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FlamingFirewire wrote:

After having seen the movie, I can definitely attest to the feeling of not knowing what to think. Not even being a really big fan of the show I wanted the movie to end before that third act - it really does seem out of character, but certainly not out of line with what the show has done before.

It makes sense on its own terms - Homura's real wish all along was for a world with Madoka in it. While she seemed to have come to terms with Madoka's final wish and probably would've been content to be taken before the Incubator interference, Homura making one last hail-mary effort at her original goal isn't really all that much of a stretch.

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After mulling over it, it mainly seems like Gen decided the end of the series was too "perfect" and "happy" so he decided to subvert one of the characters to create that Devil/God dichotomy.

Urobuchi's said he got the basic idea for the movie after watching the series and it's not hard to see how - after being told about the witch system, it'd be entirely out of character for Kyuubey to not try to recreate it. The ending was a rewrite to be more open, though, and the entire idea of the two ending up as enemies wasn't originally Urobuchi's(though he liked it quite nicely); take the third part out and you're simply left with a logical follow-up to the series.

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I have to say though, with the exception of the 3-5 minute scene of JUST transformations one after the other, this is one enjoyable film. I'd recommend it, but you just may not know how to feel - or just outright hate - the movie at the end. This is definitely one of those subjective films you should really see if you've already seen everything Madoka up to this point.

I'd say the transformations are part of the treat for the first part. Yes, they run on a little long, but they fit right in there.

dm wrote:

I think the early "happy" sequence wasn't so tedious as you describe in your review --- as you say, the knowledge of where the series can take such seemingly innocent situations made those happy scenes fraught with an undercurrent of creepiness).

I have to agree here - rather than tedium, the fluffy part had me eagerly awaiting the connection with Madoka's reborn world. Maybe Hope missed the opening narration that the fluff so blatantly contradicted?

Hope Chapman wrote:

One minute Homura is pleading with Madoka to abandon her, determined to sacrifice herself to protect the ones she loves, and the next, she has stepped out of the "evil box" and molded a world where she is happy to be in a position of power above Madoka, who is finally hers and hers alone.

I think a point was missed here. Homura was definitely ready to sacrifice her existence to save Madoka from being enslaved by the Incubators(which would have completely negated her wish), but nothing there contradicts her seizing a fraction of Madokami(which she explicitly points out was merely the pre-ascension existence of Madoka) to fulfill her wish of a world with Madoka(given the continued existence of Wraiths instead of Witches, and Sayaka's short demonstration of her ability to summon her Witch powers, that this world continues to coexist with the Law of the Cycle she established should be clear).

I saw the premiere in LA, and I'll be seeing it a second time later today. I will buy the Blu-ray (import or domestic). It was beautifully animated and an interesting extension of the series.

I thought that Homura's actions were extreme, but believable with what she went through in the series, and what she learns in Rebellion about Kyubey actions and Madoka's thoughts about her life. The thing that confused me most with the movie was trying to figure out where Charlotte got her fixation with cheese. It was giving me ptsd flashbacks to Suzumiya Haruhi-chan, which I never found to be very interesting. ^^;

I don't agree at all that the franchise has been ruined by "cash-milking." In fact, if anything I found Rebellion to be a logical continuation of the franchise which squarely deals with two issues left unresolved at the end of the TV series.

Of course, this could partly be because, unlike (apparently) a lot of people, I didn't find the end of the TV series to be perfect. I was never convinced that someone whose obsessiveness to be with Madoka runs as deep as Homura's did would be content with things as they were, and I never believed that Kyubey and his people wouldn't take an interest in finding out how this Code of Law effect (i.e. the one that kicked in when magical girls reached their limits) worked and wouldn't be intrigued enough by Homura's description of witches to try to actively bring them about. I also fully agree that the TV series established Homura's decision at the end well enough; she regularly intimated that her motivations were much more selfish than selfless, so being gripped by ultimate selfishness in the end ("I'm going to have Madoka for myself even if that means turning evil") make a good degree of logical sense.

That being said, I was also left ambivalent by the ending. I think it's an incredibly bold maneuver, one which tried to transform the content on the level that Mami's death in episode 3 did, but I did also suspect a certain interest in achieving a "gotcha!" moment, too. But I'll probably watch it again at some point.

