In a not too distant future, there’s a musical avatar known as Cosmic Princess Kaguya who wants freedom from where she came from. This digital figure isn’t just data. Instead, this individual is sentient, and bears no semblance to the figure and version of the story I loved more. Studio Ghibli holds all the cards here, and tried as I did to watch this lengthy film written by Saeri Natsuo and directed by Shingo Yamashita, the vibe leans more on being hyperactive.
Here, shades of Cyberpunk: Edgerunner exists when Iroha (Anna Nagase) finds a program she wasn’t meant to discover. Enter Kaguya (Yuko Natsuyoshi), a program developed to monitor the Lunar base’s oxygen and power grids. After The Lunar Corporate Council realizes this code is missing, they’re out to get her back, and in the meantime, Kags hopes to find a body she can inhabit so she can be free.
While the anime is quite vibrant and is quite high school in its tone, the visuals felt overdone. There’s even some video game moments which don’t mean much unless you’ve kept up with the scene. As for whether this tale is meant to be Sailor Moon kicked up five hundred notches for the concept, perhaps that is mandatory because of what this digital character represents. She’s more than a hyper sweet living battery, and that’s all I’ll really say without totally spoiling this film.
The only reason I was curious about this work is because of how Iroha manages to crack open the Moon. No, it’s not hollow. Instead, it’s about who has more to gain in terms of living and mining the resources off this piece of rock. And when considering Kags is more of a virtual idol than a fairy for others to exploit, that’s where folklore gets confused with what a sprite is in computer language. Although this latest adaptation is meant to be just that, the heart is not the same as the source material.
As much as I wanted to love this work, it’s far too saccharine for my tastes. I’ll have to look back at Takahata’s take to cleanse the palette. That version is mythic and whimsical. The updated one is too nuclear. While I enjoyed the J-pop style music, it didn’t quite hit the same notes as the K-pop Demon Hunters or that memorable status as Shirō Sagisu’s discography. He’s best known for composing the music for Megazone 23 and Evangelion. That alone should say it all.
As for the hurried ending, it seems the producers had no idea how to close off the tale. That’s when the truth hits hard, we’re left with a mood rather than a well defined ending.
3 Stars out of 5
Cosmic Princess Kaguya Trailer
