Ryan McNeil
Almost two months ago, when I wrapped the third part of this four part series, I said that “no matter how things shaped up going forward, I think we can call this experiment a success”.
That might have been a bit pre-emptive.
An unexpected side-effect of this task I took upon myself was discovering not only that I like anime, but that I even have a preferred style. I’m not sure what it says about me, but THE GIRL WHO LEAPT THROUGH TIME is clearly cut from the cloth of anime I enjoy most. It’s themes feel human – even while being clearly fantastical. Who amongst us hasn’t wanted to go back and have a do-over, even if it’s just a few minutes? What’s more, like many of the best time-travel films, it deals with consequences; proving that even if we could alter physics in such ways, we probably shouldn’t.
The artwork had flashes of beauty, but it was largely subtle, hinging mostly on a spirited protagonist. In an ideal world, I would have ended on this note, because the two films that followed did not endear me to the genre any further.
The penultimate selection in the series was TEKKONKINKREET, which Alex pointed out was actually the first anime film to be helmed by a non-Japanese director. I really don’t have a strong leg to stand on here, but part of me thinks that might have been what contributed to this film feeling…off.
It had an arresting visual style that reminded me very much of PAPRIKA, but for me it didn’t bring with it the wild imagination that made PAPRIKA feel so unique. Instead, it overlays that brushwork onto a crime story that seems like it would make a great double-feature with CITY OF GOD. The kids talk about Treasure City being “their town”, but for so much of he film, that struck me as these two kids being deeply in over their heads.Admittedly, they seem to have some otherworldly abilities, certainly enough they manage to escape certain doom a few times…but shape of their characters felt rather undefined.
This was the first film I watched that came with any sort of grit, and I couldn’t give myself over to that. Something in my DNA does not want magical and violent at the same time. I can only liken it to my dislike of tzatziki: I like garlic, and I like yogurt, but I don’t like the two of them mixed together.
That didn’t bode well for the final film in the series.
Before I get a few dozen angry comments, allow me to be perfectly clear:
I am not saying that AKIRA is a bad film – I am only saying that it wasn’t for me.
The story has grand vision, the visual style is miles ahead of anything that was being done at the time, and infuses the animated genre with a bleakness and violence that seem both enthralling and repellant (in the best possible way). It was deliberately left until last because it was agreed that the film wasn’t an entry-point into the genre – it was something that needed to be built up to.
For me, it’s a good thing it wasn’t chosen as the entry point, because I might never have made it past AKIRA into the films I truly did love.
It’s difficult to articulate why, but back when I was hesitant about anime, it was built upon preconceptions fuelled by AKIRA. Growing up, every art studio I studied in had some kid in the corner watching AKIRA on videotape (ask your parents kids). The aesthetic seemed grimy, and the story almost came with a fetishistic quality to it. Nothing about it drew me in, and if as I mentioned it made me hesitant towards the whole genre.
Going back to it now, armed with a healthy diet of counterpoints, I wanted it to finally “click”, and to be able to repent for that 16-year-old art student who always moved to the other side of the studio.
Unfortunately, that wasn’t to be. The aesthetic still has that grime, which when compared to the sheen of SPIRITED AWAY or 5CM PER SECOND feels even grimier. And if the grit of TEKKONKINKREET was off-putting to me, then I was in for a rough night with AKIRA, since it’s even grittier. I come away from AKIRA and its descendants seeing them less as art and more as fetish property: Something that you are either into, or you aren’t.
So where does that all leave us? By my tally, I loved five titles, liked four more, and disliked the last three. If you can hand me a list of a dozen films to watch, and I come away liking three-quarters, then you have pulled together a fabulous list…and in this case proven a point.
What I know for sure is that there are entries into the genre which I adore. Amongst the films that spoke to me the most were both the wondrous with supernatural flourishes, and the stories very much grounded in the real. I know that I will always be a sucker for beautiful animation, even if the story doesn’t completely speak to me. And I know that there is a subset – possibly a very large subset – within the genre that stoked my original hesitation, and even after giving it a fair shake, still does nothing for me.
Not to pat myself on the back, but I believe one of the keys to how much I enjoyed this series was in the staggering of their watching. The course was set back in late October, and peppering the selections over six or seven moths avoided the films blurring together and allowed time to cleanse the palette.
Most of all, I’m happy that I took this cinematic journey, and even happier that there are still titles that seem up my alley left unseen (PONYO, TOTORO, ARIETY, etc). I’m a lucky dude to have friends like Allison, Helms, and Alex who would give me such a thorough introduction…hopefully someday I can pay the favour forward.
