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44 out of 48 people found the following comment useful :-
Absolutely wonderful, 23 syyskuu 2004
10/10
Author: hendercrazy from Canada

Well, reading all these interesting comments above made me think.... First of all,i have to say that i loved Wonderful Days. A lot. The art is gorgeous, yes, i think this is the one point everyone can agree upon, hands down. Now, concerning the storyline itself....

I think there should be some clarification, especially for all those poor ppl who must have watched this in English (either subtitled or dubbed). Those who did the translations deserves to get hanged. and i mean it. i own the special edition 3-disc original Korean DVDs and have also watched both the subtitled and dubbed versions. It actually feels like i'm watching 2 completely different versions of the story! The original korean version has a much more interesting (not the greatest, but definitely superior and full of nuances)script and explains the story quite well, unlike the English versions that either skip entire parts of dialogues (which are essential to understand the movie *_*) or change their meanings into something totally different and just plain wrong! And someone mentioned that some characters' names weren't mentioned in the movie till the very end. Well, i can tell you that the names (except that evil adjudant(?)) are mentioned quite early in the beginnings, but mysteriously, NOT in the English versions O_o ! I'm on the verge of thinking that it must be some sort of conspiracy to ruin this otherwise great movie... I suggest you watch the korean version....or get a korean friend to actually translate you the real lines, instead of getting confused at the horrible English sub/dub.

anyway. oh, and i honestly don't understand all those who say that the story wasn't original,good enough,etc etc. i mean, it might not be the most mind-boggling thing on earth, but the twists are original enough to set it wiiiide-apart from your average anime/movies where all you have is 90 minutes of explosions, punches, boobies, and some supposedly dramatic ending (that ppl apparently find "original").

For those of you who still think the story isn't well explained in the movie...well, there's always the novelized version that came out in Korea (no English versions, sorry) that gives all the background story between the characters and all. Like what really happened in Shua & co.'s childhood, the characters' motives, blah blah...

Boy, is this review getting longer and longer....

A final word... considering the depressing situation in Korea (let's just say that animation/comics are ignored by most and the market terribly limited) the creators and all those who worked on this film did an unbelievable job. I really hope things get better back there, cuz it's not the skills they lack, but public support and funding.

oh, i guess i have to rate this thing. 10/10 for the story (9/10 for the actual flow), 10/10 for the art, 15/10 for the efforts lol.

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23 out of 25 people found the following comment useful :-
Bravo Korea..., 20 marraskuu 2003
9/10
Author: wannas81 from Paris, France

Great great movie...tech-wise. Ok, granted it's not the most elaborate or original of movie plots. It's the eternal story about love and jealousy, power and corruption, good and evil but it has got a Miyazaki twist to its story, or at least tries to emulate the master, rather unsuccessfully I might add. The animation is like nothing I have seen before though, and I HAVE seen Final Fantasy. Main problem: the characters are poorly developed, if not at all. And the story doesn't grab you by the collar and throw you in its world, so you're always "aware" of the animation, it being the masterpiece that it is... But again, it's a movie well worth seeing, some shots will even make your jaw drop and eyes bulge, that's how much the scenes are beautifully drawn and animated. The authenticity of the "small" things (rain dropping pattern, eyes watering) is what I personally marvelled at more than anything else. Oh, and an out-of-this-world soundtrack to top it off, with some exquisite pieces that matched the moods perfectly. It was the only thing that really "sucked me in" a few times... All in all, it is a very promising start to all-korean animations.

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19 out of 23 people found the following comment useful :-
Wow, 29 elokuu 2005
7/10
Author: athena24 from Israel

This is definitely more than a pure animation. It's more like a movie, only an animated one. My emphasize here is on the word movie. Not because it has a brilliant colorful animation, that sometimes appears to be 3 dimensional, and sometimes 2 dimensional ( which is spectacular by itself). It has that. But I'm thinking of it as a movie because of high details. Actually, this is direction. When I watch animation, I don't really care who's the director of it. In fact, Until this one I forgot there is one in each animation like in every film. This movie is full of details that make it look much better than other animation. I'll mention some of them, that I found the most interesting.

