06 May 2006
Posted by Martin [Tags: arthouse, Yasuhiro Yoshiura]
In the distant future the human race lives in an industrial and artificial environment far from the world outside. The past few decades of history are all but lost and there is a shrinking minority of people who work in the extensive Archives to piece together the Earth that used to be. One of those is a quiet and thoughtful guy by the name of Ura, who discovers an intriguing video recording that could irreversably alter his perception of the world he knows.
Perhaps understandably
Pale Cocoon has been compared with Makoto Shinkai's
Voices of a Distant Star. While there are some similarities, such as the reliance on CGI in the animation, the short running time and the small cast of characters,
Pale Cocoon has a storyline and feel all of its own: the surroundings are in varying shades of grey with numerous corridors, stairwells and lengths of plumbing that make it really unwelcoming and claustrophobic. Only a handful of the characters are named and they interact in a very quiet and understated way - it's a world filled with pessimism, apathy and melancholy.
The atmosphere of the film is conveyed so effectively that it does feel quite depressing at times but the visuals and Ura's discovery are more than enough to draw the viewer into the story. It would be too easy to spoil things here (there is only half an hour of plot to talk about after all) but it delivers a really clever twist at the end - reminiscent of a (very good) short story by Arthur C Clarke that I read a few years ago. The music is especially worthy of a mention - delicate piano lines alongside ethereal electronic harmonies and a gorgeous vocal piece as it nears its conclusion.
Not everyone will enjoy a philosophical sci-fi film that may not even make complete sense on first viewing but
Pale Cocoon is an impressive effort - especially considering it's (I think) the director's first foray into animated film. The computer-generated visuals are a little strange at first but convey the aesthetics and general feel of the setting very well and the soundtrack is a delight. The underlying themes offer more than mere eye candy though; credit is also due for achieving everything that it does in such a short duration. An odd little piece but well worth tracking down.
[Filed under OAVs, Movies and Full Series] [Tags: arthouse, Yasuhiro Yoshiura]
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Posted on June 4th, 2008 @ 7:12 am
So I’m a few years late, but it seems Yoshiura created Aquatic Language in 2002, before Pale Cocoon. Here’s a youtube link to the English dubbed version.
And here’s the trailer for Yoshiura’s new film, Eve no Jikan.