Key wrote:

Of course, this could partly be because, unlike (apparently) a lot of people, I didn't find the end of the TV series to be perfect. I was never convinced that someone whose obsessiveness to be with Madoka runs as deep as Homura's did would be content with things as they were…

This was kind of my takeaway too. To put a T on it, if the series was a deconstruction (I know, ugh) of magical girls, then Rebellion could be a deconstruction of Madoka Magica itself. In other words, if heroic young girls fighting for truth and justice is something that would never hold up in real life, then how is Homura vowing "I will keep fighting!", in eternal service to Madoka-sama, any more plausible?

Still, Hope really did a nice job with this review, particularly the dealing with the arguably unnecessary birthing of a sequel, and how what they produced is far more daring (right or wrong) than the timid sequels we see from other franchises.

It's a pity the movie was a one-weekend-only thing, and only in a handful of cities (I drove 150 miles each way to see it). The discussions about it need to happen now, and will inevitably attract would-be new viewers, but now we'll have to cool our jets for the better part of a year until Aniplex graces us with a disc.

As some have expressed with better language, I also didn't find Homura acting "out of character" which probably has more to due with personal expectations and not reading into the nature that especially when it came to the series interpretation, Homura was out right selfish in her journey to "be with Madoka".

What definitely struck me as I left the theater was the scale of informational overload the movie seemed to indulge on the viewers in the last 45 minutes or so. Now that I've been thinking on it, I can remember small hints that were leading up to Homura's big decision (such as bits of Homura's heart-to-heart with Madoka and Kyubey's big evil plan). But when you're in the heat of the moment as it all unfolds, all while processing everything that's come before, the big moment comes right out of nowhere. In the end, -

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the film prioritizes a "gotcha" reveal glorifying the twist and resulting spectacle over any character verisimilitude.

...Then again, considering the drastic change Homura goes through afterwards, those "small hints" still don't rationalize what happens to her character. I'll give Urobuchi some credit for attempting to ease in into what's obviously a "We must make more Magical Girl shows!" mandate ending.

Key wrote:

I don't agree at all that the franchise has been ruined by "cash-milking." In fact, if anything I found Rebellion to be a logical continuation of the franchise which squarely deals with two issues left unresolved at the end of the TV series.

I wholeheartedly agree with this.

Key wrote:

That being said, I was also left ambivalent by the ending. I think it's an incredibly bold maneuver, one which tried to transform the content on the level that Mami's death in episode 3 did, but I did also suspect a certain interest in achieving a "gotcha!" moment, too. But I'll probably watch it again at some point.

This is also important to note. Just because I really liked the film doesn't mean it gets away with everything.

The only movie that's allowed to get away with everything is Casablanca.

Key wrote:

I don't agree at all that the franchise has been ruined by "cash-milking." In fact, if anything I found Rebellion to be a logical continuation of the franchise which squarely deals with two issues left unresolved at the end of the TV series.

I have to say, I'm skeptical of the idea that you supposedly saw this coming. Razz

But the movie is interesting to me mainly because I thought the ending was perfect, or as close to perfect as anything can be, yet the movie shows it was imperfect, or can be interpreted that way. It seemed that Homura had accepted Madoka's fate, and the discussion of witches with Kyubey was just exposition (and it seemed like if Kyubey could interfere with Madoka, he would have done it before she rewrote everything...).

Fundamentally, I don't think Homura has really "turned evil." She talks the talk but doesn't walk the walk, so to speak. Everything she does is kind of extreme, but doesn't seem especially bad or tragic for anyone but herself. She becomes a horrible Lovecraftian abomination, who commits the mindless evilness of...dragging all her friends into a magical girl paradise? How terrible! And when she physically becomes a witch, she only tries to kill herself. Then she becomes Demon-Homura, and cackling evilly, she...gives everyone happy, peaceful lives? It may not be exactly what they wanted, but it's a less band-aid-on-a-severed-leg solution than Madoka's.

I think the idea that this is a deconstruction of the series is accurate. It sort of found a couple tiny cracks in the original ending, stuck its claws in there, ripped the whole thing open, and turned it inside-out. But as you said, the ending is a twist even more dramatic than Mami's death, and the show didn't end when Mami died, because that would have been stupid.

At this point, we've covered the major flaws of everyone, especially Homura and Madoka, but we've also rewound back to square one, so we need to actually advance the plot to someplace. If it's even possible to improve on the series ending, the sequel to this may have the opportunity to do so.

