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Hotarubi no mori e (2011)
A touch that can erase an existence.
How about we see Hotarubi No Mori E (2002) from a different perspective?
Hotaru is suffering from melancholia same as Ayanami from Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995). Ayanami Rei had no soul, thus she was sad without knowing why she was sad. Here, Hotaru is dejected, distanced from the real world without knowing why. She wants to understand the cause of her remoteness, why she wants to escape reality, why she wants to touch Gin. Gin is not a real person but a memory. Remember the two children who ran across them in the forest? Saw the similarity between them? The same mask. A mask that hides the identity. A touch that can erase an existence. The moment she understands the cause of her detachment from people, it will disappear. But in the end, it wasn't the touch but the original memory, that erased it. Those two children were them in the past. The forest here is her memory, perhaps on a deeper level even life. Just that instead of the sea of blood, there is a forest of fireflies (again, doesn't it remind of Hotaru No Haka (1988)?) The same boy and girl as The End of Evangelion. Here, the context is much deeper than it seems. Touching your dejection can cause it to disappear, but we don't want that. We don't want to know the cause of our origin, we want to escape reality as much as we can. The ageless love with melancholia. Obviously this film has several different perspectives, from feminism to fragility to desire, but this particular perspective arrested me and made me think how a simple film could be this deep. My original reaction to the film was:
Gosh! What a beautiful, deep, resonant movie! Cherish every moment of it! <3
Depth - 2/2
Importance - 2/2
Relevance - 2/2
Artistry - 2/2
Imagination - 2/2
Total - 10/10
And yes, it was most definitely tear-jerking, although I didn't really cry. Somewhat mesmerized by the sheer beauty of it. Definitely the most beautiful anime of all time. Seriously, whoever made it, kudos! Arigato for this gem! <3
P.S.: If you wish to know more about the rating scheme above, check out my other review.
Naruto: Shippûden (2007)
An allegorical representation of the world, its histories and social problems.
Depth - 2/2
Importance - 2/2
Relevance - 2/2
Artistry - 2/2
Imagination - 2/2
Total - 10/10
The greatest story there ever was, a modern epic, the most important produce of the manga/anime industry. Each character represents the diverse emotional problems people face in their lives. There is a war-torn era, a post-war era and another war-torn era, and finally an era of peace. In all this, the mangaka didn't forget to show how it all began, giving a very interesting symbolic history of the world's past. Then, there are the heart-wrenching representations of the war-orphans, the downtrodden, the outcasted and even the privileged. The antagonists have also been shown to possess really important reasons to turn against the norms. Philosophies of peace, conviction, life, death, art, purpose, etc are voluminous. As a shounen, it has the most creative battle scenes and character developments. The art and animation are brilliant. There are references to Japanese, Indian and other cultures, traditions and myths throughout the story. The sacrifices done for national cause, the underlying political crises, all are shown with brilliant symbolism. Kishimoto is a rare genius and should be considered a legend. The beautiful background scores and heart-touching ending songs all make it a very emotional watch. Especially, the MC being the most motivational and iconic character in any work of fiction. A must watch for every being living in this world!
Note: The DIRAI technique of rating was developed by me. Five criteria to rate any work of art, across any genre. The aggregate of these five lends the final rate. All five criteria are equally necessary. You can't call one greater than the other.
-Depth is the layered meaning of a story. How symbolic or allegorical a work of art is.
-Importance is how necessary a work is. How significant it is with respect to social, historical, philosophical, political and scientific standpoints.
-Relevance is how appropriate a work of art is with respect to the current time, period or circumstances. It lends weight to the work. Even symbolic reference to the modern civilization is a great factor for relevance.
-Artistry is how a work of art is executed or portrayed.
-Imagination is the thinking up of new ideas. Be it in the form of new characters or a mind blowing story, a new tune or a new kind of literature itself.
P.S.: Lots of reviewers tend to rate works by how much they were able to relate. I do not even consider that a factor. Entertainment and relatability are not proper criteria for reviews. Well, whatever, thank you. This is my first review, I shall be posting more very soon.