- Last OnlineApr 25, 2022 4:26 PM
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- BirthdayApr 25, 2001
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Feb 25, 2022
Spell of the Unown, featuring a new legendary and mysterious Pokemon, amply lives up to the previous two movies of the series.
Even though the movie still suffers from the same staging issues, such as poorly-textured CGI and backgrounds standing out of the 2D elements and creating awkward camera work in some shots, the movie amply makes up for it with it's great characters/pokemon acting and it's attention to detail.
While the other Pokemon movies mainly revolved around legendary pokemon, this one focuses on the new young girl, Mii, and most specifically her psyche, in a great way. All the backgrounds/pokemon appearing are the results of her
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manifesting her thoughts and dreams, giving them solid form, which created interesting settings and lighting effects throughout the movie. Furthermore, the movie did a great job at handling the movement of physical elements and fluids, such as the fire or water, with great timing and exaggeration making a visually stunning impact.
Even though some elements were left shrouded in darkness, such as the origin of the Unown or the true nature of Entei (maybe it was her real father all along?), this third movie showed great creativity and took full advantage of elements of the Pokemon universe to develop a simple yet interesting storyline. Great movie !
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Feb 25, 2022
A fantastic movie ! I love how well structured it is despite being only 40 minutes long. Not only is the story really great, beginning with the apparition of a single Digimon and ending with a dramatic situation threatening the entire world, but the staging is also incredible.
All the movements in this movie feel incredibly lively, with great framerate modulation giving more impact and momentum to the scenes. I also love how the movie makes us take part in the universe : whether it's with the first-person perspective shots (especially that scene where Taichi was slowly reaching for the computer, with his heavy breath in
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the background, only to end up being "absorbed" by it off camera), characters looking at the camera breaking the 4th wall or even the recurring use of still camera long shots, the spectator is split between pure observation and active involvement, and feels compelled to empathize with the characters.
The art direction is also really interesting, alternating warm and cold colors in the Digital World to create contrast and further emphasize the surreality of the world. The fact that the linework of the characters was purposely heavily toned down was also really intriguing, and surprisingly gave even more impact as the characters were blending in their surroundings.
A great movie depicting the struggle of children fighting against an immaterial ennemy in a world where digital information is supreme but also source of alienation, manipulating society as if they were pawns and whose slightest flaw can plunge the earth in despair (I think one of the last scene where we see the people inclinating their heads following the movement of the defused bomb falling is proof of that, but I'm not really sure of it's meaning). But much more than a simple satire of society, it was ultimately a fantastic story showing the bonds between humans and Digimon !
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Feb 24, 2022
Wakako-zake tackles an interesting issue in the medium of animation : how to convey this delicate and exquisite sense that is the taste, though moving pictures ?
Despite it's relatively shorts episodes (1m30 without the opening), Wakako-zake manages to build a multi-layered sensory description of all the dishes it features, in such a way that even we, the spectators, can feel and almost taste everything as Wakako does.
Whether it's through doing close up/panning shots on very detailed frames of the different dishes, using a wide array of sound effects to emulate the sounds of mastication and cooking, displaying colored backgrounds to illustrate the protagonist's emotions or
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even giving elaborate descriptions of the cooking, this anime stages creative elements to further emphasize on all the flavors. Drinks are also subject to particular attention, by being put in harmony or even in contrast with the food to reveal their subtleties.
Wakako-zake finally finds it's full relevance in it's means of expressing complex senses, which it does in a brilliant way, erecting the act of eating as a catharsis. This is not just an anime, it's an ode to good food.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Feb 24, 2022
I believe this anime is quite misinterpreted, or rather in a way that doesn't do justice to its own way of conveying meaning, both in terms of the appreciation that a lot of people have of it and in terms of ratings, which are a direct consequence of it.
Merc Storia is maybe not the best structured anime by it's episodic narrative, however it stands out by its formal elements, such as its quality to highlight and develop the different characters playing a role in it. Even though the narrative arcs may seem a bit redundant, the different stories all tackle complex issues and themes, such
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as the ambiguity between consciousness and subconsciousness or the will to transcend physical appearances to attain tolerance, in a relatively interesting way thoughout it's staging and the use of iconography (the "caged bird" being one of the most important exemple) to emphasize these ideas.