Ingraman wrote:

The thing that confused me most with the movie was trying to figure out where Charlotte got her fixation with cheese. It was giving me ptsd flashbacks to Suzumiya Haruhi-chan, which I never found to be very interesting. ^^;

Charlotte's always loved cheese; it was mentioned in some cleartext German in her labyrinth("Ich liebe Käse. Ich will nur Käse. Es gibt nirgends den Käse.") and a website profile("The dessert witch, with a tenacious nature. She desires everything. She will never give up. Though she is capable of creating infinite amounts of any dessert she desires, she is unable to make the cheese that she loves most. One could easily catch her off-guard with a piece of cheese."). Since Charlotte's appearance is pure fanservice, there's little need for an explanation since the (Japanese)fandom would've had it already.

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Since Charlotte's appearance is pure fanservice, there's little need for an explanation since the (Japanese)fandom would've had it already.

Or an English fan that has been following the Madoka wiki... I digress.

Last edited by Cyclone1993 on Thu Dec 12, 2013 3:07 pm; edited 1 time in total

I really enjoyed the movie, but the friends who I went to go see it with, and I agreed that it was definitely the type of movie where you need to take time to process everything.

I didn't really think that Homura's turning to the dark side was that out of character. Madoka chose to help people, because it was best for everyone but herself. She represents the selfless love that Homura despises.

After talking to Madoka she realizes that becoming a god like figure wasn't exactly what she wanted to do, but she did it out of duty and a selfless love for all of the Magical girls in existence.

Homura wanted Madoka to forsake the world for her own happiness, so in a way she represents a type of selfish love, which stands in stark contrast to Madoka. I think this plot was built up quite nicely.

Of course the movie doesn't really have a reason to exist, the ending for the series was suitable enough to bring the franchise to an end. But, I'm glad it was made because it completely changes everything about the Madoka universe, and leaves room open for more sequels down the line.

I am interested in seeing what they plan to do with this new world they created though.

Also, I think this movie was one of the most visually impressive things I've ever seen. Every frame of action looked gorgeous, it was a full on attack against the senses that really struck me.

Edit: One of my complaints against the movie however, is the implementation of the new character Nagisa. I really liked her design, especially her eyes, but it felt like she was kind of shoehorned into the movie, like she didn't really serve a purpose. I hope, if the series continues, we can learn a little bit more about her.

out of character? Laughing

Who wrote this review?
You expected Homura to go.
Ok Madoka, I give up who cares.

I don't know if the guy saw the last two movies or what.....

AWESOME REVIEW!

I've largely said my piece on the movie, maybe I'll have some things to say in response to posts later.

I will say that I quite enjoyed it, though mostly as a jumping off point for more of a story.

I also like that it firmly established that yes Homura LOVES Madoka. Its not friendship, its love.

My favorite moment though was the scene with Kyouko and Sayaka just before the battle with Homulily, where Sayaka admits that she did have one regret, that she left Kyouko behind.

It's not a surprise to me that this movie is really divisive among fans and that people think certain aspects of it, particularly Homura's actions at the end, are out of character.

I think it's really a film you need to see for yourself so you can make your own interpretation (this is, of course, for all those who haven't seen the movie and now may not want to). You're going to get a lot of conflicting ideas from people on the internet - which is a strength of the movie, if you ask me - but it's not something you can just read about it, you really have to experience it, just like the series.

Personally, I walked out of the theater wishing I'd bought another ticket so I could go straight back in and see it again...and it made me love Homura even more. I haven't felt that way since...the original series finished airing.

Last edited by ABCBTom on Thu Dec 12, 2013 3:51 pm; edited 1 time in total

I can see where this review is coming from, but I disagree with a few things.

In regards to the world Homura made, we still don't know all of its properties and how exactly "evil" manifests itself there. I read it less as Homura becoming pure evil than merely a rebel against an order she does not approve of.

Why should we be satisfied with the sacrifice of an innocent as cure to the world's problems?

I see a lot of the fighting back against the movie as discomfiture with the movie's attack on the moral rightness of Madoka's destruction for the good of mankind.

But the system of exploitation still exists and in her frustration I think Homura is still trying to fight against that, even if in a selfish way. Madoka shouldn't necessarily have to sacrifice for Kyubey's evil.

EDIT: I wonder if as many people would be mad if the movie had found a way for Homura to rescue Madoka and keep the Law of the Cycle in place so we could have a Happily Ever After end?

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REVIEW: Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie Part 3: Rebellion