Change Your Image
Falcon_of_Light
Ratings
Most Recently Rated
Reviews
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018)
When the Magic finally runs out
'The Crimes of Grindelwald' is the second movie in the Harry Potter franchise dedicated to the events that took place long before Harry was born - and portrays the rise of Gellert Grindelwald.
After having been a long-time Harry Potter fan, growing up with the books and movies, I welcomed every extension of the Wizarding World I could get. I remember well how fascinated I was when I first read the very first book and how magical and special it all felt to me, all the while being able to completely relate with those characters, with them being kids themselves. It opened up a whole new world to me and it was (and is) only rivaled by my passion for Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. I have so many great memories and so many beautiful moments I associate with these books. Like, when I chose to read Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, while everyone else was celebrating New Year's Eve and I could dive into this other world that I had all to myself. Harry Potter is a large part of my childhood and very, very dear to me. It is also why I respected J. K. Rowling for her amazing work, for her gift to children and adults alike, to escape from the real world for a short while and join this other, magical piece of life.
I was hyped when 'The Cursed Child' was published. Although, not for long. I was shocked how little these characters had in common with who I thought they were, with those three teenagers fighting for justice and peace. I was disappointed by the highly hectic and jumpy plot that read like a badly written piece of fanfiction. And so, I held little hope for 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them'. But to my immense joy, I was positively surprised. They introduced a different kind of 'magic', a different way of this Wizarding World I grew up to love. A new setting, new characters, new events. It wasn't exactly Harry Potter, and yet it was, because you could still feel the magic in it. This special sprinkle of mystery and the characteristic odd sense of humor, that only J.K.R. can make work. So yes, when I went to the cinema to watch 'The Crimes of Grindelwald', I dared to hope once more. I was excited, I was curious.
I have to say, before I get to the actual movie, that I know almost everything there is to know about Harry Potter from reading the books. I truly loved piecing it all together, remembering details about the characters, making assumptions about their past and imagining what it might have looked like all those years ago at Hogwarts. I have always wished for a backstory. Be it of the rise of the Dark Lord or from the days when the Marauders were students at Hogwarts, or even before that, when Grindelwald was terrorizing Europe. So, this movie, finally shedding light on these aforementioned crimes of Grindelwald, was a huge fan service to me - and not in a negative way. I expected to see a dark, haunting, political thriller with Grindelwald in this magical world I had come to love so much. I expected it to strike a nerve, to make me feel the fear those Wizards and Muggles must have experienced. But, alas, it did not.
The movie was a huge let-down in many ways. But the one way I cannot forgive, the one aspect that still pains me the most, is that it has finally lost its magic. It did not feel like any of the books or movies before, magic wasn't special anymore, I didn't feel this tingle I associate with childhood memories and the wonders of the Wizarding World, no - it felt like a sci-fi movie entirely relying on special effects and ignoring character development and plot progress. Spells were mostly performed without wand or incantation, shiny and grand without real meaning, never before introduced but suddenly everyday knowledge. The movie was overdone and boring at the same time, both visually and plot wise. Newt Scamander was reduced to a loverboy and not given the chance to truly shine in his role as the endearing creature fanatic he is. Johnny Depp's performance was lacking everything Grindelwald was supposed to be: charismatic, convincing, witty, influential. Nagini's introduction was inexistent. She was just there... that's it. And Credence, well, without spoiling anything, let's just say they couldn't agree on what to make of him so they just threw in any idea they had. But there are also little things, things that annoy me as a Potter fanatic, things that are inconsistent, not congruent with what we know of the Potter universe. Like Dumbledore, being a DADA teacher instead of the Transfiguration teacher we know he was. Or Prof. McGonagall, teaching at Hogwarts before she was even supposed to have graduated....Especially, since it explicitly states in the books that she has been teaching since 1956, while 'The Crimes of Grindelwald' takes place in 1926/27. This is just a huge slap in the face for any Potter fact nerd (aside from other inconsistencies).
But I could have forgiven that, I could have overlooked the small mistakes (even though they did feel huge), if not for the underwhelming portrayal of Hogwarts. Why did they have to drag Hogwarts back into it? Why did they have to ruin the magic it held, the mystery it bore, just for a few, unnecessary shots? It didn't feel the same, it didn't feel special anymore, it had gotten ordinary. It was, to put it simply, ruined.
