K-ON! The Movie is the last hurrah for the series, and it is every bit as spectacular as the TV series that preceded it. Nearing graduation, the girls decide to go on a trip abroad, and thanks to divine intervention from Ton-chan, it’s decided they’ll go to London. The trip to London is fun and all, but that’s secondary to the true intent of the senior club members – to make the best gift they possibly can for their junior, Azusa. Over the course of the film, Yui, Ritsu, Mio, and Mugi all work hard and put all the love they can into their farewell song, the same song that was performed at the end of K-ON!! episode 24.
I’m certainly not the first to notice this, but the songs become increasingly more personal and intimate over the course of the film, each performance holding greater emotional weight than the last. Houkago Tea Time’s first performance in the film is Curry Nochi Rice, a fast paced song which they spontaneously decided to play when mistaken for Love Crisis. Their second performance is Gohan wa Okazu at the fair, which may be their most fun song, but this time they had more time for planning and preparation; Yui improvises an encore. Then there’s U&I, which they play in their classroom. This song is full of Yui’s gratitude towards her reliable younger sister, Ui. Finally, there’s the seniors performance of Tenshi ni Fureta yo! for Azusa; this is their most intimate song, full of all their love, gratitude, and appreciation of her (and by extension, of us, the audience). This is it. This is the moment the film, and series as a whole, has been building up to. I don’t even need to say this, because it’s obvious, but I cried. A lot.
The scene in this film that stands out most to me is the rooftop scene, right when the seniors prepare for what’s about to come. The moment when they all run and yell out at the top of their lungs is, in my opinion, one of the greatest moments in the history of cinema. It’s just… beautiful. It’s on par with the hallway running at the end of K-ON!! episode 26.
K-ON! is easily the most life-affirming thing I’ve seen. That’s really all I can say. I’m not articulate enough to put into words everything I’m feeling, and there are much more talented writers who’ve already praised the series better than I ever could. I just wanted to put something here because K-ON! is my all-time favourite thing ever, and I’ve yet to see anything come close to it. Nothing can make me as happy nor as sad as K-ON! can. It’s the go-to series for when I feel I need to brighten my day, and it’s the go-to series for when I feel I need to cry.
My ratings are:
K-ON! - 10/10
K-ON!: Live House! - 10/10
K-ON!! - 10/10
K-ON!!: Keikaku! - 8/10
K-ON! The Movie - 10/10
To close this “review” – if it could be called that – I’ll add that the song U&I basically puts into words how I feel about the series as a whole.
I would like to give you every ounce of my gratitude
And send it to you through this song
This is a feeling I will never, ever forget
–U&I