1. Near the beginning of the movie, there is a scene with a tunnel exit covered by a waterfall, that flows not quite as one could expect of it. You get an explanation of the irrational flow a couple minutes after, but isn't it amazing they thought about it? 2. Flies around a lamp. When was the last time you saw flies around a lamp (in animation), just as part of the view, because they attracted to light and not to portray something ( like trash site, bad smell, dirt or other metaphoric things that flies represent). 3. While Jay was entering the rebel zone a guard watched him through the optics of a sniper rifle. They could show us only the guard, without the mentioned aspect. But no, this is what a direction is about!!! 4. Jay's fight with the army's commander. Just watch the details.

I could possibly continue with some more examples,like shooting scenes from different angles and so, though those were the most vivid to me. Think about it. Think about they thought about it.

In one word the animation was excellent. In some words it was a tasteful mixture, with live colorful characters and places. I don't really think they could do it better. Both the 3 dimensional animation and the 2 dimensional looked awesome. I really don't agree with those who say that the latter was dull and poorly done. As I said, I don't think it could be done better.

Another aspect of this movie, that stroked me with it's uniqueness, at least from western animation, is the brutality and the naturalism. I don't know much animation (again western), where a gun was violently put against somebody's head, shooting it, and spilling the blood all around. I don't think this kind of violence is good or bad, but in a way it completes the movie. I just get the feeling that it's necessary. This also brings it closer to movies because there is some convention (unspoken) that animation is for younger audience.

Well, the movie is not all good. Like every other movie, the plot is a crucial thing. Wonderful Day clearly lacks one. It tries to be scientifically ingenious in it's main idea which makes no sense if one thinks about it (you don't really have to think, its obvious enough). There is another thing that bothers. This movie involves a drama among three characters, which at the end gets exaggerated and too emotional ( emotional not for the viewer but for the characters themselves). There are a lot of animated and non-animated movies with that kind of drama in them. Some of them pass this drama to the audience, while others try but fail. Wonderful Days belongs to the latter. It has a good revealing of the drama at the beginning and the middle of the movie, but in the end it disappoints.

Wonderful Days' flaws are minor compared to its highlights. I would recommend it to anyone who likes animation and is not disturbed with excessive violence.

My rating: 7.5/10

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8 out of 10 people found the following comment useful :-
Stunning animation, 6 heinäkuu 2004
Author: Kujo1 from Toronto, ON Canada

I was completely hooked from the opening sequence, which is breathtaking. I'm not sure if I've scene a better combination of traditional 2D animation, and 3D animation in an animated film. It's simply stunning (My jaw literally dropped during of some the scenes). This movie is worth seeing just for the visuals alone. The story is by no means amazing, but it was good enough to keep me interested. It definitely could have been better, but it didn't stop from really enjoying this film. I should point out that I viewed the original Korean language English subtitled "Wonderful Days", and not the English Dubbed "Sky Blue".

8 out of 10. Korean animation has a bright future.

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8 out of 10 people found the following comment useful :-
A good story with Breathtaking Visuals and Music, 10 kesäkuu 2004
9/10
Author: akarp55

Despite never hearing of the film prior to watching it, the opening sequence alone had me hooked. Great visual design, and vehicle animation complemented nicely by a soundtrack that has just the right mix of classical, neo rock, and new age allows this film to surpass similar Animated/Computer Generated feature films. While the story isn't the most innovative amongst Science Fiction anime, it has its high points particularly in the beginning and conclusion. The director shifts perspectives from action scenes towards slower paced dramatic scenes before returning to the action for an excellent tempo. The use of flashback also helps to fill in the backgrounds of the characters.

The use of methodically paced travel sequences coupled with superb music would really have to be experienced on the big screen preferably with Digital Light Processing(DLP) to fully appreciate its beauty.