Hmmm…..
I can take your comments on TEKKONKINKREET, and THE GIRL WHO LEAPT THROUGH TIME (a film I didn’t like mainly because of the third act), but AKIRA I disagree completely.
I know this’ll come off as one of those guys in the corner watching it on VHS that you talk about (I first saw the film in HS on DVD), but there’re are things in this movie that live-action horror movies have failed to do and tried for years. I know you’re not a big fan of horror (neither am I, but not because I’m a scaredy cat), but the film is gorgeous and a great little action futuristic sci-fi as well.
I always remember how horrified I was the first time Testuo escaped from the facility and had his moment where he felt sick in the streets, when Kaneda and the gang go up against the clowns, The school after that, and the milk… ohh the milk.
AKIRA is just so wonderous and rich of visual stimulation that any other gripes that I’ve heard over the years I feel people almost don’t want to give the film it’s due.
Sorry for you not loving the tail end of your marathon, but I guess I kind of expected you to be more of a Miyazaki fan than the deeper end of Anime.
PS. I think you should make some time for PERFECT BLUE if you ever get a chance. I feel that’s one particular type of anime you never quite tested yourself on.
Like I said, I know my not enjoying it will get people’s ire up…but I’m prepared. I consider this my retribution for every person who came to me not liking a classic film like CITIZEN KANE or 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY.
I think you misread actually, because I quite liked LEAPT THROUGH TIME. It was only the latter two that left me ambivalent.
Yes, it would seem as though most of the films I was most taken by were Miyazaki, but actually of the five I loved most (PRINCESS MONONOKE, PAPRIKA, THE GIRL WHO LEAPT THROUGH TIME, SPIRITED AWAY, and GRAVE OF THE FIREFLIES), only two of thew were Miyazaki.
I’m not too sure what “the deeper end” consists of, but it would appear as though I get resistant when things take a turn for the gritty/violent.
I’m open to suggestions for further watching, so if you want me to add to my “To-See” list, now is the time.
Touche to you’re CITIZEN KANE/2001 remark 😛
Well for you’re TO SEE LIST:
MIYAZAKI FILMS: MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO, NAUSICAA: VALLEY OF THE WIND, CASTLE OF CAGLIOSTRO;
OTHER: PERFECT BLUE, COWBOY BEBOP (Series & Film), GHOST IN THE SHELL
All added to the list. Thanks teach!
I didn’t like Tekkonkinkreet when I watched it two years back but I blamed not liking the characters much. Usually I want to find something about the protagonists to care about. Akira is one I rather liked…a long time ago before I had watched as much anime as I have now. It’s one of those apprehensive rewatch situations.
Give it another look – I’ll be curious how it plays within context.
I think you might have hit on another element of why I wasn’t fussed about TEKKONKINKREET…I didn’t give a crap about those kids.
I have only seen Akira but quite a few have recommended The Girl who Leapt thr’ time to me. I need to check that out.
As for Akira, even though we are in minority, I agree completely with you. It did not do it for me either. In my case, I felt all the violence was a little bit too much and over the top, none of which was warranted. And I don’t think I have a problem with Grime and Grit you mentioned – I quite liked Howl’s Moving Castle which has a lot of similar thematic elements.
Maybe it was Miyazaki that worked for me !!
It’s funny too, because when I set out on this little mission, anybody who liked anime mentioned AKIRA within seconds. Just based on its gandeur alone, I always said “That can’t be the entry point”…it’s like telling someone who wants to get into Kubrick to start with 2001.
And as I say – had it been the entry point, this whole project would have been an uphill climb.
Good to know I’m not alone!
Still need to see Tekkonkinkreet, but sorry to hear Akira didn’t do it for ya’. A personal favorite, seen it more times than I can count, but who am I kidding, it’s definitely not for everyone and is royally hard to wrap your head around, even having read the source material. Good for you for giving these a shot though. Never even heard of 5 CM/SECOND, will definitely check that out though.
You haven’t seen The Castle of Cagliostro or Castle in the Sky, have you?
I saw the latter for the third leg of this series back in March; I’ve never seen the former.
The fun part about the list the gang pulled together for me was the fact that I hadn’t heard of all the titles suggested. Even though I wasn’t a fan, I knew about a lot of the big guns (MONONOKE, AKIRA, SPRITED, etc). So to discover less obvious choices like WHISPER OF THE HEART and 5CM was an unexpected treat within the project.
To my mind saying “I like anime” is a lot like saying “I like movies”. It’s a matter of course that we’ll prefer some visual styles over others, just like having favorite genres. I love anime but there’s a lot of anime I haven’t liked.
