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Oct 11, 2009 2:54 PM
#1

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Feb 2009
3436
THIS IS AN ANIME ONLY DISCUSSION POST. DO NOT DISCUSS THE MANGA BEYOND THIS EPISODE.
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A good movie, I really liked how it started and I liked Giovanni from the beginning. There was a boring part in the movie after the beginning (and the movie is long), but from the middle to the end, once I started understanding what was going on and the characters started showing up, it became a very interesting and entertaining story.
VeethornOct 20, 2009 10:43 AM
Dec 28, 2009 9:28 AM
#2

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Sep 2009
24
I liked this movie how i loved other classics, but the middle part of the story was quit hard to stand.
May 6, 2010 9:50 PM
#3

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Mar 2008
333
I cant believe this is a children's story
way too mature views on life and death for children
Nov 19, 2010 11:05 PM
#4
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Mar 2009
2460
I guess it's just not my kind of movie. Words can not describe how frustrated I was watching this.

Especially...the PACING!
Dec 9, 2010 11:43 AM
#5

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Jul 2008
420
My heart broke in so many ways at the end. The pacing was slow and honestly, I was a bit frustrated by the middle, but I'm glad I stuck through it.

I seriously wanted to reach out to Giovanni and give him a hug. ;_;
May 19, 2011 11:07 AM
#6

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Jun 2008
1213
I agree with ChronosXIII, the pace is AWFULLY slow. Don't bother with this movie, read the original book instead if it is available in your language.
Oct 28, 2011 8:02 PM
#7
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Aug 2011
41
Very boring and nonsensical throughout but I thought there was a nice atmosphere at points.
Mar 12, 2012 11:37 AM
#8

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May 2009
611
dragonshade said:
I cant believe this is a children's story
way too mature views on life and death for children


Indeed It S Deeper Dealing With Religion Death Spirituality And Surreal
If Anyone Want To Read More Because I Am Not Good At Writing That Can Be A Lot Explanatory Paintings in It Are Beautiful TOO
You Can Read That
Hope It Can Contribute To Love That ARTWORK More

Apr 29, 2012 11:34 AM
#9

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Apr 2012
845
It's the sort of thing you have to reflect on once you've seen it through to the end, then a lot of the parts that came before turn from nonsensical to incredibly poignant.

I was slightly uncomfortable halfway through though, fearing I was watching some Christian propaganda, but the spiritual aspects are handled with a light touch and are universal enough for this not to really be an issue.

First time around it's slow for sure, but I found the characters' designs emotive enough even without much else going on, damn those sad eyes!
Dec 10, 2014 4:45 PM
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Nov 2013
2667
Really amazing journey, I'm touched. Wow, that was maximum level of hidden gem. Like a tale from heavens, that deals with time and the meaning of life and its continuity. Really thought-provoking. Though like a wanderer, daylight all gone, darkness be over me, my rest a stone, yet in my dreams I'd be nearer, my God, to Thee.
blankflatDec 13, 2014 10:50 AM
Dec 22, 2014 9:05 AM

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Jan 2014
4581
A crimson light is burning as never before.
What is true happiness? That light?
May 15, 2015 7:37 AM
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Oct 2012
59
just did not care for this i knew what was coming when the pepole from the titantic boarded like too many episodes of twilight zone your deas and do not know it
Jun 13, 2015 3:05 PM

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Mar 2015
1953
Great journey and overall good movie but it was a bit too long for its pacing.Nice themes and symbolism thought,quite the dream-y story
Nov 4, 2015 7:04 AM

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Aug 2010
253
I knew Ikahara was inspired with this movie so I presumed that both
Turns out just one of them. Though I can not believe this was adapted from children's story. Really great movie
All aboard the feels train u/u
Heiko92Nov 4, 2015 7:08 AM
May 27, 2017 1:13 AM
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Jul 2018
564612
Wow, I am a lot more impressed with this story than what I had expected to be. It was beautiful, touching and wholesomely spiritual. I found a lot of meaning in this since it is quite interpretive with its symbolism and the "show, don't tell" approach". I don't know if my interpretations are what the original writer was going for, but it probably doesn't matter, either. Movies like this aren't about being right or wrong in an interpretation. If you're self-reflecting on it and finding meaning there, it did its job.

It's a shame I rarely/never feel this way from newer anime.
Oct 9, 2017 8:05 PM

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Mar 2014
2752
This was so weird.
What was the point?

