Jason’s Movie BlogA Movie Blog for the Latest Movie Reviews, Trailers, and MoreCinematic Flashback: Escaflowne: The Movie (2000) Review
Permit this unfortunate planet…. enable everything discolor away. Come, my kindred spirit. Come to this land from the planet beyond. Come join me, my picked one. You are the Wing Siren, that will accomplish the prophecy of our planet. Our planet…Gaea….welcome, Wing Siren as “cinematic recall endorsements the 2000 anime flick Escaflowne: The Film.
ESCAFLOWNE: THE MOVIE
“One will wake it. One will harm it”
Director: Kazuki Akane
Author: Ryōta Yamaguchi
Starring: Kirby Morrow, Kelly Sheridan, Paul Dobson, Andrew Francis
Rushed Time: 98 mins
Takeoff Date: June 24th, 2000 (Japan), January 19th, 2001 (US)
Rated: N/A
THE STORY
Hitomi Kanzaki is in circumstance. Her vigor owns squandered its definition, and also she is interfered by uncommon dreams. She is scientifically depressed and also wants nothing supplemental than to disappear. After falling out using her just friend, she is strangely curved up to an additional planet, Gaea, wherein she situates herself inside Escaflowne, a doomsday tool destined to come to vigor at the attractiveness of a prophesied “wing siren”. The planet of Gaea is facing its very own circumstance: incessant conquest by the Black Dragon Clan, the rebels against which become urged that Hitomi is the prophesied siren that will revive Escaflowne. Never particular of her persona in Gaea, Hitomi situates her destiny as she comes to be better to the rebel leader, Lord Van, and also helps to carry around the fall of his malevolent bro Lord Folken, the genius of the Black Dragon Clan.
MY THOUGHTS
Endorse throughout my teenage years, I initiated to burden anime. Of training course, in days gone by that time, I did watch plenty of anime affirms (i.e. Dragonball Z, Seafarer Moon, Ronin Warriors, and also so on.), but I initiated to burden supplemental of the different hodgepodge of Japanese anime TV collection such as Outlaw Celebrity, Neon Genesis Evangelion, Slayers, Record of Lodoss War, and also plenty of others. One of those titles possessed a trailer preview for a emphasize labelled The Musing of Escaflowne (or rather Escaflowne for short), which showcased extensive Japanese mechs using a palette of fantasy feedback. It surely peeked lovely, so I decided to acquire the DVD medley of it and also I pretty acquired it. Sure, some points were a little bit rare in the latter fifty percent (i.e. destiny / destiny manipulation and also one male individuality is in reality a female), but that’s something I would expect from an anime collection. On the end of the last DVD (on the supplemental features), there was a trailer preview for Escaflowne: The Film, which would be expected out (launched in the US) in a few months. So, of training course, I purchased that DVD as speedily as it came out and also I do have some joined suffers around it. It’s extensive, but could’ve been much better. Listed under is why….
Escaflowne: The Film (or rather Escaflowne: A Girl in Gaea) is channeled by Kazuki Akane, that before functioned on plenty of other anime jobs as faultlessly as dealing with the directorial chores for The Musing of Escaflowne anime TV collection. Subsequently, using his prior experience of Escaflowne (the tale, the personalities, and also everything in-between), Akane appears designate a superb selection in helming this anime activity pic task. Akane performs thrive in administering the flick truly feels both familiar and also a little different by administering Escaflowne: The Film have a slightly familiar story premise of that of the emphasize as a a little trimmed iteration of the anime collection tale. Basically, some of the plot junctures are clothes to the emphasize, but the flick’s portrays particular points differently by having supplemental of darker and also feedback-oriented frame throughout the flick. Some tags, enclosures, and also backstories are a little bit reworked and also reimagined from this flick and also some of them being a little bit much better than in the emphasize…such as Hitomi’s initial clinical depression premise, Van’s isolation / just wolf individuality, Allen and also his group as rebels, and also so on.). So, it’s not uniquely a “carbon mimic” from the TV collection to the flick, but many the hefty beats (i.e. Hitomi, Van, and also the mystifying Escaflowne) are advised in the flick (just in a different light) are still unmodified. Plus, I did designate the opening collection as faultlessly as the extensive introduce for as speedily as Van swipes adjust of Escaflowne.
