Greywings Anime

There is a lot to say about the seventh chapter of what is now my most beloved story, and at the same time, there isn’t a whole lot to say either.

One word that came to mind while watching was ‘anguish.’ This chapter especially was infused with an almost suffocating sense of tense despair. From Shiki’s struggle to gain closure on the serial murders, Mikiya’s determination to protect Shiki’s happiness, and Lio’s manic quest for acceptance, you could feel the gnawing of the sense of hopelessness take its toll as the chapter went on. The resolution was very much an exasperation of all the build-up throughout the series and a look forward to a new normalcy.

This chapter was apparently directed by committee. That explains the stylistic distinction between different scenes, especially the flashbacks. This may also explain the subtle feeling of a lack of cohesiveness to the movie. I can understand that ufotable wanted to put its full effort into the final chapter, and make it consistent with Murder Speculation (1st Half). However, I can’t help but wonder how this chapter would have turned out if a single director was responsible for the vision and theme of the movie.

Thinking on it a bit more, I feel that Shiki’s character development may have been a bit too subtle throughout the series. Especially since her character was barely explored in the sixth chapter, save for a few seconds of God’s Word returning her memory. She was definitely struggling with her self-imposed murderous nature, but it was a bit jarring to see her go from the strong-headed protagonist to a lost soul finally admitting it needed saving.

Animation-wise, darkness was the theme. Much more than previous chapters, street lamps and moonlight were almost the exclusive sources of lighting. While very appropriate to the story, it did limit the range of the color palette for the backgrounds, although the few city-scape shots were hauntingly beautiful. I think there were hints that ufotable was slightly impacted by the economic downturn, but the movie kept the series tradition of being a showcase for how far animation has come.

Strangely, the ending song Seventh Heaven did not seem to be as integrated with the rest of the movie’s soundtrack as in the previous chapters. There was no real appearance of the song in the soundtrack until the credits hit. Perhaps it was because the song was produced well before the movie production was completed (or even started), or maybe it was because the song itself is the vocalized version of the overriding theme of the series. In fact, the rearrangement of some of the previous themes were much more prevalent. Still, the song and its lyrics succeeded in not only capturing the essence of the final chapter, but also of the series as a whole. And the choral elements of the soundtrack made many of the more poignant scenes elegantly epic.

It’s probably the fanboy side speaking, but I have a difficult time agreeing with omo that Kara no Kyoukai is simply ‘pure otaku fodder.’ Kara no Kyoukai’s main appeal to me was its devotion to the idea of ‘words and scenes charged with meaning.’ Both the super-charged action sequences and the long drawn out muted moments had something to say beyond simple exposition. The animation pushed the limits on sublime and the story unfolded the deeper elements with beautiful precision. It certainly isn’t all that accessible to those without some previous exposure to serious business anime. However, I contend that while Type Moon fans are the predominant audience, at least the movies really made an effort to go beyond the traditional otaku fare for something a bit more universal. At its core, it is a love story, explored through a very introspective set of eyes. Yes, it is entertaining, moe moe kyun and all that. But it also presented a theme of human nature, specifically murder, in a unique and thought-provoking way. Pretentious, perhaps, but the extraordinary execution allowed it to earn its right to make its point.

Now that the series is over, I’m left with that rare feeling of being somewhat more enriched than before I started the series two years ago. And a strong preferential sentiment towards strawberry Haagen Daaz.