Code Geass: Lelouch of the Re;Surrection (2019) User Reviews

A Good Follow up but would of been better as a TV Show

[TheMediaGuru24 · 8/10 · 14 July 2020]

Code Geass Resurrection (for short) is a good 2 hour anime film to a perfect ending that suffers from being too short and probably would of been better as a 25 episode third season.

The story is practically Zero (Suzaku) and Nunally are kidnapped by Zilkhistan, C.C tries to bring back the original Lelouch. That's a short summary of the film. The pacing is very inconsistent in my opinion, the first 50 minutes are quite slow and nothing really happens, after that the movie is incredibly fast and ends quite quickly. This felt like it should of been at minimum 3 hours long, there was so much reunions and moments that are rushed and not quite as good as they should be apart from Kallen's, hers was great.

Character-wise there isn't too much development apart from the new villains which I actually wanted to see more of, they where quite interesting and wanted to go into the backstory of this nation, we don't which is a pity as they could of became up there with the best of Code Geass's villains. The school members return for no reason and have minor scenes, should of been left out as it felt unnecessary and had no need to be in the story. All the other characters where themselves which was great, there really is no need to develop the rich characters we have came to love so I didn't mind that there wasn't any big reveals about characters.

The ending was actually pretty nice and thought it was a great send off to the series while opening the door to spin-offs or even a direct sequel with new characters added. Lelouch gets the ending we all wanted and felt earned although people may feel like it was too fan-servicy.

Overall this was a good Code Geass sequel that would of worked even better if it was a third season with at least 10-25 episodes which built the new characters in interesting ways and us getting to know about the nation of Zilkhistan. The ending was great and is a good reason to check this out even if you haven't seen the movies and just the show.

Feels like a series stuffed into a 2 hour movie

[saikatsamanta · 7/10 · 2 March 2021]

Although this film is a continuation of an alternate version of the original show, the original fans will probably enjoy this one. The animation & fight scenes are really well done. Some aspects of the story is hard to follow & Lelouch doesnt have the complexity he had in the series but its a really enjoyable watch.

Code Geass: An Anime Masterpiece!

[babyjaguar · 8/10 · 8 May 2019]

It best if you view prior films before viewing this. This film sums up the best anime effects seen in long time and it's backed-up with a solid music soundtrack.

A sweet ending for a bittersweet anime, i guess

[awfulketchup · 7/10 · 23 April 2020]

Honestly, I'm not sure what to say to justify this movies existence, considering that the show before it had a fitting, satisfying conclusion. I originally saw Code Geass as it was newly released and it remained one of my top favorite anime for a long time, i also recall the theories about Lelouch gaining the same immortality as his father had, but this was a long speculation, until now.

The anime later had a couple of movies that were made to change some elements from the original show, some more major than others and this was a surprising change of event, however i digress.

Fast forward to 2019, now we have Lelouch of the Re;Surrection, it's just as i could expect a continuation to be, but i'd rather have had it as a series on its own but we got a movie instead. So you're probably wondering if this movie was worth all the hype? In one way, it checked a lot of lists, remained consistent and had the exact same beat as the show itself, but there is just something about this movie that just juggled a lot of fan service in front of my face, but did so sparingly.

Final verdict from me is a 7/10 as it feels like i should have enjoyed this movie, i really should, but to undo such a satisfying climax which the original show left behind is without a doubt in my mind, a betrayal. But for what this movie is, i could have taken it or left it. Everything you love about Code Geass remains intact and i commend them for it.

Great but it really should've been a series

[Rayofsun71 · 9/10 · 5 November 2019]

A short ending is not in any way what fans asked for. A 10 episode miniseries would've been much better. Don't get me wrong. This movie was amazing but as a series it would've done way better. Many in 10 more years there will be something. Let's hope.

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Resurrection review

[renegadeviking-271-528568 · 7/10 · 19 December 2023]

I remember being very excited and worried about the 2017's Code Geass project. Excited as I am a big fan of Code Geass especially Lelouch of the Rebellion series and the idea of seeing the characters that I grew to love back together was pleasant. At the same time, I was worried as I thought it would undo the perfect Zero Requiem ending of R2.

This worried ness also relates to my subpar experience with Code Geass Akito The Exiled series. That series may have a strong cast of five main characters specially Yukiya and Lellia, the writing, plot, directing the villains to even side characters were a train-wreck that left me in a cold. Despite my mixed feelings I still wanted to give Re;surrection a chance and I did just that.

Code Geass Lelouch of the Re;surrection is one of the most enjoyable rides I've seen in a long while. I remember being satisfied with the film as it provided me with a lot of childhood nostalgia. I eventually re-watched the film for the sake of reviewing it, and my outcome was the same.

