Anyone who has played Deemo, the rhythm music video game, will know how the animated movie Memorial Keys ends. This fact is not too detrimental as it fills in some narrative beats the original incarnation some gamers may feel didn’t get very deep on. Here, there’s more of a world that goes beyond what the game is about. The ideas SIGNAL.MD & Production I.G. presents lets us know that to experience everything music represents is also like therapy for the soul.
At first, I was just as curious as Sania and her friends about the new student with a mysterious past. They attend a music academy and for this girl whose talents outshines hers, trying to figure her out is tough.
DEEMO Memorial Keys is now a fully realised story! From the famed animation studios Production I.G. and Signal.MD comes the eagerly awaited feature film adaption inspired by the internationally acclaimed โDEEMOโ rhythm video game, which has over 28 million downloads worldwide. Distinguished filmmakers and animators have collaborated to bring the fantastical and touching tale of Deemo and Alice to life.
Featuring visually stunning animation by Production I.G. and Signal.MD, DEEMO Memorial Keys is directed by Shuhei Matsushita (Fuse: Memoirs of a Huntress) with Junichi Fujisaku (Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Blood franchise) as a general director. Yuki Kajiura, a prominent music composer and producer who has worked on the scores for multiple anime hits (Demon Slayer, Fate/Zero), created the film’s theme and image songs.
Fans of Mononoke Hime will detect a passing similarity in The Deer King, and in what this work does differently is….
GKIDS
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The Deer King is more than an adventure set in the wild west. The politics that get involved here are complex, and the plot concerns how one secretive order seeks to restore the delicate balance between man and the natural world. In whatโs presented, the wolves and deer we find in this film serve a mysterious master, and as the title implies, the latter are everywhere! They are not supposed to be a resource for people to exploit. Instead, theyโre a symbol for protection.
Technically, this anime by Production IG is more of a fantasy. The Empire of Zol and the people from Aquafa are at odds; their war abruptly ended when a plague struck the land and devastated one nation. As a result, the other faction feared catching it. The accord forged is shaky, and this tale looks at the state of affairs when Zol dares to resume the fight.
The Girl from the Other Side: Siรบil, a Rรบn (ใจใคใใซใฎๅฐๅฅณ) is a tale that deals with several themes. One is about a battle between man versus himself. Another is concerning redemption. Thereโs a curse affecting nearly everyone and a blight destroying a kingdom.
Anyone infected turns into a shadow of their former selves and when a lone individual (later named Teacher) finds a young girl (named Shiva) abandoned in the woods, he can’t leave her alone. Strangely, she doesn’t succumb to the darkness as others have. This tale takes on a tone which deserves more films to fully explore, explain and resolveโor I can read the finished manga.
My preferences is with the former since the artistic design is rapturous and Rie Takahashi, the voice of the young child is so cute! Even if I was to look at the printed version, I’ll have her voice stuck in my head.
Exotic beauty and supernatural magic grace Production IG’s animated biopic, Miss Hokusai. Based on the manga of the same name by Hinako Sugiura, this film follows the narrative style and simplyย offers moments of this artist’s life in Edo-period Japan.
With it now on video, I can start studying it more in-depth. My only disappointment is that the home release does not come with a lot of bonus material. A feature-length documentary about the making of this film is provided. I was craving more, especially when this anime explores an important time in Japan’s art history.
This look into the life of O-Ei (Anne Watanabe), daughter of revered painter Hokusai (Yutaka Matsushige), is very gentle and bittersweet. The plot looks at much of her life from her perspective as she shows how fiercely independent she is. Though she works as an assistant in her father’s studio, she often finishes what he can not finish when he’s being drunk (which is rare) or acting irresponsibly.
For artists wanting to look at why these Ukiyo-e works are majestic, I particularly liked the dialogue (I saw the subtitled version) explaining how the brush can invoke portals to other worlds. You have to be careful when painting a work featuring demons. At least with one work O-Ei made, real spirits came to haunt the residence. No title is offered for this work, but according to the soundtrack, it’s simplyย known as “The Cursed Picture of Hell.” When the work is retrieved, her father observed that because Hope was not offered, that’s why they visited. A simple detail was added and the evil left. However, there’s more to life in Edo period Japan because the Shinto life is not everywhere.
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