Much like the TV anime before it, End of Evangelion is yet another controversial part of the anime medium since there is division over how fans interpret the events of the ending and what preference they have for its ending between the original TV series ending or End of Eva. Some also see it as Hideaki Anno giving a middle finger to the fans in response to the negative backlash and death threats that he and Gainax received in response to the TV anime’s ending. I suppose in regards to preference, I would prefer the ending provided with End of Eva given that it actually continues the plot of the series unlike what the TV anime provided in its final two episodes, though that’s not saying much as Anno’s story direction still makes things a much bigger mess with the film’s plotting due to his continued insistence at pushing his existentialist beliefs with the film.
Outside of a certain infamous scene between Shinji and Asuka that I’m not gonna dabble into, the first half of the film offers a mostly solid and engaging spectacle as NERV tries to fend off against UN military forces, manipulated by SEELE, attacking their base. The battle is depicted as an uphill struggle for NERV throughout as they lack the resources to adequately fend off the large-scale military invasion launched by SEELE. In addition, Misato finds herself having to knock sense into Shinji’s inactive mental state when all hell is breaking loose on NERV and Asuka has her moment to shine in fending off UN military forces and the mass-produced Evangelions when she realizes the true nature of her Eva unit.
However when the second half commences, everything with End of Evangelion’s quality goes down the toilet. Anno resumes his insistence on exploring his philosophy with much of the second half focused on Shinji’s angsting and self-loathing in a rather incoherent visual spectacle, the boy being a pathetic mess throughout much of the movie and still coming to the same flawed solution to his problems that Anno pushed from the ending of the TV series. The actions that result with this also lead to making Shinji much worst of a character compared to the TV anime’s resolution, though the visual sight of what transpires is probably one of the few highlights to seeing End of Eva’s second half.
Visually, End of Evangelion is easily a considerable improvement over the TV anime. There is more consistent animation quality with the designs of characters, mechs, and settings; and there is noticeably more fluid movement shown onscreen as well, the visual highlight being Asuka’s battle with the UN military and mass-produced Evas during the later part of End of Eva’s first half.
Overall, End of Eva’s positives only come from the spectacle that comes from seeing the conflict between NERV and SEELE escalate to the point when things eventually get catastrophic with everything in the film. The first half of the film is engaging to see, but things quickly go downhill by the second half due to Anno continuing to force his beliefs into the film and coming to the same messy conclusion that resulted within the first series. For those saying that the film is a middle finger to Eva fans complaining of the TV anime’s ending, I guess I would be in the camp that think this way with End of Eva.