Code Geass Lelouch of the Re;surrection is the ultimate love letter to the main series. This is the movie that filled to the brim with fan-service of characters, moments, and call-backs. The reason why Shirley is alive in this timeline instead of being killed is for the childhood reunion. You have Spinzaku make a return, hotblooded Kallen, Jeriuma with his oranges, R1 Badass Cornelia making a return, Lelouch one-liners to even cheese kun makes an appearance.

The production values are nothing short of marvellous. This is without question one of the best looking series I've seen from Sunrise.

Barring jarring CGI for certain mechs I love the visual upgrade of the series from the character designs, background scenery to the animation that features some excellent fight choreography.

The soundtrack is also a strong highlight.

Certain returning tracks from the TV series make a return here providing the movie with the sense of nostalgia. The new tracks are also excellent as they fit the tone of the movie nicely, especially the insert songs.

Both the Japanese audio and English dub ditch out strong performances fitting into their respective roles perfectly.

Such a love letter does come at the cost, however.

I may love the fan-service that Re;surrection provided I felt the story and new characters suffered because of this.

The new characters are frankly dull. They lack the charisma, charm and chemistry of the returning cast. Granted some of them had potential to be interesting but, the writing wouldn't let me thus the new characters in Re;surrection ended up being as disposable as the majority of the characters in Akito The Exiled.

The story itself was alright. Clearly, the first third of the movie was the strongest as not only it unique but we got to see characters doing stuff that they never do in the TV series. Such example being C. C caring for Lelouch even at his husk state to Kallen while being a hothead showcased her fragile side by breaking down and crying her lungs out while holding the person that she worshipped.

Frankly, if the whole movie were consistently like this then this movie would have been amazing, but once Lelouch gets revived the movie goes back to the typical Code Geass fashion with a rescue Nunnally mission on top of that. Playing it safe.

Personally, I didn't mind Code Geass Re;surrection going back it's typical Code Geass storytelling route but I felt it's put it's unique story elements in the bus in favour of nostalgia.

Due to this the last act while very entertainment felt short in the substance department. The new characters didn't help this either as they felt so hollow and boring. Speaking of hollow characters this is an ongoing problem I have with Code Geass since the ending of R2. I feel like the writers since then have written themselves at the corner where they struggled to write compelling characters.

This is the primary reason why Akito The Exiled failed. That series had other problems for sure but the characters are what killed it. They lack charisma, personality, memorability and substance. Even the characters that I liked such Yukiya, Akito and Leila I tend to forget about them over time.

It was so bad that the writers had to feature Lelouch and Suzaku and even they couldn't save the Akito The Exiled series as the damaged had already been dealt. (Stay tuned for my Code Geass Akito The Exiled review for 2021 for more information.)

The same can be said for Re;surrection but unlike Akito, I didn't like any of the new characters and I forgot about them in a day. It's all about Lelouch and the old cast and nothing else.

The reason why am saying this is that Sunrise has officially announced a new Code Geass series that is scheduled for 2021.

I just hope Code Geass staff ends these ongoing issue because it's ain't healthy for the franchise legacy.

Despite becoming negative at the end, I am glad I watched Code Geass Lelouch Of the Re;surrection. It was a fun but messy ride of a movie that left me with happiness. The plot and the new characters may have much to be desired, the returning characters, character chemistry, production values barring the jarring use of CGI holds the experience together. This is frankly the best thing to come out from Code Geass franchise since R2 in 2018.

This ultimately leads me to my overall retrospect to the Code Geass franchise.

I feel like that overall Code Geass especially the Lelouch saga has stood the test of time in the anime landmark. It's a charming and charismatic series that can appeal to anyone and while the series had its low points its popcorn entertainment factor makes this franchise stand out compared to recent popular anime franchises such as My Hero Academia, Fire Force, Black Clover, Demon Slayer and all of those isekai's/webtoon anime adaptations that prioritise Saguya and "hype" factor over good storytelling and characters. Code Geass may not be a perfect series but it's a series that has entertained me with its charming characters, a fascinating plot that is filled with engaging plot twists and marvellous production values and I honestly wouldn't have it any other way.

Hopefully, the new Code Geass project will be a success.

I highly recomend it

[europi · 10/10 · 4 January 2020]

This movie is like an amazing and well written fanfiction of the series. I saw some negative reviews about how many plot holes and out of the context of the series this movie was. Obviously they didn't get the point. This movie wasn't the continue of the series but it was a possible scenario of what could have happened.

10 star only for ending

[vivekgkp · 10/10 · 23 April 2020]

The ending L.L confessing his feeling to C.C and walking holding hand together was just perfect.

Truly a worthy series of the title!

