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Screenplay:
Kouji YamamotoCast:
Miyuki Sawashiro, Aya Suzaki, Akio Ōtsuka, Shin'ichirō Miki, Akeno Watanabe, Yoshiko Sakakibara, Chō, Reina Ueda, Atsushi Ono, Chiaki Mori, 田原正治VOD (1)
Plots(1)
In a future ruled by an unwavering dedication to good health, three high school girls led by the defiant Miach Mihie attempt suicide as the ultimate act of rebellion. Tuan Kirie survives, but cant shake the hatred she has for the perfect world she lives in. Years later, a simultaneous mass suicide rocks the globe and sends society into a state of shock. A small group stands up to take credit for the event, claiming they've hijacked the consciousness of every person on the planet. Everything about the terrorists message sounds too familiar to Tuan. She suspects her old friend Miach might be involved, but how could that be when shed supposedly killed herself years earlier? Desperate for answers, Tuan launches an investigation that takes her across the globe chasing the ghost of her old friend. But what is Miachs end game? Will she finally wake the world from its monotonous slumber? Or, end it all for good? (Anime Ltd)
(more)Reviews (2)
According to the premise, Harmony looks really interesting, even though the truth is that this movie is definitely not for everyone. There is a fair amount of philosophizing and dialogue in those two hours that are sometimes really quite heavy. The narrative drags incredibly in places, and if you are not interested in the ideas addressed here, you are probably going to be bored most of the time. The action is minimal, while Tuan Kirie, the main female protagonist’s musings, flashbacks, and conversations with other characters regarding the investigation and the state of the ideal society are more than enough. So if you are looking for an action movie, you had better stay away from this one! However, you might be interested in this, and if you like the ideas elaborated in this movie, you might even be very satisfied. You might enjoy this if you can and want to think a lot, are a passionate philosopher, psychologist, political scientist, or your favorite anime is something like From the New World. I, for one, end up more or less in the middle. I have seen it, I have hopefully understood most of it; I found it tedious at times, a little too thoughtful at times, and while I cannot deny that it has some thought-provoking qualities, it did not strike me as anything other than mediocre. The animation was interesting, although there was perhaps too much CGI. I quite liked the fact that the "ideal" city is dominated by shades of pink, which I thought was a metaphor, associated with the proverbial "rose-colored glasses" although somehow I do not know if that was the intention. I had no problem with the main character, Tuan Kirie, and I thought that the way her profound relationship with Miach Mihie was portrayed was quite good. On the whole, I had no significant problem with the psychology of the characters, which is quite important in a movie like this. Even the ending was quite good. All in all, this anime is definitely not just your average boring anime movie. I reckon that the reactions to it will be very contradictory because, as I wrote in the introduction, this is not for everyone. Unfortunately, it was not able to elicit any stronger response than 6/10 from a lazy ignoramus like me.
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This film is very stretched out, but it's quite good to watch in certain parts. You can see that even anime is evolving and the classic artwork has new elements, and it's more perfect in some ways. Graphically, the film is good, but I still think it's too long and the plot is not as interesting as it would like to be.
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