I left the cinema with a feeling of dread, but not the one I had been hoping to get from the haunting performance or terrifyingly amazing plot. It was dread, because I knew, this was it. I did not care about the characters in the movie, I wasn't captured by any of the intended emotional moments. I don't think I could handle another punch in the stomach, not another let-down. I am entirely uncertain whether I'll even continue to watch the supposed next three movies, even though they are bound to cover (at least partially) my most favorite part: Lord Voldemort's rise to power. Maybe, just maybe, we ought to have let our imagination take the lead and speak for itself. Some things should remain in our heads and hearts without having to be plastered to a cinematic screen. I felt this way when watching 'The Hobbit' and I felt it today once more when watching 'The Crimes of Grindelwald'. This is not to say that the movie as a standalone film was awful - for it was not. But it doesn't deserve to be associated with anything that relates to Harry Potter. I truly hope that others may still find joy or discover part of their beloved magic in this movie, even when I could not. For me, this is the final nail in the coffin of the Fantastic Beasts franchise. May it rest in peace.
Yuri!!! On Ice (2016)
A heartwarming and visually superb anime
I was not sure whether I should give Yuri!!! on ICE a try. But because of its praise I thought I had to watch it to convince myself of whether or not this anime truly merits its high ratings. And it totally does!
We get to know 23 y/o Yuri Katsuki, a highly skilled figure skater who has just suffered a terrible blow to his career as he lands the last place in the Grand Prix Final competition and travels home to his hometown Hasetsu to see his family for the first time in a long time. Because of this crushing defeat he is unsure whether he should continue figure skating or leave it for good. He is a shy but kind person and highly insecure about his skills, especially after the incident at the Grand Prix Final.
His greatest idol since early childhood, 27 y/o Victor Nikiforov, scored once again the first place and is internationally highly acclaimed. It seems that he is the complete opposite of Yuri K. with his cool attitude, his easy charms and exceptional talent and flair when dancing on the ice. However, he seems to lack the understanding of personal space and his bluntness sometimes borders rudeness.
Meanwhile in Hasetsu, Yuri tries to rekindle his love for figure skating by flawlessly copying one of Nikiforov's choreographies, unaware that his childhood friend has been filming his performance and uploaded it to the net. Since it was tagged with Nikiforov's name and because Yuri himself is quite well known among figure skaters, the video goes viral and eventually reaches Victor Nikiforov himself, whose interest is peaked. Because he has reached the very top of his career and it gets harder and harder to surprise the public with a new and exciting choreography, he decides to leave Russia and travel all the way to Hasetsu (Japan) to train Yuri. While this decision is of course not at all what Victor's trainer had in mind, it is absolutely something that Victor would do, because he seems to be this impulsive, careless type for whom everything somehow just works out.
And so Yuri is surprised at his home by Victor, barging in and declaring he'll train him IF he manages to get back in shape. Yuri feels very uncomfortable at first, because it's not everyday that your idol shows up at your doorstep wanting to train you while exclaiming that you have gotten fat (yes, Victor is very direct). When Yuri Nr. 2 (henceforth Yuri P.) shows up in Yuri K.'s hometown, because Victor promised him (and obviously forgot) to develop a choreography for his figure skating debut in the older age class, Yuri K. and Yuri P. become rivals. Although Yuri K. would prefer to be friends, the always angry and immature 15 y/o Yuri P. makes this impossible. Victor, realizing that he messed up, decides to host a mini competition between Yuri K. and Yuri P. and the winner would then be trained by Victor for the upcoming Grand Prix competition. He assigns each of them a choreography he developed, intentionally choosing the theme that seems less suiting for the individual to provide them with a challenge and to broaden their skillset.
While both Yuris perform wonderfully, Yuri K. makes the cut, as he convinces with his passion more than Yuri P. who is undeniably superior when it comes to technical skill. And so Victor trains Yuri for the new season.
While one might assume that the story focuses on the implied romance between Yuri and Victor, this is not at all the case! Instead, it focuses on the plot, which is quite believable, while still exploring the individual characters (various figure skaters, their backgrounds, troubles and joys). It showcases a variety of choreographies with original music tracks and the hard trainings of the participants, the suspense at the competitions and the mixed feelings when cheering for a friends all the while hoping that it will be you who's moving up. As a former dancer having experienced the pressure of competitions and hard trainings taking up all of your free time, leaving you with blisters and bruises, I felt very nostalgic, remembering those hardships and the immense happiness.