Fans of the Animatrix, Titan A.E., and Princess Mononoke would probably enjoy this, but I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this to a broader audience because of its superb audio visual design, and landscape sequences. Worth Owning on Video for its high quality. Would be nice to see this given a professional transfer to DVD with known Actors much the way Armitage 2 and Princess Mononoke was given in Europe and North America.

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9 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
Stunning eye candy wants only for a better story., 25 elokuu 2004
8/10
Author: Brian Thibodeau from Sarnia, Ontario

WONDERFUL DAYS (2003) Directed by Kim Mun-saeng, this is a stunningly designed and rendered flat animation/CG/model hybrid that only wants for a better story. Despite it's box office failure (still the most successful Korean animated film to date I heard), it's bodes well for future endeavours in the genre. At it's core, its about the `haves' in an environmentally-polluted future world plotting to wipe out the `have-nots' so they can replenish the dwindling energy supplies to their self-contained megacity. Fortunately, the have-nots have a brooding outcast on their side who knows how to put things right. The 2-disc Korean DVD is packed with extras, as is an expanded 3-disc Korean DVD. The films does, I might add, improve greatly on repeat viewings. I give it an 8, largely for artistic merit.

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14 out of 24 people found the following comment useful :-
Great animation, poor story., 4 joulukuu 2003
Author: daredevil_81

A few words of encouragement.

Wonderful Days probably has some of the best animation in the world, and can rival films like Ghost in the shell, Akira and Princess Mononoke. But the story was poorly written and severely underdeveloped.

I hope to see more from Tin House, and Wonderful Days should not set them back. Hopefully they will learn from this mistake and create classic animation that can rival the likes of Production I.G. or Studio Ghibli.

If Moon - Saeng Kim is reading this, get out there and show us what you're really made of, we know you can do much better. Also hire a team of world class scriptwriters for a change.

6.5 / 10

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2 out of 2 people found the following comment useful :-
The Ultimate Fusion Of The Astounding And The Generic, 29 kesäkuu 2007
6/10
Author: benjamin_lappin from England

Sky Blue or Wonderful Days? It's obvious the former is the superior title for this film as it actually has relevance to the plot and the revelations within. Regardless, Sky Blue (or Wonderful Days) is an extremely engaging Korean (dare I say it without having negative responses plastered over my review?) 'anime' which is just absolutely ridiculous in its ability to leave you awe-struck with the beauty it possesses. Created over a seven year period Sky Blue fuses together computerised technology with a hand drawn elements to create something which can be said to be unique, then you have to wonder what they were doing over this seven year period in terms of scripting. That is certainly not unique.

There is much to love with Sky Blue on your first viewing, as I will testify to. It is engaging beyond belief on premiere, the story rings true, you identify with characters you become emotionally attached. The action sequences are sumptuous and I cannot describe the animation enough because it is simply gorgeous, incredibly detailed with a feel to it which is so fresh, new and vibrant it knocks the stuffing out of "comedic" ogres and talking fish. However, hindsight being that wonderful tool it is the realisation occurs in the aftermath of this film, rising through the cloud to shine bright into your mind, that the plot is no better than that of talking fish and kittens in shoes because it is so mind bogglingly generic. We've seen it all before, and yes there is a school of thought which says that being generic does not mean it is never going to be spectacular, I can agree with that, but you cannot base a premise of giving this film ten out of ten purely on the animation, the story must accompany it and unfortunately it falls slightly flat. There is nothing offencive or intrusive about the plot, as I stated it is engaging, but there have been far too many films in which we have seen these sequences played out with the same results time after time after time.

Empire claims this to be "Akira For The 21st Century", I'm sorry but no. For one there is a notable lack of philosophy for that claim to even be levelled at this film. Yes characters have views, opinions and mantras which they go through, but the "philosophy" is far too one- dimensional, working on one premise alone, for that claim to even contain any grounding in reality, let alone virtual. However, having said that, this film manages to achieve what the Wachowskis could not in their third instalment, a means to conclude a story with dignity. Yes we have seen Sky Blues plot line before, yes it is generic, but somehow you end up liking this film regardless, it has too many plus points, too many saving graces. Our three protagonists love triangle is (insert the word of the day here) but is still emotive enough to draw you in, and the subsidiary characters provide little quirks with enough sparks of life and freshness to allow you to settle in and feel at ease with the film.