Further, the different panache of anime played a extensive component of the flick’s likeability (at the very least to me), using the amenity degree of anime being revamped in comparison to the initial anime collection. In a identical means, I designate how the background position are pretty different (in specifications of panache and also topography), using the flick epitomizing the planet of Gaea using a supplemental Asian brunts (albeit a fantasy steampunk motifs and also nuances) rather than supplemental of pseudo-European brunts (designate the anime collection did). This is even better recognized using plenty of of the renderings / diagrams of the plenty of individuality throughout the tale; situating some to sort much better than the collection and also other gazing faultlessly different (but in a goody means). So, regardless of the inquiry enclosures in the flick, the movie’s anime is magical! Plus, the musical racking up make-up for the flick, which was concocted by Yoko Kanno and also Hajime Mizoguchi (both of you did the music for the TV collection) is pretty extensive and also surely delivers the background music throughout the amenity, requiring some recognizable signs from the anime collection.
Conceivably a extensive objection using this flick would have to “compressed” narrative frame. What do I schedule? Well, for much better or even worse, Escaflowne (the emphasize) briefed a very connecting tale, weaving parts of wizardry, science, fantasy, and also heavy ideals throughout its narrative of its 26 episodes as faultlessly as increasing upon its plenty of personalities (both hefty and also minuscule) throughout the training course of the exploration. Escaflowne: The Film, but, just appears designate an abridged iteration of the tale and also crams many items within its 98-minute runtime. Advice I said…. it’s not a extensive “outplayed for outplayed” reimaging of the TV emphasize’s tale, but many unmodified points confiscate space and also everything just appears hurried, using not a whole number of time to be committed to such plot time inkling or individuality builds. In reality, the flick kind truly feels designate it wants to showcases some different aspect that the TV collection didn’t render intake of to, but such hunches are never totally manifested. Further, plenty of personalities from the emphasize (i.e. Millerna, Dryden, and also Jajewca) are there for one or two scenes and also are merely there for a continuity determinant rather than being totally fleshed out (or positioned in a different means) from the anime TV collection identical. Also the individuality of Folkien, that was a nice dynamic individuality in the anime collection, is just merely footnote baddie in the flick (as faultlessly as the individuality of Dilandau). Singularly, my greatest complaint would have to be the expiring. I realise what Akane longed to accomplish using it, but the end result is rather sudden, unacceptable, and also unfulfilling; vacating us (the visitors) scraping our heads….as if the true expiring for the flick was disowned on the trimming space floor covering.
Of training course, since I hearkened this flick in the English dub incarnation, I in reality can’t say anything around the initial Japanese voice talents in the movie. That being said, the English voice celebs / actresses (those that did it under the Bandai Recreation flee) are literally pretty extensive, using plenty of of them reverting from performing the voiceover English calling job from the TV collection. Subsequently, the voice talents of Kirby Morrow (Van), Kelly Sheridan (Hitomi), Paul Dobson (Folkien), Andrew Francis (Dilandau), Brian Drummond (Allen), and also plenty of others are faultlessly-advised and also are tenacious (as goes for English anime voices) in the singular semblances. As a side-chit, both the TV collection and also flick for Escaflowne were re-launched in 2016 (on Blu-Ray) using a whole newfangled English voice cast. I did this Blu-ray flee for the TV collection and also, while I did savor the amenity of it, I didn’t treatment for the newfangled English voice talents. I prefer the initial one.
With one voice in unanimously, Escaflowne: The Film is enjoyable / frustrating reimaging of the familiar core tale from the newfangled anime TV collection that it swipes signs from. Its visual panache is miraculous, music is nice, voice acting is extensive (counting on your proneness of Japanese or English), and also its widespread plot tale parts are tenacious, but it fights to locate its very own progression within its amenity movie runtime; aching to “do supplemental, go to supplemental” than what is seated aside. Unprejudiced, it’s a extensive watch, but I prefer the collection over the flick. Still, at the end of the day, if you’re lover of The Musing of the Ecsaflowne or aching to watch a anime fantasy feedback activity pic…. you could cramp to investigate this flick.
Cinematic Flashback Rating: 3.5 Out of 5
Enjoyable Reality: The gridiron wherein Hitomi first satisfies Folken and also is tempted into the planet of Gaia is modeled on the historic and also fabulous Kasumigaoka Nationwide Olympic Stadium (Kokuritsu Kasumigaoka Rikujo Kyogijo) in the Shinjuku ward of Tokyo, wherein the 1964 Summer season Olympics were clutched. Some of the many distinctive parts in the gridiron, such as the tinted rows of church benches, extensive scoreboard, lights, and also field track are proper conspicuous in the movie. The gridiron was wrecked in 2015 to render means for a newfangled gridiron constructed for the 2020 Olympics. One more conspicuous Shinjuku landmark in the movie is the Tokyo Urban Government Structure, which Hitomi sees from the subway while she is out shopping using her friend Yukari.
