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REVIEW: Summer Wars


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Crystal



Joined: 03 Jun 2004
Posts: 283
PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 12:52 am Reply with quote
Wow . . . what's the last time we had a view this positive?

I keep hoping the success of Girl who Leapt through Time and Summer Wars will allow the 1st 2 Digimon movies to get put on an uncut DVD (possibly on the same disc) in the US, as they have the same director.

I actually noticed this movie also uses "August 1st" as an important date, just like the first 2 series.
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21stcenturydigitalboy



Joined: 20 Aug 2008
Posts: 103
Location: Virginia Beach, Virginia
PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 12:56 am Reply with quote
I will always consider One Piece 6 to be the 'official arrival of Mamoru Hosada' and if you didn't have a glance his way at this point, you're damn late! This shouldn't be his 'arrival' it should be his 'affirmation'
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Hentai_JP



Joined: 12 Feb 2006
Posts: 605
Location: Toronto, ON
PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 12:57 am Reply with quote
Crystal wrote:
Wow . . . what's the last time we had a view this positive?


Evangelion 2.0 is nearly as positive.

I hate to say this but I didn't find Summer Wars that interesting. Sure it's original and has certain qualities but characters and story didn't give me "OMG this is AMAZING!!!" feel (fist fights in cyberspace?). Overall I found it cheesy, as it tries to appeal for everyone, and has classic happy endo. Though I just might be a white crow here... will see what others think.
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penguintruth



Joined: 08 Dec 2004
Posts: 8459
Location: Penguinopolis
PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 1:04 am Reply with quote
Justin sure knows how to sell a movie with his reviews. I never had any interest in Hosada's work before, but I really want to see this now.
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HellKorn



Joined: 03 Oct 2006
Posts: 1669
Location: Columbus, OH
PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 1:06 am Reply with quote
Absolutely tremendous review. Didn't think I could look forward to this more than I am.

Justin Sevakis wrote:
Hosoda's perspective is that of a distinctly younger generation than we're used to. He's keenly aware of the role social networking and the always-on internet now plays in our lives, and feels no need cast judgement on that: it's simply how people live in today's day and age.

As with any large family, the chaos pretty much never stops; there are always divergent personalities bouncing off of each other, threatening to distract our heroes from their task. It never stops being fun to watch.

The visuals, created by MADHOUSE, are sharp and consistently great, but the real show-stopper is the world of OZ, a visually inventive blend of Superflat artistry with the never-ending expansiveness of the digital world. As Love Machine's strength builds, its collection of other avatars made me think of Katsuhiro Otomo's trademark gigantic piles of disaster, as seen in Akira and Roujin Z.
These excerpts definitely affirm my feelings that Summer Wars is a return (and a refinement?) of Hosoda's Digmon: Our War Game. Every single one of these is evident in that forty-minute film, especially during the phone conversations between the city and countryside.

Hentai_JP wrote:
Overall I found it cheesy, as it tries to appeal for everyone, and has classic happy endo.
You say this as if these are (inherently) bad things!
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Jedi General



Joined: 27 Nov 2006
Posts: 2485
Location: Tucson, AZ
PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 1:13 am Reply with quote
Stupendous review, Justin. I am in complete agreement with you here -- this film is darn near perfect indeed. It is definitely one of the greatest anime movies. Ever.

Good god! I want this film licensed two weeks ago.

HellKorn wrote:
These excerpts definitely affirm my feelings that Summer Wars is a return (and a refinement?) of Hosoda's Digmon: Our War Game. Every single one of these is evident in that forty-minute film, especially during the phone conversations between the city and countryside.


Oh yes. Hosoda went back to his Digimon roots and improved upon them in every way. At its core, Summer Wars is basically the same story that is told in Digimon: Our War Game, just far more fleshed out and sans the Digimon shell. Summer Wars is nearly triple the running time too, leaving so much more room for characterization and numerous other little touches and refinements. As a result, Summer Wars is a far more satisfying film than Our War Game, and my favorite Hosoda film to date.