When using the tools of hindsight and criticism combined you realise that this film, for all its faults, is hugely entertaining and at the end of the day, that's what they've set out to achieve. The director has created a film which is fun, exciting, action-packed, thoughtful and above all just incredibly beautiful, and even an average plot can be pulled up from the wasteland when fused together with originality on other levels. Sky Blue is a revelation in animation and in its own way is an Akira for the 21st Century. Where Akira broke Japanese animation into a Westernised world, Moon Sang Kim and these creators from Korea have pushed forward their own brand of animation saying to Hollywood "anything you can do, we can improvise on better", and that alone deserves plaudits. Expect to be dazzled and prepare to enoy but be ready to come out expecting a whole lot more.

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3 out of 4 people found the following comment useful :-
just the English Dub, 17 marraskuu 2005
5/10
Author: Phil Savory from Northants, England

I had high expectations coming into this and was left feeling somewhat underwhelmed. I've heard that the Korean dub is much better and i wouldn't be surprised because the English dub is woeful. The voice acting is stoic and you can't help but feel that they needlessly manipulated the dialogue to the point where the films tone and message are obliterated. The movie felt cold, I couldn't get involved with any characters, they were well animated, but lacked expression and personality.

However the films saving grace is the animation, an interesting blend of styles that apparently took 7 years to perfect. The backgrounds are stunning, but I think they pushed themselves so far in making it work that they were limited in where they could take the story. I feel that the concept was good but it would have worked better as a series. The characters were under developed and the film felt short and insubstantial considering its ambitious themes.

Despite my disappointment I am eager to see the Korean Dub to see if their is an improvement, but i don't recommend the English Dub.

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11 out of 20 people found the following comment useful :-
A triumph of visuals hampered by a failure of storytelling, 19 syyskuu 2003
Author: soakrates from San Jose, CA

"Wonderful Days" strives for so much, it's almost a tragedy that it actually achieves so little. The problem with the film isn't that the plot is thin, nor is it that we've seen these ideas before. The term "variations on a theme" exists for a reason.

Rather, the problem lies with the poorly conceived story and characters that get left out in the cold with horrible dialogue and about as much depth as a kiddie pool.

The opening, for instance, tells us of a gigantic, man-made refuge known as ECOBAN, which is owned and operated by the ruling class. ECOBAN runs on pollution, which of course means that ruling class prey on the beleaguered proletariats to create more pollution to sustain ECOBAN. We are, of course, never told -how- ECOBAN manages to transform pollution into a power source, nor are we told why anyone smart enough to build something like ECOBAN would want to create something that necessitates -more- pollution. I presume it is to keep the upper class fed, but seeing as they already had the resources to build something like ECOBAN in the first place....

But I digress. The point is that ECOBAN exists as nothing more than a plot contrivance to set up some admittedly fantastic visual sequences later on. But you wouldn't know that from the way the movie treats it. Given the background, I would gather that ECOBAN was meant to be a symbol of the upper class' greed and arrogance. That's all well and good, but the very idea of ECOBAN is so implausible and the story thread so inadequate that it quickly becomes nothing more than a neat-looking playground.

This is not the film's only shortcoming. The characters are woefully underdeveloped and uninteresting, so much so that right after I watched the film, I could barely remember their names. When they're not fighting, leaping, driving, or shooting, they're spending most of their time occupying the frame, doing and saying things of absolutely no consequence. New friendships and alliances pop up literally out of nowhere, and some characters disappear and reappear as if the writers had forgotten about them and then remembered just 15 minutes before deadline.

It goes without saying that the animation is great. In general, the CG meshes with the 2D animation quite well, and the action sequences are frenetic and imaginative. While the filmmakers might be brilliant action choreographers, however, they are not writers. Not here, anyway.

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