Real77 Reviews

5 Centimeters per Second (2007)

I kept from crying and felt deadened

[10/10 · 31 December 2008]

'Five Centimeters Per Second' is not a complex tragedy. There are stories like this one and there are too few of them; they are saddening stories which are not at all Shakespearian (they aren't to be thought about but felt). I will not ruin this experience for you by describing it, and I do not think that I can. Anyhow, the plot is simple: the story is of how a young boy and and young girl fall in love with each other and how they drift apart over the period of a few years. That's it. There are three episodes inside of this film; the second episode is set some years after the first episode, and the third episode is set some more years after the second episode. There is not actual depth to speak of; again, this is not a Shakespearian tale that requires one to think some, but it's worth so much more to me because it broke my heart and dried me up.

This movie is a experience which has to be felt... Watch this movie now...

10/10 (of course)

Ouran High School Host Club (2006)

Androgynousness

[10 December 2008]

Being a otaku, I've known of this show for some long while through my searching of parody videos, but I've kept my distance with it because of what little I knew of the show it self (and THAT little came out from those videos too). The show seemed to me like another romance series which would alienate me with it's vibrate 'pink' landscape and it's gay tendencies, because, when all is said and done, the show is directed towards girls. Yes, the show is full with the color pink, and this is to disguise the show's exact tone. Again, being a otaku, I watch this stuff often and found myself watching 'The Ouran Highschool Host Club' in particular and only recently, being that I find myself without much else to see that I haven't already seen, every so often. I almost did not watch the show since there is a intro sequence to it, it's intro sequence being very open in that the show is directed towards girls, with it's (sort of catchy) beat and tone that both have a sort of 'pop/swish' to them; the song feels a bit over-the-top in it's depiction of the show's tone, which is far from being just as 'popish/swishish'. The show is less than a actual romance, being filled with 'the fourth wall being shattered', and being more of a satire to actual romance stories, spelling out during even only the third episode how it is that the main characters are destined to fall in love accordingly.

The actual show...well, after the opening sequence, we see a very androgynous girl named Haruhi, who attends Ouran Private Accadamy (a school that is full with only the richest and most lucky of children, except for Haruhi, who is poor and who is at the top of her class) and Haruhi finds herself inside of the 'music room which is never used', since it is the room is as such, never used, and this is where she is to read her books in peace/quite/...solitude. The room is in use, however, and by the Ouran Highschool Host Club of all groups. Their group is a collection of the most handsome of the male students and they provide their services to young girls who attend their school also (they provide their clients with compliments and affection, though never going so far as to kiss them). Haruhi is mistaken as being a man by the school and by the Host Club, and when she destroys a vase worth over 8,000,000 yen, she is forced into becoming a member of the Ouran Host Club so to repay them. They (of course) find out that she is a girl by the end of first episode; she continues being a member of the Host Club, however, posing as a guy so to repay her dept to the other members, and everything onward stems from that point.

Again, the show works it's self out like a romance story but it is so self aware; there is a perfect balance of comedy and dramatic romance that it never seems to take it's self seriously even once. I'm in a rush so I'll end by saying I really enjoyed the series because of how it builds it's self from so many cliché (and even mediocre) plots and characters. I recommend even the English dub of the series (which is not too common for me), which is acted out very well.

10/10

Code Geass (2006–2008)

Amongst my favorites

[10/10 · 5 December 2008]

Since becoming a member of IMDb, I've wanted to add my own comment about Code Geass; I know members other than me have done so already, so I can't really post what hasn't already been written by this point. I'll try anyhow dammit!

The story is of the exiled Lelouch, prince of the country called Britania (this alternate time-line's depiction of the United Kingdom, had there been no founding of the United States and had the United Kingdom continued in it's colonizing the planet to an extent where there remained almost no rivaling society). Lelouch's mother becomes a victim of a political assassination and Lelouch is taken to Japan where he lives for some time. The Japan of this alternative future, which appears very futile in the flash-backs it happens to be featured in (there never did exist a America in this time-line so for the country to be rebuilt into a sort industrial landscape) became then colonized by Britania after a brief confrontation. Lelouch begins the story with an alias so to seem in fact dead amongst his country-men, and thus to also protect his sickly sister Nunally, from their father the Emperor. The native Japanese people become the subject of racism to the colonizing Britanians; the country is renamed as Area Eleven and the native Japanese are referred to then as Elevens. Lelouch attends an Britanian academy also at the story's begin, where he plots his vengeance.

