually nonsensical. Let me remind you, the only reason this movie is structured this way is because of this twist, and this is just a small taste of this movie's problems. I haven't even talked about the dialogue because the storytelling of this one is so bad that the worst part of the first four movies isn't the biggest problem here, but I already covered the dialogue in my review of the 3rd movie. There is no depth in Kara no Kyoukai. People see a series that has good visuals with characters who pay lip service to philosophical concepts, wrapped inside a non-linear structure making it seem different and artistic and that's good enough for them to think it's "deep". Kara no Kyoukai isn't confusing because it's elaborate and intelligent. It's confusing because the plot literally doesn't make sense. It's confusing because the dialogue is idiotic. It's confusing because it makes you wonder what other people see in it that makes them think it isn't obviously terrible.

Reviewer’s Rating: 2

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	Poll: Kara no Kyoukai 5: Mujun Rasen Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) dtshyk - Aug 22, 2008	511 replies	by Stormen »» Sep 28, 8:48 PM
	Which city inspires Mifune CITY? RyogiSHIKI7 - Jul 1	5 replies	by RyogiSHIKI7 »» Jul 1, 12:45 PM
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	OMG FIRST PLACE ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) 5layer - Feb 2, 2009	963 replies	by Zoshlog »» Mar 14, 12:59 PM
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