Forum - View topicKemonozume
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Cloe
Moderator
 Posts: 2728 Location: Los Angeles, CA |
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Kemonozume is the new TV series from the genius animator/director Masaaki Yuasa, the innovator behind Cat Soup and director of the brilliant Mind Game. This looks like it will be similar to his previous work: fun, highly energetic, and very creative, with stylized character designs and beautiful animation. The official website is here and a trailer can be viewed here. I'm extremely excited for this series; I'm looking forward to it even more than Tekkon Kinkurito. I was curious about what others have to say about Yuasa's unconventional art. For me, this art style is so refreshing and innovative and original and just a joy to behold, but is it too extreme for the average anime fan?
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PantsGoblin
 SubscriberEncyclopedia Editor  Posts: 2969 Location: L.A. |
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Because it's got the samurai thing going on, it looks like it can have a broader appeal than Cat Soup (only other one I've seen by him). Honestly, the art style wasn't distracting to me at all, what was going on was a bit more distracting from the art. I liked Cat Soup, so I'll probably check this out too... if I can find someway I can watch it. Still looking for Mind Game...
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Cloe
Moderator
Posts: 2728 Location: Los Angeles, CA |
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That's really nice to hear.
 In the past I've heard people describe Yuasa's work as "ugly," although I consider it anything but. I hope you're right about the broader appeal; I would LOVE more people to become aware of Yuasa's work.
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Cloe
Moderator
Posts: 2728 Location: Los Angeles, CA |
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I just finished watching the first episode of Kemonozume and... wow. Just... wow.
First off, I need to say I highly anticipated this release and by the time the opening credits were rolling I was literally in tears because it made me feel so happy. This is by far my favorite anime of the season. The story is about a struggle between humans who turn into cannibalistic monster creatures called Shokujinki and an organization called Kifuuken who fight them. Toshihiko Momota is the son of the Kifuuken group's leader and a skilled swordsman; he's a top beast hunter. One day a strange little monkey inexplicably wanders into the Kifuuken house and leads Toshihiko to the seashore, where he meets a beautiful girl named Yuka (my new avatar) and immediately falls for her. However, it seems their relationship is doomed, because Yuka is a Shokujinki. Worst of all, it seems that Shokujinki have little to no control over when and where they transform. This seems like it's going to be a Romeo and Juliet type of story with lots of action and a high level of emotion. What really surprised me about this premise is how straightforward it is; I suppose I was half-expecting some convoluted narrative that was completely abstract and inaccessible; I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by this. But just like in Mind Game, Yuasa is able to take a simple story and add layers and layers of subtext through small subtleties in the visuals and character acting. For instance, the first moment that Toshihiko meets Yuka, the camera takes on his POV and stays on her face, never looking away, for a good 30 seconds. In fact, we see a close-up of Yuka's face/back of her head even as she's walking away, until she's not in Toshihiko's line of vision any more. It's such an amazing shot and I immediately understand Toshihiko's feelings--when you fall in love, you want to see your beloved's face for as long as possible. Another nice moment is when Toshihiko, who has been agonizing internally over wanting to see Yuka again, finally can't stand it any more and and runs back to the beach where he first saw her out of sheer desperation. At the exact moment he arrives we see Yuka running on the beach as well and realize she must have felt the exact same way.  Yuasa's strongest point in Mind Game (although there were many of them) was subtle character expressions during emotional scenes, and this looks to be the same way. What a treat!
Also, spoiler[it's so refreshing to see passionate sex between two adults that has no signs of fan service--just raw emotion. Literally raw and primal, as Yuka begins to slip in and out of monster form during her climax.] As for the art style, it's nothing less than I would expect from Yuasa. The anime sports some incredibly bizarre character designs, and it makes the characters SO interesting to look at. Yuasa also favors extreme camera angles and drawing characters from strange, fish-eye perspectives, which is an amazing feat in itself since character animation is incredibly hard to draw in such extreme angles. (A ton of screenshots can be found here.) In addition, the color palette, editing, and especially the music are SO stylish and make this anime a pleasure to watch and listen to. Sieyuu performances are solid, as well. I don't know what the translation for the opening song is, but it's incredibly catchy and will likely stick in my head for weeks. I feel like there's so much more I have to say about this wonderful series, but I'm drawing a blank for now, so I'll stop. But if anybody is interested in watching something that breaks away from the norm and is truly unique, give this a try. |
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Iconoclast
 Posts: 56 |
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I really want to see this film! x3 I loved both cat soup and mind game!!! I love the character designs, too. =) |
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biliano
Posts: 956 Location: Cleveland, OH |
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Sold! The description you gave was more than enough to put this on my already crowded "Want to See" list, and the fact that Studio Madhouse is producing the series makes it even more enticing. Hopefully there will be enough interest in this series that it will receive an R1 license in the future. Looks like I have some homework to do...
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v1cious
 Posts: 6229 Location: Houston, TX |
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i noticed everyone uses swords. it's not based in the feudal era, is it? cause i'm getting real sick of that time period.
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godakame
 Posts: 112 Location: Disney World |
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Thank you for bringing this anime to my attention. I didn't think anyone would sub this thing, so I watched the raw version. As you've already said -- wow. I haven't seen anything like this. I loved the first episode even though I couldnt understand what was being said. I will be eagerly anticipating the second episode. *goes hunting for mind game with zealous fervor*
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Cloe
Moderator
Posts: 2728 Location: Los Angeles, CA |
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No, it takes place in modern times. Everything takes place in Toyko, I think. The people using the swords are some of the members of the Kifuuken, but there's also a technology nut too. In fact, I think the title of the show comes from the name of the buster suit one of the Kifuuken members (specifically, Toshihiko's younger brother) designs. For all the sword usage, the fights actually feel very sleek and modern, so no worries there.