Of course, aside from the main plot and the competitions, we get to see the difficulties in the relationship between an inexperienced coach and an insecure figure skater but also follow their journey of mutual personal growth. It is easy to like the characters, because most of time, the anime feels like a slice of life, despite it clearly being a sports anime. There is resolve for every character, with Yuri P. finding his strength in family and getting more mature, Yuri K. finally learning what it means to be supported and pushed by someone you love and discovering his confidence, and Victor finding out that people require patience and care and that it takes more than sheer skill to be a good coach.
There is humor, sadness, happiness, anger and pain. But none of it is over the top or over exploited.
This is clearly a feel-good anime and the visuals are gorgeous, and I mean gorgeous!! The animation of the choreographies is meticulous and fluid. I enjoyed every second of it. The only negative aspect that one could point out is the focus on too many minor characters and sometimes over-indulging in choreographies of people we are not that interested in.
Despite some moments of second-hand embarrassment (the early Yuri K. is sometimes so clumsy that we want to avert our gaze in shame), the anime is touching and believable, making it one of my favorites so far. I therefore give Yuri!!! on ICE 9/10.
Love Stage!! (2014)
They handled it all wrong - and here is why
I had my reservations watching this anime, because in general I do not enjoy romance that much, regardless of gender. However, for lack of another anime to watch and because I felt I should probably give it a try, I started watching Love Stage!! ... and I was shocked. Especially after knowing how well it has been received by the public.
It starts out telling the story of introverted Otaku Izumi whose family is in the showbiz and pushes him into the same direction. When he was still a child, he had been dressed up as a girl for a wedding commercial because the original cast dropped out last minute. There, he met Ryouma who participated in the commercial as well. Fast forward ten years and now famous Ryouma tries to find the 'girl' from the commercial by insisting they should redo the commercial now showcasing the kids from then all grown up marrying themselves. And so it happens that Izumi has to play a girl once again without anyone else knowing he's actually a boy. And only after the commercial Ryouma discovers that his long term crush is actually...a boy. So far so good. We have conflicting feelings in both main characters for very understandable reasons.
-- NOW POTENTIAL SPOILERS AHEAD --
Some time after the incident, Ryouma visits Izumi at his place to once and for all get the image of that 'girl' out of his mind. He waits there for Izumi while Izumi's parents and guardian leave and then when Izumi arrives, Ryouma starts chasing him and undressing him, supposedly to make sure that he's really a boy so that he will no longer have to think about him.
This alone is quite disturbing because the feeling of having your clothes violently ripped off by some creep isn't all that romantic. But it gets worse. Upon seeing Izumi's naked chest Ryouma does not feel the revulsion he hoped for and instead pins Izumi down and starts sexually assaulting him! Yes, indeed. While Izumi is crying and begging him to stop. If his older brother hadn't shown up to forcefully stop Ryouma, who knows what would have happened. So the situation is the following: a so far straight, eighteen year old introvert who has never even kissed before has been sexually harassed by a guy in his own home. Izumi then proceeds to hide out in his room without eating anything or going to school, naturally because of the trauma that incident has caused.
He finally opens up to his guardian, Rei, and asks him whether it is normal for a guy to feel aroused when touched intimately by another guy - and Rei says that of course it is, it cannot be helped. After that, Izumi feels better. Clearly he felt like a sick person for feeling aroused during such an assault. And I believe this is what most rape victims also have to deal with, this feeling of disgust about themselves for having their bodies respond in a way their mind truly does not want to. And even though Ryouma apologizes afterwards and wants to make it up, I find this is not acceptable. It does not explain nor justify him assaulting Izumi and it doesn't matter that he's feeling insecure and conflicted about having feelings for a guy. It made me truly angry that the show then proceeded to deepen their bonds as friends when one counterpart seemed to have serious issues with respecting personal boundaries and intimacy.
