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Directed by: Hiroyuki Yamaga Starring: -- This is the only anime that I rate 10/10. It cannot be classified into fantasy, sci-fi, or a particular historical/modern time. It takes place in an alternate universe in a society which is just on the verge of undertaking the first manned space flight. Every detail of life (languages, architecture, urban design, tableware, games, ceremonies, history, music, technology) is meticulously imagined and visualized, but these details are also taken for granted by a plot that would be engrossing even without the fantastical backdrop. I've always been partial to movies that take as their subject nothing less than the meaning of life itself, and come up with unexpected and nebulous responses, and this movie does that exactly. I doubt you will be able to find any specific 'message', but at the same time it is most definitely a movie based on serious ideas and not just stylistic or genre manipulations. The DVD also includes a 2 hour slideshow of conceptual art set to extended cuts of music from the film (the soundtrack is by Ryuichi Sakamoto, and it's one of his best). Though the quality of the DVD isn't the best, it is still anamorphic widescreen, and quality concerns should not stop a single person from purchasing this masterpiece. [here's the rest of my 10/10 movies for your reference] 'Aguirre: the Wrath of God,' 'The Navigator,' 'Y Tu Mama Tambien,' 'Donnie Darko,' 'Tampopo,' 'Akira Kurosawa's Dreams, 'The Player,' 'Election,' 'Fellowship of the Ring,' 'Night on Earth'
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May 2, 2004 15:50
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redacted
Jon Carbuncle fucked around with this message at 18:47 on Jun 5, 2011 |
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May 2, 2004 15:57
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I bought this movie, watched it, and then returned it the next day. This was, without a doubt, the most borring anime I think I've ever witnessed. The lead character made me want to fall asleep with his ho hum dialouge. The action scene....all thirty seconds of it was just pitiful. The people who I watched this movie with no longer respect me because I made them sit through it with me. Seriously be careful about this movie, it is long, slow paced and there is absolutely nothing in it that a traditional anime fan is looking for. It may be artistic with a deep underlying message about borring people accomplishing the impossible, but I think I could have drawn a stick figure cartoon and still have made a better film. I not trying to say the guys who rated this movie so high are fools. I just wonder if they picked this movie as their favorite because of how obscure it is so they could seem intellectual to their anime buddies. One day I will try to watch the movie stoned and perhaps get something out of it then, until that day I rate this movie a 1/10.
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May 2, 2004 17:15
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quote:Blueballs came out of the closet to say: Yes, I will agree with that 
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May 3, 2004 02:50
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This is certainly one of the greatest animated films of all time, and many would remove the "animated" qualifier from that. I'm certainly not as well-versed on this movie as some people (Carl Horn, former Viz editor who now works for Dark Horse, has at last count watched this movie ninety-four times), but to write this movie off as "boring" implies a lack of reference. Indeed, this movie is nowhere near close to taking the title of "most boring anime" away from "Odin: Photon Space Sailor Starlight." However, it is worth pointing out that WoH is a very slow-moving film that focuses primarily on the mental journey of one man. This is not a movie you can just turn on and leave running in the background; it requires and deserves your undivided attention. In that light, it is not the type of movie that the stereotypical anime fan would enjoy. It's worth reiterating that the Region 1 DVD has sub-par video quality, though the extras on the disc are great. As a bit of trivia, this is the first professional work ever made by Gainax, who would later go on to make titles such as Neon Genesis Evangelion and FLCL among other things. Personally, I'm not the biggest fan of either of those, but they're very recognizable shows. In short, I highly recommend this movie. EDIT: The scene that some of the posters are referring to is, in my opinion, not unnecessary. In fact, I think it's one of the most important scenes in the entire film. This has been a much-argued point of contention for several years, and I direct you to two old Usenet posts, which incidentally were both penned by Carl Horn about ten years ago. Please note that neither of these links should be viewed unless one has already seen the film: Post Number One Post Number Two I would imagine that Carl's opinion on the matter has matured somewhat over the last decade, but I don't think he's fundamentally changed his mind on the importance of the scene. I just thought I'd provide an opposing viewpoint to the "this is a good movie except for one part that's completely unnecessary and out of place" contentions. I'm not saying I take active enjoyment of the scene or anything; rather, that the point of the scene is that it's SUPPOSED to be awkward and unpleasant. Daryl Surat fucked around with this message at 04:04 on May 3, 2004 |
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May 3, 2004 03:37
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While I loved this movie, it is worth noting that there is, as mentioned, a scene about 3/4 of the way through that simply does not fit in with the rest of the film. It actually damages an otherwise excellent movie, adding nothing to it as a whole. Still, the rest of it is good enough that I'd recommend it anyway, specifically to fans of Miyazaki and fans of slower-moving anime. What also doesn't hurt is that the animation is simply incredible. I am thinking specifically of a little shot towards the beginning, as we watch an airplane making a sharp turn going down the runway. This is the sort of shot that nowadays would be done by computers as a matter of course, but here it isn't, and the perspective on the airplane is absolutely flawless. I think you'll know it when you see it. The plot really is quite good, and I especially think the last sequence is amazing, so I'd probably rate this movie a 4/5. Without the one rape scene, I'd probably give it a 5.