The characters were undeveloped and kind of flat... they had almost no motivation, and no real goal, there wasn't any conflict, and in the end nothing was really resolved. It was just a movie about some anthropomorphic cats on a pointless trip through some surreal environments while riding a train...

The soundtrack was fantastic, and the animation looked good for the era, both of them combined gave the whole film this great dark, unique atmosphere... but it all seemed like a waste considering the story & characters.
vigorousjammerOct 9, 2017 8:09 PM
::End of Transmission::


Aug 15, 2018 7:58 PM
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Jul 2018
564612
I would've enjoyed this movie a lot more if I was religious. Alas, I left the church years ago.

Still though, this was an interesting movie. Quite the surreal experience.
removed-userAug 15, 2018 8:01 PM
Oct 8, 2018 2:09 AM

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Aug 2007
1490
I wanted to like this movie more than I did, but I couldn't help comparing it to Hatoful Boyfriend's version, which I enjoyed much more.

5/10

Sep 30, 2019 1:44 PM
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Sep 2019
1
Hello guys!

Breaking my head for quiet a while now.

Archive.org, and some YouTube channels claim the English version of the movie is a public domain, yet could not find any other source to approve that.

Does anyone know if the film is indeed free of copyright and in the public domain?

Thank you so much!
Jan 17, 2020 8:08 AM

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Dec 2015
6449
While I understood the concept as soon as the hero boarded the train, I didn't understand the relevance of some encounters and the need for such a long duration.

Enjoyment: 3/5
Score: 6.5+/10
Apr 10, 2020 10:34 AM

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Sep 2017
88
It exudes great import, but I resort to purport it falls short.
Jan 16, 2021 7:16 AM

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Feb 2015
2796
Everything in this film is so subtle and powerful yet actually answers many question it creates, unlike the more elusive Tenshi no Tamago. I get the same feel while watching both anime, and I'd say I enjoyed the story of this more, but of course nothing beats the art of Yoshitaka Amano
May 28, 2021 9:39 PM

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Feb 2016
1314
second time around. liked it much more. the bird catcher was incredible

i have a feeling i'll be revisiting this again soon... really weird film
Jun 13, 2021 9:08 PM

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Aug 2013
337
started watching this not knowing what it would be about, though it'd be wholesome as fuck, and ended up crying.
such a weird film, but i thoroughly enjoyed it... a must watch for sure!
the art is GORGEOUS as well.
Aug 13, 2021 6:31 PM

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Sep 2020
47
Okay... am very conflicted by this movie.

Am glad everyone agrees on the pacing matter, it's very true. I've watched slow movies before that are kind of atmospherical and in which the focus is the beauty of the frame, or even the thoughts you may be having while watching, but NOTGR got me differently, Idk why.

Maybe it's because I was expecting an adventure film of sorts? Or because there was this slow contemplative aura of dread that could be boring and hard to watch? again, Idk, but am kind of glad I watched it.

Excellent music by Haruomi Hosono, excellent performances that are truly moving, a very solid animation that hasn't aged poorly, and overall, a sad tale with a bunch of symbolism that could be a bit overlooked.

7/10, I may need to watch it again,.
Sep 4, 2021 6:14 AM

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Feb 2014
1733
Aww they're all cats!

Yo that movie was weird. Like reeeeeally weird. Like yo wtf is going on weird. I guess it's a train for dead people all going to heaven or something??? Also the pacing was reeeeeally slow, kind of in like a I'm getting bored kinda way :/ But I liked how they were cats! Except for when they were talknig about the Titanic and those 3 people came in??? The soundtrack was mysterious, but I'm super happy they included New World Symphony, I love that song!! :D

I feel so bad for Giovanni. His dad has been away for a long time, his mom is bedridden due to illness, and everyone at school teases him except for his one friend who just drowned in the river :(

I'd give it a 5-6/10. It started out okay but then kinda kept falling imo
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Sep 6, 2021 4:17 PM
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Jun 2020
43
The pacing is pretty slow, the movie is long, and the characters just didn't feel that developed. Did we know who Campanella's dad was until the end or what happened to his mom? These seem pretty important to the story to me. I started piecing things together at the first stop. I was not expecting this to be allegorical. Which to me both helps and hurts, if that makes sense. It hurts because you can't take anything at face value and have to try to piece together what is actually being said. It helps because that kind of thing is interesting.