[exohny · 10/10 · 23 April 2019]

Theres not much to say other than that its a must watch in my opinion. It is one of the best movies I have ever seen and I think will ever see. I suggest watching Code Geass 2006 before watching this Masterpiece or you might get confused.

Even If I watched it I'm going to get the Blu-Ray.

This is the sequel I was afraid of...

[mikophey · 3/10 · 9 May 2019]

Code Geass is my #1 favorite anime TV series for the following reasons: -Twisting and Turning plots incredibly hard to predict. -Character Complexity, Growth, and Deaths. -Story elements and chracter actions that don't make much sense at first, but later down the line you realize it was well placed subtle foreshadowing. -Mystery. Many scenes and dialogue end abrubtly leaving you to wonder/guess what happens or a character decides, but you have enough clues to make an educated guess. -Characters with inner conflict of ideals vs. friends/fam vs. the world.

Gawd, loved loved loved the show! That said...

I HATED this movie. I don't use the term "hate" lightly or often; I'm hippy'esque with my love and optomism in life. But I hated this movie. I hated it because season 2 (R2) ended so perfectly, I was OK with no sequel to the story, because if there was, there was little chance the quality of the show could stay on that high level, let alone get better. Ohhhhh boyyyy, was I right (unfortunately).

This movie took everything I love about Code Geass and went over the top cliche with it in this movie. -Plots were completely predictable and seemed even forced. -Character dialogue that once captured the right balance of intellect, fast-pace, and whit, now just come off as entirely douchey prententious. -Characters constantly either act completely out of their original character, or are an extreme hyperbole of their original character to the point it feels like a parody. -There were no cool surprise move by the characters. Not to say there wasn't an intelligent plan or two created, but they over explained everything so much the conversation never felt real and explaining things as if talking to a 2 year old was NEVER Code Geass' style, quite the opposite. -None of the inner character conflict existed; hell, there wasn't really any character conflicts between characters, except the hero vs. villian. Code Geass wsa the king of the anti-hero and greying the line between good/evil; the movie is not this at all and pretty stereotypical hero vs. vilian. -Everything feels so damn contrived. Ugh! -Pervy'ness. The animators went out of their way to over sexualize several female characters. I made many hard eye rolls. -Voice Acting. Far too much simplistic run-on talking. Far too much crying, whining and screaming, especially from supposedly strong characters that would usually push feelings aside to get a job done in the short term. But nope, let's cry/whine now in the moment.

That said, here are some good things: -Animation. It's well drawn with quick moving action scenes that aren't the series of 5 second gif-like loops of punching and firing like you see in a dragonball z or some such. Crisp, clean, and well done! -Music. It's not as great as the original show by far, but still good.

That's it. This is my first ever review on IMDB. I loved this show so much and this movie was so bad, I had to express it and warn others, even it meant signing up for an account here. Youre welcome.

Great Movie!

[juanhimself · 10/10 · 5 May 2019]

This one is a must watch if you loved this Series. The ending of this movie is brilliant. The animation, soundtrack and story plot makes this movie great. The CGI animations of the mechas are not bad at all and are pretty smooth. I won't say much but this one is a must watch for those who are fans of this series!

A good movie to the series

[WeAreLive · 8/10 · 19 April 2020]

It has been a year since I last watched Code Geass and watching this movie was a good revisit to the series.

It is the second year of the Kowa Period. The world has unified around the reorganize United Federation of Nations, and has enjoyed days of continuing peace, but now, that peace suddenly comes to an end. Suzaku, while travelling as the masked man "Zero" accompanying Nunnally on her visit to the refugee camp, is defeated by a mysterious Knightmare Frame, and the two of them are taken away. Following secret orders from Schneizel, Kallen, Lloyd and Sayoko infiltrate Zilkistan, the Land of Warriors, where they are attacked by a mysterious Geass user. There in Zilkhstan is a person named C.C., known to the assailants as the "former master". In the indomitable kingdom which once conquered even the great army of the Holy Britannian Empire, what do the people desire? Hope, or despair? The people of Zilkhstan Palace certainly know of Geass. What are they, and C.C., planning?

Overall, the movie was a breath of fresh air of the series, it was even nice that majority of the english cast came back.

If you enjoyed the recap movies even though i have zero clue they were never dubbed you might like this.

Masterpiece

[arnaudrivest · 10/10 · 4 August 2020]

This movie was truly a masterpiece. It allows you to relive the prime code geass days. It's amazing seeing everyone and what happened after the tv ending. The ending alone sets this movie apart. Do yourself a favor and watch it. Believe me, you will NOT regret it.

I'm very disappointed...