Has anyone recommended “Summer Wars” to you? I think it fits your profile. 🙂
I wouldn’t quite go that far.
Anime is somewhat nice, though it’s a massive niche with all sorts of sub-niche’s…and there’s so. much. of it!
Off the top of my head, the closest other subgenre I can think of that I’d need this sort of roadmap is Bollywood: I’m fascinated by it, but wouldn’t know where to begin. So to that end, I’m glad thhe group helped give me a syllabus.
I haven’t been pointed towards SUMMER WARS yet, but I’ll keep it in mind.
“it’s a massive niche with all sorts of sub-niche’s…and there’s so. much. of it!”
That’s what I was getting at, although not saying it very clearly. (Anime feature films are just the tip of the iceberg too. The mass under the water being the TV series.)
I think it’s more useful, if not more accurate, to think of anime/animation as a parallel category to movies shot on film, rather than as a subset. Look inside both categories and you find the same wide spectrum of genres, multiple audience segments, varied approaches to storytelling, range of visual styles and so on. I’m not aware of any Japanese animated documentaries but there are even a few of those out there in other national cinemas.
I’m going to guess, given the way you’re writing, that you’re saying all of this as a fan.
The thing I found interesting about your comment is that you described it as “anime/animation”. Obviously the two go together in terms of technical style, but that’s where it ends for me – even after exposing myself to a heavy dose.
There’s something about the anime sensibility (that I’d wager is heightened even more in the scores of titles I didn’t watch) that makes it play differently than traditional animation from anywhere else in the world.
Perhaps it’s the specific stories they choose to tell, perhaps it’s something that’s lost in translation.
Shame about Akira, thought there was just a little bit better than an outside shot you’d dig it. Perhaps there’s a way we can ween you onto the more “grime” side of anime as there’s a lot of very great, very deep, and very culture rich anime. Not all of it is, of course. There’s more than a handful of animes that have come out over the year that have had me role my eyes (when you use the word “fetishistic” you may not fully realize just how sadly spot on you are with respect to certain anime sub-sections).
Now if only I can somehow bribe you into checking out the Cowboy Bebop series as the ever insightful Andrew Robinson brought to the table. Perhaps next year?
For now however, I consider this a success outing on the whole and thank you for sticking through to the end!
I’m not the sort to bail out on a project, so despite my misgivings I made sure to give the chapters that weren’t speaking to me a fair shake.
I can’t make any promises on Cowboy Bebop, since much of what I enjoyed about what I watched was visual richness, and I don’t know how often that would come up in a television series. That, and where TV is concerned there is so much piled up already that I want to see.
So possibly – but not likely.
Thanks again for navigating me through all of this.
Don’t be too quick to assume anime tv shows can’t bring that same visual richness. They’ve been honing that genre for 50+ years and Cowboy Bebop is very much the focal point from which most prior anime shows were leading and where many current anime shows have spawned.
Perhaps the best part of the show is that the first episode really sets the tone for the entire series so if you swing through the 23 odd minutes of that and feel void I won’t press you to commit the full 13 hours (or so… there’s only 26 episodes after all).
Anyways, like I said, not going to push it. Just going to drop the odd hint here and there until you come over to the dark side 🙂
Sorry to go tangential on this but If you decide to jump on that Bollywood bandwagon, let me know. I can definitely help you there. We will make sure to add Nikhat in the equation as well. 🙂
A Bollywood syllabus is something I’m interested in, but I think I’ll wait until the fall to get going on that one since there seems to be a lot on the go already this summer. But start working with Nikhat to get a list together:
A dozen films or so that would give a complete newbie an intro to the genre and think about the viewing order too.
Great !! Let us know when do you want that list and we will try to get it for you. In the mean time, I will let Nikhat know !!
I had a similar reaction to Akira when I saw it last year. I loved the visual style, but I just couldn’t get into the movie at all. I had a really hard time keeping up with the story, which makes sense after realizing it was condensed from a huge manga series.
I have been trying to get into anime, but the only ones I have really enjoyed are from Studio Ghibli. Grave of the Fireflies, for example, is one of the greatest films (not just anime) that I have ever seen. I should try to branch out more — I’ll try to remember to check out The Girl Who Leapt Through Time at least.
If you’re looking to get into the genre, I’d highly suggest going through the dozen titles the gang gave me for this syllabus. I’d likewise suggest watching them in the order I wrote about them as it really did map things out well.
There’s so darned much of it out there – knowing which ones to start with are definitely key.