Heck, I'd still be happy with an R1 Mind Game release (even though I have the R2, I want as many people to see it as possible). But Yuasa's other major work, Cat Soup, was licensed here, so I hope that means there's a glimmer of hope for Kemonozume. |
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beast
 Posts: 102 Location: High Ground |
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I have to agree with Cloe, the first episode of Kemonozume was truly breathtaking, chalk this one up to the list of awesome experimental anime! The style, the color palette, the chilling background music; everything falls into place and renders this episode one of the most refreshing anime I've ever seen. I hope they can keep the quality up, but even if they shouldn't, this episode is something unique and can be enjoyed as is!
Wow, no wonder. Both Cat Soup and Mind Game are masterpieces in my books, I really should pay more attention to who's behind the curtains. |
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Daemonblue
 Posts: 701 |
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Honestly, I had to force myself through the first 7 minutes, then I couldn't stand it anymore. It's not just the artwork that turned me off either, it's more of those gut reactions I have that tells me it's something I'm really going to hate. I know I'm kinda being a downer for this thread, but I personally will not be finishing this series, as I think that it can pretty much be used a decent torture device, but still not worst ever (that goes to another anime).
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v1cious
Posts: 6229 Location: Houston, TX |
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i really liked the first episode. it's pretty much what you'd expect from the guy who made MindGame.
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angel_lover
 Posts: 645 Location: UK |
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I just finished watching the first episode. Although I loved Cat Soup and Mind Game, I'm not sure I can take a whole series in the same style. For me I guess it's a bit like Roquefort cheese - it's wonderful in small quantities, but I wouldn't want to eat a couple of pounds of it (for our metricated friends, that's near a kilo).
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Steve Berry
Posts: 522 Location: San Francisco Bay Area, CA |
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I also watched the first fansubbed ep.....
The jury's still out on this one for me. There's a lot that I liked about it, but there was some stuff that didn't quite gel for me. Still, it's very hard to get a sense of the direction and attitude of a piece only 1/13th of the way in. Besides which, well... I guess I'm sort of picking this ep apart more than I would normally, and judging it by a different standard. Cloe, all the stuff you brough up in your earlier post-- the very long (30 sec) shot of the woman on the beach, how everyone has her face when the guy is thinking about her, spoiler[how they meet there again, the sex].... this was all very engaging-- it had that... flair for the transcendent and that loving adoration of all that is obsessive and peculiar in people that I enjoyed so much in Mindgame. The "camera work" is great in this section as well-- directorial choices (like the 30 sec shot), angles, etc. I also enjoyed the chitchat scene in the bar earlier in the ep,and the "fade" into it through the fish tank-- the whole thing was sort of gleefully gruesome, in a Tarantino-esque sort of way, and the dialogue was fun. This all I loved. I had more issues with the first half. It was odd, but that flair for the absurd that's such of trademark of Studio 4C really undercut a lot of the relationships. The stepbrother came off like a buffoon, the digestive track scene was (to me) just odd and not really funny-- although I felt it was suppossed to be--, and the monster animation seemed, sadly, very subpar, where essentially they saved their money for other parts. It was odd-- stuff like how spoiler[the 2 people meet and then immediately make out and then have sex]-- well, it was just odd to me, like the creators wanted to get somewhere really fast, to get to the good part, but didn't feel like taking the time to build to something. Simultaneously, I liked a lot of the artistic choices being made, visually. I'm still in this for a long while yet for sure, but I'm most curious to see where it's going to go. With all that happened in the last 5-10 mins, I just felt like they were oddly restrained by the eps run length. Simultaneously, there were these great, completely unhurried scenes that really worked because they weren't overediting. Perhaps its the framework for the show that threw me off, rather than the style in which it was made. As for the animation style-- sure it's sort of "ugly" or raw, but the sense of movement you get from it is frequently so real and vigorous that I love it anyways (or more probably, because of that very "raw" quality it has). I guess that's all the random thoughts I have on it for now. |
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Kagemusha
 Posts: 2783 Location: Boston |
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The first episode was good. I definitally wouldn't put it high upon a pedistal like you did, as it is flawed in more than one way when it comes to the actual plot, but it looks like it could be great with the right direction.
I think it's clear that Yuasa and the rest of the staff knew they weren't going to win anyone over with originality in terms of he story, but rather with their approach to it. I love the whole retro vib of the show that makes it feel like one of those old Mod Squad/Avengers-type series; great music and exellent handling of the action sequences. I agree with the direction of the animation, concentrating on movement and camera rather than pretty static-images. Much of the first episodes appeal comes purely from the direction of the various sequences: the bar fight, the monkey kicking the dickhead brother's ass and especially the final five minutes. The meeting between the characters and the sex scene that follows are both exellent. Great direction that really captures alot of emotions with the love scene (which I half expected to be an acid-driven affair a la Mindgame). From what I've seen it looks like the show is going to concentrate on developing a realistic relationship between the two, which is a rarity in most anime series. On the other hand, some of the episode falls flat, particuarly in the plot department. The whole bit with the rebel brother feeling ignored by his father has been done to death. The scenes between Toshihiko and his brother or between the brother and the father feel very forced and could have easily been cut from the episode. I know that the conflict is going to be pretty major in the story, and I hope that they can make it alot more compelling than what was in the first episode. I've also got a bad feeling about the whole "Romeo and Juliet" element, so hopefully they can inject some energy and emotion into the very tired plot device. Anyway, I'm definitally looking forward to seeing more of it. Last edited by Kagemusha on Mon Aug 21, 2006 3:30 pm; edited 2 times in total |
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