In a scene where Ryouma helps Izumi out finishing his manga and Izumi eventually falls asleep, Ryouma repeatedly kisses him. Romantic? I think not. Izumi told Ryouma that they may start out as texting buddies but that's it. At that point in the story he did not reciprocate any of Ryouma's feelings. Ryouma was abusing the situation of Izumi being asleep. Another highly debatable action of his. I am not saying his character is bad, he seems like a nice enough guy, truly caring for Izumi. But that behavior has a strong undertone of abuse and harassment. Their friendship eventually becomes stronger and after Izumi was turned away by the publishing house because his manga was so bad, he ran away from home and visited Ryouma's place in the hopes to stay there for a while- for lack of other friends or places to stay. Ryouma agrees and lets him sleep over. But the next day, Izumi tells Ryouma what happened and eventually Ryouma explains to Izumi that this situation is difficult for him, having Izumi sleep in his bed, while he's having those feelings for him. Izumi - still very down and now feeling guilty - tells Ryouma he may do with him what he pleases and lies down on his back, turning away his head and averting his eyes. But instead of assuring Izumi that it is ok and that he should not do anything he does not want to, he just takes advantage of the situation (again!!) and undresses Izumi, touching and kissing him. And Izumi? He lies there unresponsive, head turned away, crying. Yes... how very considerate and romantic. Seriously, by then I thought this show must be a joke. But instead they eventually made Izumi fall in love with Ryouma, accepting that his first love was a boy instead of a girl.
So, what should we take from that? Persistent sexual assault will eventually lead to a relationship? That attempted rape is fine? I mean, what the hell? How can you expect an eighteen year old virgin to not feel all confused after he had his first sexual experience with a guy who forced himself on him? This is wrong in so many ways and it made me terribly angry and sad, that apparently, the general public think this is ok as long as it happens between boys. If that is the case, then something is very, very wrong with our society. My rating will thus also be affected by this. While the animation is quite good and the soundtrack is decent, the story and its message are so repulsive that I cannot give anything above a 3.
I am aware that this rating seems biased, but I cannot overlook the message of this anime that will be watched by adolescent viewers. Hence, my harsh judgement.
Last note: I am not a prude, not at all in fact. I have watched shows including sexually explicit scenes (very much so), showcasing various rape scenes. But there has never been any doubt that it was wrong. This anime however wants the viewer to believe that it's just part of the relationship and that the fact that Izumi eventually falls for Ryouma can explain everything away. This line of thinking deeply disgusts me, because it might blur the lines between what is acceptable and what is not even further, and it adds to the taboo of men speaking up when being assaulted.
Psycho-Pass (2012)
Intelligent and disturbing
The anime really is something else. Although it starts off as rather fast-paced, it truly compensates for it by letting you make up your own mind on the issues depicted instead of having them dished on a silver platter. The viewer is introduced to a world, where every person is scanned for their Psycho-Pass, a 'hue' that reflects their current affinity towards crimes.
Law enforcement is based on the Sibyl system (calculating these crime coefficients) in the people and directing the 'police' towards those with very clouded hues (reaching crime coefficients above 100). The 'police' consists of investigators (detectives) and enforcers (former detectives whose hues have permanently clouded or potentially criminal individuals with useful abilities) and they incapacitate (for mandatory rehabilitation) or eliminate the criminals according to their Psycho-Pass, which can be scanned by aiming a specialized weapon at the target. The investigators and enforcers each must synch with their weapon beforehand and the target can only be shot when their crime coefficient reaches a critical value, which means that investigators or enforcers cannot act without the permission of the Sybil system.
At first glance it seems a little outlandish and the concept of such a Psycho-Pass is debatable. But as we follow a newly assigned female investigator on her quest to fulfill her duty, one realizes that the anime is much, much darker than anticipated and it raises several central questions about how far humanity should go to enforce order and harmony, how much personal freedom a given individual should be allowed and whether or not that freedom is more important than safety.
The conversations throughout the anime are intelligent, well constructed and not over the top. The protagonists are likable, capable and each of them is in his/her own way unique and relevant. Even the villain is a highly intriguing, interesting and well-read individual. There is character development in all the protagonists and the action scenes are amazing and thrilling. Some scenes are deeply disturbing and although not overly gory, still quite violent in nature. There is no boring minute in this anime and the mysterious tone just adds to the suspense of it all.
I therefore recommend it to anyone who's an attentive watcher, has a passion for thrillers and likes to think about deeper questions regarding human nature and the ideal society.
