Reviews

Revolutionary Girl Utena the Movie: The Adolescence of Utena

by Senshig

Rings, princes, roses, and the power to revolutionize the world. Add in architecture that would stun Frank Lloyd Wright, some ghosts, and more symbolism than you can shake a stick (or metaphoric representation there of) at. You have a spectacular movie that you'll want, and probably need, to watch over and over. It's Revolutionary Girl Utena the Movie: The Adolescence of Utena.

If you've ever seen the television series Revolutionary Girl Utena, you probably thought, "That was weird." If you were to arrange your mind so that the Utena series was "normal," the bulk of the movie would be "insane," and the climax would... blow your mind.

As it is, the pure strangeness of Utena is off the charts- so my advice is to not judge, but just to watch.

You can't really summarize or even describe this movie, but I'll try. Utena is a new student at a strange academy, where silhouetted girls give afternoon radio reports, and a rose garden juts out high above the ground. As she and a new friend, Wakaba, watch a fencing match between student council member, Juri, and genius middle-schooler, Miki, Utena spies a familiar face- Touga, a childhood friend. She tells him she dresses like a boy in her quest to be a prince. He says the rose-crested ring on his finger lead him to this academy. They discuss a night in the past- a promise was made, but Touga left Utena, not seeing her again until this day.

As Utena looks at some roses, a white one blooms, revealing to her a ring identical to Touga's. What does it mean? Utena finds her way into the rose garden where she meets Anthy Himemiya- the Rose Bride. After seeing the abuse Anthy receives from the pompous Saionji, Utena challenges him to a dual, against harsh odds. I don't think it spoils much to say she wins the dual- and the Bride.

But what would she want with the Rose Bride? Why does anyone deserve to own her? We wonder along with Utena. What is the secret of the Rose Bride? Has Anthy done something awful? What in the past tied these people- Utena, Juri, Touga, and the mean-spirited Shiori, and lead them to the academy? Lots of questions and confusion, but it comes together in the end. Of course, it's all pretty subjective, so people are going to disagree on the meaning of it all.

This movie is a re-telling of the TV series, not a continuation, and not faithful by any means. A key difference is the more-than-a-friendship between Utena and Anthy in the movie. Some people may be miffed at the downplaying- or outright exclusion of many main characters from the series.

Take it in stride- it's worth it! You don't have to see the series before the movie, I didn't, but it will make a lot of the back references and cameos more understandable. You'll want to see the series next, though! If you haven't seen it, or even if you have, make sure to try the director's commentary.

The animation on this movie is so lush and vibrant, fans of the TV series will be wishing they could see the series like this! The character designs, with off-beat facial designs, are elegant and wonderfully detailed. The background designs are highly stylized, and breathtaking. One scene in particular, where Utena and Anthy dance in the flooded

rose garden with stars overhead, was done entirely with computers, and it looks magnificent. If all anime looked this good, I'd be in heaven.

The music, much of it revised from the series, sounds great and works perfectly. The gem is the song, "Toki Ni Ai Wa," which plays in a key scene. Luckily, "The Sunlit Garden," from the series makes an appearance, and practically brings a tear to my eye each time I hear it break into its sentimental tune.

DVD Quality: While as soon as you see the packaging of this DVD, you'll probably say, "Who designed that?!", and not in a good way, this is definitely well done in the aspects that count. The picture quality is crystal-clear and the sound is errorless.

The extras on this disc are astounding. Along with the usual trailers, there is a behind-the-scenes video of the making of the English dub, a trivia game, a fan tribute, and sketches. The art and character sketches stand out because of how important the design is to this movie,

and they also contain commentary offering insights into the problems they encountered in pre-production and info on the design work that goes into anime.

The highlight of this disc, however, has to be the director's commentary from Kunihiko Ikuhara. You can play the movie with the dialog taken out, and hear many explanations from Ikuhara. This can be great on your second or third viewing, and answers many of your "Was that supposed to mean..." or "Was that intentional?" questions.

Overall, Utena is a fantastic movie. Love it or hate it as an adaptation of the series, this is undeniably a work of art. Because of, or in spite of, all its surreal imagery and confusing mysteries, Utena is an enthralling work that leaves you wanting more, though the climactic scenes are definitely pushing the limits (re- you almost want to jump up and down screaming "WHAT THE -").

Conclusion
I give Revolutionary Girl Utena the Move four out of five stars. I think it's perfect, but I know it's probably an acquired taste. Watch it! Warning- if you don't like homosexuality (better stay away from most anime, heh heh), are offended by hinted incest, or by abuse, you may be uncomfortable with this!

General Information
Director : Kunihiko Ikuhara
Based on the manga by Chiho Saito
Character Design : Shinya Hasegawa
Mechanical Design :Hiroshi Nagahama
Executive Producer : Toshimichi Ohtsuki.

This film is released in the US by CMP films, and runs 87 minutes. Unrated.