Last edited by Jedi General on Fri Nov 27, 2009 1:31 am; edited 4 times in total
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Labbes



Joined: 09 Feb 2008
Posts: 890
PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 1:23 am Reply with quote
It's a shame that I won't be seeing Evangelion 2.0 until May next year - and who knows when I will be able to watch Summer Wars. I hope soon, because Justin's praise on ANNcast confirmed my expectations.
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Jedi General



Joined: 27 Nov 2006
Posts: 2485
Location: Tucson, AZ
PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 1:46 am Reply with quote
21stcenturydigitalboy wrote:
I will always consider One Piece 6 to be the 'official arrival of Mamoru Hosada' and if you didn't have a glance his way at this point, you're damn late! This shouldn't be his 'arrival' it should be his 'affirmation'


Though I do agree with you that this shouldn't be considered Hosoda's arrival, I don't agree that the sixth One Piece movie was his arrival. It was 6 years earlier with his first Digimon movie.

I'm not saying you have, 21stcenturydigitalboy, but it really is a darn shame that so many people overlook his two great Digimon movies. If you like Summer Wars, then you'll definitely like Digimon: Our War Game. Our War Game is essentially "Summer Wars lite."
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HellKorn



Joined: 03 Oct 2006
Posts: 1669
Location: Columbus, OH
PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 2:01 am Reply with quote
If you love Ghibli films, then you would essentially love Hosoda's Digimon films. He also storyboarded some of the best episodes of Revolutionary Girl Utena under the pseudonym Katsuyo Hashimoto.

The man is talented like few others in the business, past, present, or future.
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Big Hed



Joined: 04 May 2006
Posts: 1607
Location: Melbourne, Australia
PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 2:27 am Reply with quote
Hentai_JP wrote:
Evangelion 2.0 is nearly as positive.


Interestingly, 2.0 only lost out on story.., Maybe Summer Wars benefited especially from its happy ending after all the apocalyptic business in the former? (just kidding, since I know Justin saw Summer Wars first Wink )

I am as excited to see this now as I was before reading the review, so good job I guess. Razz I just wish I had taken a closer look at the art work on display at AFA. Sad
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Pandadice



Joined: 17 Dec 2008
Posts: 182
PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 3:05 am Reply with quote
Quote:
By this measure, sheer entertainment value, it's the best anime to come along since Cowboy Bebop back in the mid 90s.


just saying, Bebop was late 90s
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p3rseus



Joined: 14 Apr 2007
Posts: 72
PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 3:57 am Reply with quote
Very much looking forward to this one. I've seen a few trailers and it looks great. A blend of math and high tech, well they're using Windows 7.. and being somewhat of a math nerd myself, this film reeks of brilliance. Glad to see positive reviews.
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giascle



Joined: 09 Sep 2008
Posts: 157
Location: Denver
PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 5:26 am Reply with quote
COME OUT FASTER
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Brack



Joined: 15 Oct 2005
Posts: 281
Location: UK
PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 6:02 am Reply with quote
21stcenturydigitalboy wrote:
I will always consider One Piece 6 to be the 'official arrival of Mamoru Hosada' and if you didn't have a glance his way at this point, you're damn late! This shouldn't be his 'arrival' it should be his 'affirmation'


While critically and commercially the Digimon movies did put him on the map, leading to his stint in the director's chair for Howl's Moving Castle, this is really his first theatrical release whose built in audience is Hosoda fans, rather than Digimon, One Piece or Yasutaka Tsutsui fans.

As personal as those earlier films were to Hosoda's particular foibles, a lot of the audience were going because of the title of the film, rather than who was making it.

Summer Wars can be seen as an arrival in that it's the first of his films where he and his team are the ones that carry the weight of attracting an audience.
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Bored_Ming



Joined: 17 Jun 2009
Posts: 242
Location: The Edge of ......
PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 7:21 am Reply with quote
Wow, back to back good Anime viewing for Justin. Put on a smoking jacket and settle into your comfy chair. Have a glass of Maker's Mark in one hand and an Arturo Fuente Hemingway in the other. Then sit back and savor it all my friend. Because next week its back to watching Anime that makes you gnash your teeth and question your sanity.

Like others, I will have to stare at these glowing reviews and then stare at my empty dvd player. At least time is always moving forward. Someday I will be able to watch these films.
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