[Categories: OAVs, Movies and Full Series]
Kino’s Journey movie 2: -For You-
I didn’t expect 2008 to begin as well as this: I’d almost forgotten about the second Kino no Tabi feature film until I saw it subbed and the torrent link posted up. My only complaint is that, like the Life Goes On prequel movie, it’s essentially a bonus episode rather than a longer feature-length film. Nevertheless, I welcome even one new Kino episode with open arms; this one is as equally thought-provoking as the best ones that the original Kino’s Journey TV series offered.
There are two recurring things that hit me during the time I watched the series (which I really need to rewatch sometime soon): firstly, it is possibly the most impartial and unassuming anime I’ve ever seen. Secondly, it has a sort-of ‘iyashikei trap’ that never fails to surprise me. Both of these things are central to why this film works so well.
The impartiality stems from Kino’s approach of judging nothing by initial appearances and keeping whatever opinions she has to herself, save for her dialogues with Hermes and the occasional diplomatically-answered question when the situation demands it. In one sense she’s a distant and hard-to-read character but at the same time her impassive outlook is the perfect lens in which to view the places she visits. In this case, it’s a land in which the central philosophy is that the ends justify the means; faced with one final challenge to create a perfect and happy civilisation, the inhabitants will resort to measures that we may look upon with horror and condemnation in our own society.
The seemingly impartial stance that Kino (and the film’s narrative style) takes is perfect for posing questions at the viewer without offering answers up on a plate. Just how shocking and deplorable is this exactly? Is a proportion of the population a fair price for helping another, also unspecified, number? It is unavoidable perhaps that we assess this type of choice by placing it alongside our own subjective standards, but fortunately this point is not lost on the writers of the show here: the whole scenario is shown from both sides and leaves the viewer to make up his or her own mind. As always, Kino’s Journey never insults its audience’s intelligence, takes it for granted or preaches to us as to what is ‘right’ or ‘wrong’; this is an unusual approach but when it does happen the feeling you get from it really is quite something.
The ‘iyashikei trap’ is a term I’ve had to pretty much make up on the spot in order to convey the other striking impression I get from many Kino episodes, this one included. I’ve grown to appreciate iyashikei for its serene and thoughtful atmospherics but while Kino’s Journey has plenty of what I love about this genre - pauses for contemplation, a soothing colour palette and a sparse and restful soundtrack and the like - it also makes some marvellously jarring about-turns that never fail to take me by surprise. In keeping with the show’s fundamental observation that beauty and ugliness in this world go hand-in-hand, there are moments of tenderness and light that are juxtaposed with or interrupted by those of pitiless darkness. In the same way that Kino’s androgynous and kindly persona is also a shrewd character who is more than capable of taking care of herself, the picturesque scenery and innocent-looking inhabitants of the Land of Disease hides a reality that is really quite frightening and almost sinister. While the violence and suffering is not outwardly showed, the way in which it is implied is so effective that it becomes even more chilling and memorable.
Ryutaro Nakamura and Chiaki Konaka are perhaps my favourite production staff double-act in terms of experimenting with the animated medium. The latter is a master of dark atmospherics and twisting screenplays; the former has a distinctive directing style that includes an uncanny knack with using light and shadow to convey the mood of a scene. Between them they’ve done much to earn my respect but I was pleasantly (un)surprised to learn that SHAFT were in charge of the animation side of things. That is to say, I was unaware of this until Bateszi’s excellent review pointed it out to me but the idea of SHAFT being the creative foil for these two guys makes perfect sense. Hardly a month seems to go by these days in which I don’t gain more respect for that studio’s work, which led me to make rash statements such as declaring them to be the new Gainax. Here, it has much more fluidity to the animation and than the TV series and there’s A LOT more CG used, which is a given since this movie is more recent than the series and in all probability subject to a larger budget. It fits in by and large because of the movie’s sci-fi themes but overall the studio’s use of colour, camera angles and penchant for innovation mesh perfectly with the two daring minds at the helm. The opening sequence, which is completely devoid of an introductory theme tune, is cryptic but really quite breathtaking and makes it feel more like a feature film than a TV episode.
The story itself, and the thoughts that continue to whirr away even as I type over two days later, is still the main event of any Kino episode though. Right from the outset something seemed wrong about the idea of a supposed elite living outside the sterilised security of the city, and when the truth is revealed we learn how the two childhood friends are symbolic of the sacrifice they are making. As for whether it’s ultimately right or not, I honestly can’t decide and the movie is sure as hell not going to spell it out either. As I said earlier, this may be cryptic and occasionally frustrating but it’s a refreshing approach that I wish happened more often; in this case the life of one person is gone forever but for the one who may survive by their loss, there is a measure of hope even if she learns of the truth. I’m still in two minds about the ambiguous and bittersweet conclusion but if there’s one thing I was sure about by the time the ending credits rolled, it’s that I’m longing for a second season.
Posted on January 5th, 2008 @ 9:11 am
Ah, Kino! Hadn’t realised it’s been subbed. Would you mind sending me the link of where you found it? I kept reading this, then turning away (incase of spoilers) but then my eyes drifted back to the page.
Drat, Martin, you’ve got me hooked!
Posted on January 8th, 2008 @ 8:56 pm
Kino’s Journey tackled a variation of that same idea (few for the many) in one of the episodes in the series, and I thought that was one of the stronger ones of the show, so seeing this was kind of disappointing. But it was more Kino, and that’s always good. :3
It was interesting to see how they tackled CG, since it isn’t something I remember seeing before. The result wasn’t a good job, but I think it added another element in terms of where Kino was traveling. Maybe the land was so clean it transcended dimensions or something like that.
Posted on January 9th, 2008 @ 6:23 pm
@TheBigN: yeah, I wasn’t 100% impressed with the CG but it is a movie and it’s more recent than the TV series so I was expecting them to use it. If nothing else it captures the scale of the buildings and so on.
It’s always great to see a bit more Kino anyways!
Posted on January 9th, 2008 @ 9:49 pm
Hello Martin
Just thought I’d chuck in my two cents since I’ve now watched the movie. The movie has this very tranquil spell, so when the shocking truth emerged, it caught me by surprise and left me a little un-nerved. I kept thinking - can they really justify this? But that’s what the best Kino episodes do, make you question things.
The ending where the audience have to wait and see what’s in the letter was a clever trick. The fact that Kino chose to preserve the dream, rather than admit an awful reality, was bittersweet.
Kino’s ending comments about wanting to travel to a country where the people are happy, made me wonder if such a place could really exist. Maybe that’s why Kino travels - to find such a place.
Needless to say, the movie will give me much to ponder on over the next couple of days.