ethanfok

Most great epic fantasies like Tolkien's LOTR, Lewis's Narnia and King's dark tower epitomizes a battle between good and evil, and are inspired to a great extent by the middle-eastern crusades. A seemingly-perfect "hero" has been tasked with the role of savior, and then goes on a mission to defeat a personified evil. The isekai world of Nagatsuki's Re:zero with its less-than-perfect hero, transcends this premise, mirroring eastern philosophies of cause-effect and reincarnation where one is compelled to relive experiences through their karma or past action. The primary afflictions of the self through the ego, ignorance and desires have been seamlessly distilled into the western concept of seven deadly sins materialized as sin bishops with which the protagonists battle with. It stands unique in the genre by eschewing the standard black-vs-white context. Through its masterful story-telling, set pieces and excellent character building, it brings concepts that are extremely difficult to explain down-to-earth, draws the empathy of audiences all over the world, and if people can keep their minds open to things beyond their experiences, impart many important life lessons.

DT epitomizes a period of entropy and chaos in cosmic history and one man's struggle to overcome inexorable forces as civilization breaks down. The movie captures none of the essential plot elements of the series. This is the usual outcome when studio heads decide to "downsize" a great story as a product for PG13 mass market consumption. They should have taken a leaf out of the DT books: "The road and the tale have both been long, would you not say so? The trip has been long and the cost has been high... but no great thing was ever attained easily. A long tale, like a tall Tower, must be built a stone at a time."

This is a beautiful and deeply humanistic movie that should resonate with the audience on many levels. The cinematography with its understated color tones was meticulously constructed in a disembodied future where artificial intelligence enabled people to form emotional attachment in a void of broken-hearted relationships. Joaquin who played the melancholy lead with so much sensitivity deserved a standing ovation. As a motion picture, it may come across as somewhat staid, premediated monologue that could benefit from more realism in projecting the relationship between the protagonists. Nevertheless, the movie is profoundly moving and at times bitter-sweet - an endearing thought experiment on human existance, notions of self versus relationships, nature of love, letting go and finding contentment in the small things of life.