[ErinkaRiz · 4/10 · 31 May 2019]

Alright... The most worrying thing happened...because of this horrible film. I love this animation very much, Lelouch is a masterpiece in my heart for the last 13 year, but this new film is ruining the whole Code Geass world...The story should be end at ten years ago, this new story shows nothing good progress but getting worst, how shallow telling the story... The new Lelouch is not as wise as the TV version's Lelouch. I see LL and Lelouch as 2 different persons. The real Lelouch would never left Nunnally behind... Also why the hell C.C.is been so selfish and out of character? I can see almost all the characters are lost their personality, What is the purpose of making this movie? It's not for the fans anyway...

3 stars purely to give animators some credit

[brohawn · 3/10 · 8 May 2019]

I'm normally the friend who isn't super critical of bad movies, and will enjoy something just for it's pure entertainment value despite glaring flaws and plot holes. That being said the characters acted out of character on several occasions in the film. The writers of the film seem to have forgotten that a particular character died in the original series and unnecessary added them in for no plot development nor with a explanation. The end of the movie leaves you speechless because it's the most out of character scene in the whole movie purely to cater fan service with no regards to the characters actual ideals. One person clapped at the end of the movie when I went to watch it in theater. The original show always had a air of mystery when explaining geass and C's world but would at least give you something to explain what was going on, however the movie writers took that as a liberty to be lazy and put no effort into explaining particular scenes important to the plot of the movie. The action was decent, tha animation and music where as good as ever. This was bad fan fiction(IMO) and apparently set In a alternate reality which is the only thing that makes up for the lack of care given to the movie. Honestly the plot and characters introduced where good, but a general lack of care for the characters spoiled the whole movie for me.

It's Code Geass. Of course it's dumb!

[ReviewWire · 1/10 · 14 March 2021]

The biggest problem a film can have when it is written by the same people who wrote the original series it is based on that it is highly likely to also be chalked full of plot holes. Every problem that was present in the original series is on display here, from the choppy and rushed pacing to the contrived tactics that don't make any logical sense and are never properly explained to every character being unlikable and petty. (Kallen pulls a knife out on CC because she loses her temper over an extremely minor gripe.) And while I am very happy that Kallen didn't become a child murderer in this timeline since it is shown that the Valkyrie Squadron is alive and well and happily getting along with their old enemies, I am sorely disappointed that this is still the same idiotic and selfish Suzaku who murdered his friends and comrades Monica and Dorothea in cold blood. The writers were somehow convinced that that moment absolutely had to stay in the new timeline despite it completely contradicting Suzaku's character and lazily killing off some characters who would have been fascinating to explore. So I can't root for any of these scummy hypocrites as they mercilessly blast away scores of soldiers in a single shot with their totally fair odds-defying weapons. And with this in mind, I should mention how little sense the villain's motivation makes. She kidnaps Nunnally to . . . Become a goddess??? Link with the other dimension somehow? As always, things are kept infuriatingly vague to try to appear philosophical but are, in truth, shallow attempts at saying anything meaningful. There's a bit of shock value per the usual for Code Geass where some female guards only possessing bikinis and spears are gunned down by the aforementioned unlikable Lelouch and CC with a Knightmare Frame; but, as if realizing that murdering waifus in cold blood had in part given the original series a bad reputation, they fixed this with some time travel shenanigans which was the only part of the film I enjoyed from its sheer creativity. The end resolution, of course, is wrapped up suddenly and haphazardly with a plan that could have been easily interrupted had a single variable fallen out of place. The goddess-tier waifu-of-a-villainess (SO MUCH HOTTER THAN CC!!!) is shown to be sympathetic after all and likely could have redeemed herself but is ultimately killed off in an utterly baffling moment that again hints at some weird interdimensional connection with her brother that is absolutely never explained. By the end, I was just glad it was only two hours long instead of 20 like the series so I didn't have to sit through any student council meetings or school festivals. Sunrise, my interest in this series will be piqued again if you resurrect Monica and Dorothea so they can kill Suzaku and get an actual story and journey for themselves. Your fans may be easily fooled that these idiotic main characters are good people, but the rest of the anime community has actually grown up.

Unnecessary but Good

[alexericcsson · 22 April 2023]

An enjoyable continuation but lacks the depth the series had. Code Geass at its peak is about character parallels and seeing perspectives from multiple sides of the conflict. This film unites everyone onto one side and offers no interesting opposition or character complexity. While the villains Geass is interesting the hamartia of this film is it's entire raison d'être: Lelouch. His revival truly undermines the meaning and the impact of his sacrifice, marring one of the best endings to a show period. The films teaser sets up a sequel to I hope to see his revival become necessary and add some sort of meaning.

Overall a fun watch, the action is good and the animation quality is stellar.

I do find myself missing the orchestral soundtrack of the original, however, which set it apart from so many other shows.