Alone with these (intresting yeah, but kind-of-uninspired) plot elements, the story may seem a little bland. The first episode begins as such, seeming almost like a Gundum rip-off (there are enormous mehcas called kightmare frames which seem a little secondary in the story). The concept of Geass becomes involved however; he finds a young women who says that her name is C.C., and who gives him an ability he finds will allow for him to overthrow the Britania empire it's self (the power being...I won't spoil every small thing, but I have already spoiled A lot). He begins helping the Japanese Resistance and he begins calling himself 'Zero', wearing a black mask and cape so to hide his identity still. It may sound strange but the story feels almost like a sort of Shakespearian Tragedy, being full with irony and death.

The art to it seems 'sharp'; the lines which build the settings and characters are vary dark and thick, and the character designs in general is a little unappealing to look at. Every one color is strong and abstract (the sky is blue, and the school uniforms are black; there are no color mixtures in the world of 'Code Geass'). The soundtrack is okay; I mean, it's nothing fantastic and there is not a single song (which is not the intro song 'Colors') that stands out. The English cast is horrible (of course, and though I do like many dubs to series, there are many like this which are badly produced too) and the Japanese is moderate, with an absolute exception of Jun Fukuyama (Lelouch) and Ami Koshimizu (Kallen), who are fantastic voice actors.

Please watch this show and watch it subbed!

10/10

Pulp Fiction (1994)

Pulp Fiction

[29 November 2008]

...Wow...what is there to say? No, I'm being serious; what is there to say which hasn't by now? 'Pulp Fiction''; there is nothing that has not been said about it. The film was released during the same year and lost the academy award for best picture to 'Forest Gump'.

'Pulp Fiction' is a black comedy which focuses on several people who have a sort of affiliation with the man Marsellus Wallace (a mob boss of sorts). The two central characters of Vincent Vega and Jules Winnfield are hit-men who work for Wallace (though I would say that they're actually paid to do whatever random chore is asked of them). The film is divided into several chapters (none of which are shown chronologically) and these chapters all depict a period of three or so days. The prologue is of the first day, and the first chapter is of the first day also (some time earlier); the second chapter is of after the prologue, and the third chapter is of the second two days; the fourth chapter is of the time between the prologue and the first chapter. Most every bit of these chapters are full with black comedy; I did not know this all when I first watched the movie, and so I was pleasantly shocked to find that the (very un-over-the-top) deaths and detailed speeches caused for me to laugh some.

I'm not going to say much because whoever is reading this and has never seen the full movie should; I won't spoil anything for you.

10/10

Darker Than Black (2007–2010)

Now I've lost it...I know I can kill...

[7/10 · 27 November 2008]

Some titles are misleading, as such is 'Darker than Black'; though the series is graphic throughout, the story is considerably less 'dark' than many other of anime. I cannot really 'genre' it either; there are elements of the supernatural which are used so for 'Darker than Black' to feel very much like a super-hero story (I can't really stress that though). It's another sort of anti-hero tale which I can suppose one may even compare with 'Death Note'; again, it's a little less 'dark' than most other anime ('Death Note' included), and of the anti-hero concept used, the show uses it without abusing it. The show also has such stereotypical characters, but I can say that these characters do the subject matter justice (the character of Hei dose not seem totally without reason to be angsty). The subject matter in question is thoughtful and it fuels very interesting conflicts.

This is a decent series and I suggest that any fan of anime (or of the TV show 'Heroes') should give this overlooked series an attempt.

7/10

Akira (1988)

A little over-rated but not to be overlooked

[7/10 · 27 November 2008]

'Akira' can be said to have helped in making anime (kind of) popular in the United States a long time ago in nineteen-eighty-eight; I keep a copy of the movie inside of my personal library because of how it's a sort of landmark. I suppose 'Akira' really WAS an enormous contribution in making anime a little more mainstream here, and it always will have a special place inside of me because of that, though I have to disagree in that it's not 'THE GREATEST ANIME MOVIE EVER'. Being an self- proclaimed Otaku (and because I call myself as such for truthful reasons) I can say that I've seen better through my experiences with the medium, though that's not to say that I dislike Akira either; only, I think it's over-rated (my personal favorites are 'Ghost in the Shell' and 'End of Evangellion', but I'll talk about those two later). I'm going to keep this review brief by leaving the story vague; of the story are elements of science fiction and surrealism which feel to me as leaving the audience in a state of being helpless. The characters show a contrast with future anime heroes and heroines; that they have a grittiness to them and appear void of melancholy (they're like a homage to American comic-book characters even). The story too feels like a homage to American actions comics; super-human-powers fill the story with conflict.

