Anju to Zushioumaru

Anju is so much better than its predecessors. You'd expect some slight progression, but thanks to Saiyuuki's blatant incompetence only a year before, it didn't happen. I can feel Takahata's touch in this, always granting his stuff a sense of gravitas, however subtle. It's also vastly superior in terms of presentation, with fluid and consistent animation, clever use of color and texture, and accurate drawing. For the first time Japanese animators fully committed to visual timelessness. Screenwriters also finally realized idealism shouldn't be the norm, presenting a rather tragic story about coping with loss, and such a fitting ending. Even the cuteness didn't feel nearly ... as misplaced as in other titles, but rather properly integrated. I genuinely don't understand how this is both less watched and scored lower than garbage like Saiyuuki. This is probably the first good anime and the first case of quality losing to popularity. Most people will keep sucking Hakujaden despite being inferior merely cause it's the first.

This is the oldest Anime I've watched so far and maybe that's why I expected something much more worse yet I found myself more surprised than I had initially expected. The entire movie gives off the vibe of old Disney movies, only that this one doesn't have a happy ending and instead focuses on loss and tragedy. I found myself feeling for some reasons very nostalgic whilst watching this because it reminded me of old tales I used to read when I was a kid. Would I recommend it? It depends because I feel like this story and (obviously) it's animation would have little to ... no chances even coming close to some of the stuff we got in the last decade. But you might be pleasantly surprised if you decide to give it a try.