Naruto (2002)
Be patient, it grows on you...
I'm not here to bash Naruto, really. But since it is so popular and I keep getting asked by my friends whether or not they should give it a try, I thought I'd write a short summary of the criticism I have, concerning the positive and negative aspects of the anime.
Obviously, the series is aimed at teens, with a very young main character called Naruto who's lost both his parents and seems to struggle quite a lot in his village due to having the nine tailed fox sealed within him, a beast that nearly destroyed all of Konoha (Naruto's village) when he was still a toddler. Naturally, but unfairly so, he is cast out by many of the townsfolk.
By the time we meet Naruto, he's finishing the ninja academy and has to complete the final tests (and has difficulties mastering the task) to advance to the training level in separate teams as ge-nin (beginner ninja in training). He is a loud, obnoxious kid and he isn't the brightest bulb on the porch either. But we can forgive his demeanor by remembering that he grew up without parents and that his teacher, who buys him ramen from time to time, is the only proxy-family member he has. We learn quite early on that he is dead set on eventually becoming the leader of Konoha (Hokage) and this delusional goal keeps him motivated and he studies even harder to maybe one day achieve this dream of his. I guess one could say that the most redeeming qualities of his are probably that he's a very loyal friend, honest (blunt) and a hard worker.
Especially after being assigned Kakashi's (a very capable Jo-nin, elite ninja) team to complete low level ninja missions and improve their abilities, we get to see him interact with his two teammates (popular and ever-brooding Sasuke and insecure and Sasuke-focused Sakura), trying his very best to eventually get accepted by them. Each episode introduces us a little more to the ways of the ninja and brings the main characters closer together.
However, there are some serious flaws with the main character Naruto, starting with his highly inconsistent powers. Even the very first episode is a roller coaster showing that Naruto is a.) terribly clumsy and a terrible student and b.) very (ridiculously) powerful. He seems to be at an imbalance and highly inconsistent. This pattern of him being the underdog and incapable of achieving anything remotely useful vs. Naruto the savior and immensely powerful ninja student re-occurs throughout the series. It can be explained away to some extent by the fact that a monster is slumbering within him that he cannot control (at first) but that possesses a hilarious amount of chakra (energy). Still, this back and forth between loser and hero is a little annoying. Needless to say that this is yet another anime basing every fight on the popular motto 'good guy fights bad guy, good guy gets beaten up, nearly loses, then collects himself and beats bad guy' - with very few exceptions.
There are a lot of filler episodes and even during the most action loaded scenes, the action is just drawn out, sometimes unbearably so. The characters explain everything, and I mean everything. The viewer does not get to just watch the show, the subtext is literally hammered into you by the characters explaining each of their very moves and thought processes, sometimes while talking to the opponent (as in 'you know what, I see that you managed to dodge my attack but now I am recalculating and using another Jutsu to beat you by stepping up and facing you once more'). It is way, way too much unnecessary information stretching otherwise good action scenes into lengthy inner (or worse, outer) monologues.
The animation is rather cheap, which diminishes the overall quality and impacts the scenes in a negative way with repetitive elements. But it does not fall short in the entertainment section including some truly funny moments (that are mostly - surprisingly- not overdone) and even though I do not like to admit it, the main character grows on you. I'd say that the anime gets better with each season, introducing new fellow students and real villains (Orochimaru is totally creepy - makes me glad to not have watched this when I was a kid) and the tone shifts towards a more serious one.
There is also character development of the protagonists (and antagonists): Naruto, albeit annoying, grows up a little and becomes more focused and more consistent, Sasuke gets a lot of screen time, including him drifting towards a darker path and while Sasuke-kun's Nr. 1 fangirl Sakura is mere decoration in the first season, she evolves quite a bit and eventually becomes a strong and useful teammate.
All in all it is a totally watchable anime. It's not amazing, in my opinion not above a 7/10, and it requires patience from the viewer, but it has character and ... it has Kakashi, the team's teacher, who's a multifaceted and interesting character and probably the most likable one, too. So, I'd say give it a try if you're willing to overlook the (various) flaws, who knows, you might end up liking it. (And if you somehow make it through all of Naruto and start with Naruto: Shippuden the anime improves quite a bit.)