Director: Makoto Shinkai
Starring: Hisako Kanemoto, Hilary Haag, Kazuhiko Inoue, David Matranga, Miyu Irino, Corey Hartzog, Leraldo Anzaldua,
Running Time: 116 minutes
Certificate: 12
Extras: Cast and crew interviews, The Making of… featurette, Japanese Promo Video, Japanese Teasers, Makoto Shinkai Featurette
Makoto Shinkai is often heralded as the next Hayao Miyazaki and not in a thieving copycat kind of way. He manages to evoke that bittersweet feeling of loneliness and isolation without despair and depression. JOURNEY TO AGARTHA is his follow-up to 5 CENTIMETERS PER SECOND, and a worthy one at that. Shinkai admitted he was more interested in making a purely entertaining film this time around, which he mostly succeeds at.
Asuna (Kanemoto/Haag) lives a quiet life, mostly alone since the death of her father and due to her mother’s working hours. One day she comes across a huge monster on a railway line that proceeds to attack her. Suddenly a boy named Shun (Irino/Anzaldua) arrives to rescue her, but he soon dies from his injuries in the battle. After hearing her teacher, Morisaki (Inoue/Matranga) mention Agartha; a land of the dead, teacher and student set out to a place they believe can bring people back from the dead.
The most striking thing about this film are its perfect visuals. Animation has never seemed so relaxing, with so many shots of the setting sun and spectacular detail in the used for the floral life and even little rocks. The characters seem as though they are bouncing through watercolours at times, so I may I suggest treating yourself to a Blu-ray copy. The beginning is that sweet kind of animation where the chirping of cicadas dominates and we get a real sense of rural Japanese life. The quietness of it all allows us to fully enjoy the animation before diving into a plot.
Once the film goes to Agartha it begins to lumber a bit as we are part of a constant journey with no real sense of threat. They walk here, they walk there, it’s a lot like LORD OF THE RINGS, but rarely cuts away to show us something of interest. Many of Shinkai’s creations are wonderful to behold, but are also very similar. The gatekeepers are reminiscent of the Gods from PRINCESS MONONOKE, but still manage to fit the mood and tone very well.
Towards the end as it focuses on its themes of loss and growing up, the film does strike a fairly individual stride, but by this time it’s a little late. The fights failed to get me going, and I never felt a sense of danger surrounding the protagonists. Overall it’s an interesting piece and you’re bound to find something you like, but the slow pace that establishes the mood early on bleeds over into later scenes that perhaps could have used a bit more peril.
Extras: The extras on this disc are pretty fantastic, especially if you like in depth documentaries. The making of… really does give you a new outlook on the film as well making you appreciate the hard work. The interviews are all very insightful and the passion behind the project is rather contagious.
JOURNEY TO AGARTHA is released on 28th January on Blu-ray, and a special Blu-ray/DVD combi with bonus disc and artbook.