Overall I think it was okay. Some of the little segments were miss with me and the slow pacing was not doing it any favors.
Mar 25, 2022 5:34 AM
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Jul 2018
564612
Esperanto neniam estos pli bona ol la angla.
Apr 26, 2022 11:46 PM
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Aug 2015
12
This movie was to say the least difficult to digest and not because the symbolisms itself or the messages that the movie was trying to give, but the abusurd amount of chritians themes and content that had imbued in it and dont misunderstand, althought im not chrtitian is not that i have anything against it, but we have seen many animes touching differents religions in kinda more or less proportions that serve to narrate the story and the use itsleft its not exaggerated , in this case its felt just too much like an propagada or even gave me the feeling of brainwashing the audience, i can undertand the intention but this was just too much and bad handled.


I dont wanna go and on but the ending itselft also was cold as fuck from part not just of the protagonist but the father of the daughter who didnt even showed an single emotion for the lost of her son, and just after 45 minutes of searching her the guy just bassicly give up without an sigle tear and just switch the conversation with giovani saying him somthing and every one just move on like nothing (and dont tell me that i just couldnt percibe the subtlety of how the characters acted ,because it was plain cold and really out of context based in what this movies was about), it just felt anticlimactic.
I have seen many people complaining about the pacing and trought its not the more fastest one i cant really complain , yes it felt kinda slacking some times in how you could felt it was slow (and maybe to some really freaking slow at times) but i feel that this kind of movies are usually pull to the side of being more slow in general.
Oct 14, 2022 9:48 PM
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Nov 2018
85
Godslayer27 said:
This movie was to say the least difficult to digest and not because the symbolisms itself or the messages that the movie was trying to give, but the abusurd amount of chritians themes and content that had imbued in it and dont misunderstand, althought im not chrtitian is not that i have anything against it, but we have seen many animes touching differents religions in kinda more or less proportions that serve to narrate the story and the use itsleft its not exaggerated , in this case its felt just too much like an propagada or even gave me the feeling of brainwashing the audience, i can undertand the intention but this was just too much and bad handled.


I dont wanna go and on but the ending itselft also was cold as fuck from part not just of the protagonist but the father of the daughter who didnt even showed an single emotion for the lost of her son, and just after 45 minutes of searching her the guy just bassicly give up without an sigle tear and just switch the conversation with giovani saying him somthing and every one just move on like nothing (and dont tell me that i just couldnt percibe the subtlety of how the characters acted ,because it was plain cold and really out of context based in what this movies was about), it just felt anticlimactic.
I have seen many people complaining about the pacing and trought its not the more fastest one i cant really complain , yes it felt kinda slacking some times in how you could felt it was slow (and maybe to some really freaking slow at times) but i feel that this kind of movies are usually pull to the side of being more slow in general.

Propaganda? really? why? because they showed crosses on two occasions? included a single reference to a religious hymn and mentioned god? dont be so edgy
Oct 14, 2022 9:52 PM
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Nov 2018
85
i liked the final message, the desire for one's life to be of service to others, very noble and it honors the actions of campanella, although i have to mention that the characters felt a little emotionless, maybe it was due to them being cats but most of the time they looked the same no matter what was happening, these in regards to giovanni and campanella.
Jul 30, 2023 2:46 PM

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Jan 2017
127
Great watch in a group on substances. 
Sep 3, 2023 8:26 PM

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Sep 2020
645
Wasn't what I expected and agree with it being too long and feeling like Christian propaganda (whether or not that was the intention). I got the themes it was going for but can't say I got my time & money's worth.

7 cat crucifixions /10
"You can't decide the future, but I'm going to re-educate you in the past!" - Erna Kurtz
Nov 7, 2023 3:23 PM

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Jan 2020
812
They could have saved like 20 minutes of runtime if they saved the scenes where, for example, were literally just Giovanni walking from point A to B.
MOKUSHI KUSHIMO SHIMOKU KUMOSHI MOSHIKU SHIKUMO.
Mar 16, 7:26 PM
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Mar 2019
6764
It seemed like they stretched ever scene to it's fullest, meaning it dragged a bit.
So was everyone boarding the Train already deceased??
Why was Giovanni the only one left to escape alive?
Still enjoyed whatever they were aiming for, and he got his Milk at the end.
bushman66Mar 16, 7:30 PM
It’s time to ditch the text file.
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