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May 3, 2004 03:50
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quote:Blueballs came out of the closet to say: Wings of Honneamise is hardly obscure. It was a well known movie in Japan when it came out and is known to just about anyone who had been interesed in anime since before the "boom" a couple years ago. It's quite often shown at anime film festivals. It is long, slow paced and there is absolutely nothing in it for which a mainstream anime fan would enjoy, which is part of the reason it is so engrossing and refreshing. Definitely one of my top ten favorite anime movies. But then again, I tend to find "traditional" fare like Tenchi Muyo and etc. "borring." Nightdad fucked around with this message at 05:36 on May 5, 2004 |
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May 5, 2004 05:28
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That hosed up scene left a horrible taste in my mouth. 2/5
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May 18, 2004 07:58
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another film that perpetuates the star wars idea that life somewhere else has to learn to fly. though UFO's here might look futuristic and high tech, if they are real they had to start from the ground up like we did. 4/5
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May 19, 2004 21:38
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quote:Daryl Surat came out of the closet to say: Thank you VERY MUCH (belatedly) for bringing these to my attention. They are exactly what I was thinking but completely unable to express. Then I realized that the name Carl Gustav Horn sounded familiar, and a google search turned up that he graduated from my college, and then I thought back to the guest lecture which sparked my interest in anime in the first place (beyond Akira) and that he was in fact the guest lecturer!
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Sep 10, 2004 23:54
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You simply cannot take this film as a genre film. It is a fictional account, and an animated one at that, of one man's voyage through an entire societie's, that is merely part of a bigger whole of the planet. The 'unnecessary' scene was very neccessary, whether you like it or not, and for several different reasons, as have been very well put already. It pretty much makes or breaks how you view the movie, and if you aren't used to scenes like this in movies you watch, then I either suggest you go watch more, similar movies, or just try to expand on it as an experience to be had, without immediate judgment. I agree with orb3 on the sheer amount of visualization of culture and life that is projected to us in this movie. I think I have yet to see another anime movie that has this sheer level of depth, with the exception of maybe a few Miyazaki films. I think, like some of the other posters here have expressed, that people come in looking for a great, fast-paced, sci-fi space race of a movie and are disappointed by things like character development, philosophy, religion, and essentially, human existence. That's a sad thing. I'm not trying to be an elitist or anything, it's just that the average anime fan I run into finds something like Yu Yu Hakusho completely engrossing, while something like this slips over their radar. It's more a film for people that love films, not animated hyperbole. I think I need to watch it again, at any rate. 4.5/5
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Sep 11, 2004 02:58
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This is not a boring anime. 'Pilot Candidate' is a boring Anime. Now that that's out of the way, this is an amazing movie. A world that seems to have been built from the ground up, characters that we can understand, an amazing sense of detail (in things like the coins that the characters use or the bars they frequent), a truly epic story, and animation that still is impressive today. I concur that this is not an ordinary anime. The pacing, for instance, is not anime pacing but is more like live-action pacing. The score by Ryuichi Sakamoto is odd but not off-putting (it comes across more like a score from the world in the movie than our own). The characters are slightly homely or worn-looking instead of sleek and shiny. Gainax is an interesting studio with a history of groundbreaking work. This was their own launch pad, their flagship. It is treated with a good deal of well-deserved respect today (unlike, say, the way they market Evangelion- you won't see any Gainax-licensed erotic Leiqunni model kits for sale). 5/5
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Sep 12, 2004 05:39
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I managed to watch Wings of Honneamise a long way back, probably five years ago, and I do remember that it suffered from comparison to other anime I had watched, such as Ninja Scroll. I did find it rather slow paced and tedious at times with the religious / cultural depth that it went to in relating the tale, but I didn't realize how easily I mistook it for a real movie. After a while I was entertained by its sheer pedantic attention to detail. The one thing that cannot be denied by any anime fans out there is the dog fighting scenes when the rocket is being launched, we are talking some of the finest action animation ever created. Some of the people that dislike the movie so much should consider just fast forwarding to that particular spot and watching it from there. The scene that everyone finds out of place, also annoyed me, it was uncharacteristic, completely removed from the person as he had been potrayed for almost an hour. I blame it on their culture, they just seem so fascinated by the subject. Anyway, watch the last bit for action and pure animation genius, the only anime with better flying scenes is Porco Rosso.
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Sep 12, 2004 15:02
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I remember seeing this for the first time in college. The only thing I remember not liking about it was that it ran a little too long. Other than that it's a beautiful story told very well. 5/5
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Sep 28, 2004 07:28
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