This film is 'fun' and it gets for it's audience to think too, but again, there are better anime films existing, and I can say that 'Akira' has little of some important things like character development; I feel like the director didn't care too much for that stuff anyhow, and focused his attention on violent scenes so to interest the action fans (and I'm sort of fine with that).

7/10

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)

A Grimm Fairytale absent of Magic and full with Caution

[10/10 · 26 November 2008]

The story of the man Sweeny Todd is of vengeance and not of too much else, and of what little theme there is to convey, the film conveys it all in such a way so for a child to even understand it (maybe). We're shown how obsession rots the human psyche and soul through Sweeny, who is shown void of anything humane and thinks always of murdering the Judge who ruined his life so many years earlier before when the film starts. He becomes a sort of killing perfectionist who thinks only of killing so to satisfy his wants for personal vengeance, and can only sometimes subdue himself by 'practing'; and sometimes 'practing' so for there to be even a sort of montage, by the middle of the movie for instance. He befriends and makes an accomplice out from the women Mrs. Lovett, who owns a small shop inside of London; she sales in her store meat-pies which she describes as being 'the worst in all of London', and because of this, a bargain is made between the two. Sweeny will be allowed to commit terrible acts right above from the women so to allow for her to make meat-pies from the flesh of said victims of terrible acts.

Oh yeah...this is a musical too, right...yeah...who in the name of God could even make this sort of movie...oh...I see, and as such, Johnney Depp stars as Sweeny Todd (of course) and he dose do the character utter justice, in that you fully believe in his ability to kill ANY person and that he can even justify it all because of how it is human life has no real significance. As such, humans are depicted as meat piles, being cut up and fed to the masses, and during musical numbers even, though most often, the transition between the two seems invisible, in that you forget that singing is not common place during idle conversations. The songs even drip with the film's melancholy, so to not stray the story from it's brutal subject matter.

The film plays out like the fables told by the Brother's Gimm, though it is without any breed of wonder, and again, this movie seems simplistic as all hell, so for a child to even understand. It works as a sort of cautionary tale, told through darkness and graphic R-rated violence, warning of obsession and of revenge.

10/10

When They Cry (2006)

"We of Hinamizawa welcome you!"

[24 November 2008]

Once upon a time, a young man who had grown to love those about him began noticing things; little things at that, and too many little things. He was then to die, and he did. Suddenly it began again. The young man was alive and he loved those about him; and they loved him.

With each of the chapters, little more is revealed of why there are murders which occur during each 'Watanagashi Fesitval', however, with each chapter, more IS revealed through our ignorant Keiichi (our unlucky-as-all-hell protagonist who is to experience this all). Every chapter begins fresh, with time having seemed to rewind it's self and Keiichi having no memory of having suffered; as do also most every other of the characters.Each chapter can be divided as beginning simple and very humorous (Rena, the secondary character, has an obsession towards cute things and finds garbage and the like as such), and this will contrast with it's inevitable climax (that tends to be extreme in that some or most of the character die, and in brutal ways). The transition between points A and B is very organic and unclean, in that it never seems too 'planned out'.

The characters become very interesting through this transition. Again, the character of Rena begins cute and innocent (moe urges growing!) though she is not without her 'moments' during point B. The character of Keiichi changes also. During each 'begining', he is 'simple', and during point B, he is then already paranoid towards every of the supporting cast. This change only adds to the suspense which builds it's self gradually.

This show is perfect, in that it masters what even most films try and cannot: the ability over an audience's fear, and it uses little gore so to do this (though that's not to say that it's without such 'scenes'). Watch this show and enjoy it's intro sequence (which I think captures the exact feel of the show it self).

The only thing negative I can say about this show is that it's English voice cast is weak, or course, and that it's animation dose not transition with it's subject matter (it's too cute during point B, but I'm just complaining for the sake of complaining about something).

10/10