On a more technical aspect, Merc Storia unfortunately doesn't really shine by its animation and composition of movements. The movements of the characters in some shots often look sluggish (specifically when the characters are moving in the z-axis), sometimes heavily undermining the credibility of the scenes. Camera movements were a bit clumsy as well, though some shots use interesting techniques such as dolly shots in a curvilinear perspective background to generate depth, which are relatively rare occurrences but still relevant to notice.
One of the other important flaws, one might think, is the fact the main characters, Yuu and Merc, are often relegated to the background in contrast to the other characters. While this is true, I don't think this lack of development of the MCs hinders the appreciation of this anime. The beauty lies in the way the characters are exploring their inner psyche and are looking for their true ambitions, in order to free themselves from their internal and external struggles.
This anime is about internal exploration and making promises, and I think the way it ended empitomized these feelings. Let's not blind ourselves with external prejudices, and let's wholeheartedly accept what this anime is trying to convey to us !
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Feb 24, 2022
Just stumbled upon Kerokko Demetan by sheer luck after looking for a silly and relaxing anime, but it turned out I was quite wrong about what I first thought about it. Despite being an anime whose target audience are essentially kids, Kerokko Demetan tackles issues that are not as childish as they seem.
Kerokko Demetan depicts the story of a young eponymous frog, our hero Demetan, and his family, who after being evicted from their living place by newts (the in media res opening scene giving us a glimpse of the atrocity of the world in which we, the spectators, are almost immediately immersed) and losing
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most of the members of the family are forced to begin a new life in a pond, the Rainbow Pond. Then begins the tale of Demetan trying to change his environment, to make the Rainbow Pond a better place.
Even though the narrative is not really structured, with most of the times loosely connected episodes and the only guiding thread being the will of Demetan to integrate and change the Rainbow Pound or protecting his lover, Ranatan and his family, each episode manages to tie into our hero's ambition and spur his determination. In order to do that, Kerokko Demetan doesn't shy away from adopting a really mature or even tragic tone (often cynical too, with the exemple of the punchline of the mother turtle who dies protecting a ping-pong ball after thinking it was her egg) by having our hero and his lover meet different characters, each of them having a common goal : they long to find their places in a world which threatens and/or rejects their existence.
This contrast between a beautiful world, filled with beautiful yet surreal backgrounds with a vibrant color palette emphasizing the precious thing that is life, and the harsh reality where the characters are threatened by forces that excede them spurrs interesting questions. The characters, despite being animals, are driven by deep human feelings and, in some ways, are trying to break free from their animal conditions to attain true freedom.
Although Kerokko Demetan suffers from some elements inherent to it's target audience such as silly dialogues that undermine the impact of some scenes or characters whose tomfoolery are pushed to their paroxysm, which often leads them to make incoherent choices (typically Kiata, who suddenly decides to help Demetan in the last episodes while bearing hatred for him since the beginning of the anime and the lack of some sign showing he was reflecting on his wrongdoings), it remains faithful to it's narrative, answering to the issues it tackles in a simple yet genuine way, with great emotional power.
It may not be an amazing anime but I had a great time following the tale of Demetan fighting for the sake of his lover, family and his land. Once again, it was a great surprise.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jan 9, 2021
In an apocalyptic world stripped of all life and emotions, how can one find hope and the will to live ? Cocolors revolves around this concept of hope through a drawing made in collaboration with the two main characters, Fuyu and Aki.
As time goes by, more and more people are dying in the colony which profoundly affects the moral of it's inhabitants, who have indulged in religious acts probably to keep their sanity. Whereas Aki is drafted to the Salvage Unit, Fuyu completes a drawing illustrating his conception of the outside world, according to Aki's description. However, one question remains : what is the
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color of the sky ? The drawing, which was primarily a way to convey the thoughts of Fuyu, then takes another dimension. It becomes the metaphor of the spirit, with the color of the sky being the soul, as it is suggested by the name of the movie (I suppose it's a mix between Kokoro (spirit) and Colors thus making Cocolors).
Overall, I think it's a good dystopian movie which did a good job at dealing with mature subjects though more childish elements, and has a good balance between dark and wholesome moments. Despite it's short length, it managed to develop a great evolution of the characters and build an interesting story. The OST is pretty good and relevantly used, the CGI is fairly well done and the art really nails the chaotic and cold atmosphere. Overall a good movie, I definitely didn't regret watching it !
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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