Coop and Chris explore anime film reimaginings of series and the madness of trying to find a copy.
Disclaimer:The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are not the views of Anime News Network.
RetroCrush streams Adolescence of Utena and Aim for the Ace!
Pluto streams Space Adventure Cobra.
Prime Video streams The Rebuild of Evangelion Films.
Netflix streams The Rose of Versailles (2025).
Out of Print on Home Video: Escaflowne: The Movie and Clannad: The Motion Picture.
In Print on Home Video: Galaxy Express 999: The Movie and X/1999.
Imported Home Video: Macross: Do You Remember Love?
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Coop
Chris, I am thrilled to say that we're living through some unprecedented times (positive) for once! They said it could never be done, but the legendary Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Do You Remember Love? will be officially screened for the first time in North America at this year's Anime Expo! However, there's not only that, as GKIDS is screening the beloved Adolescence of Utena across the country at the end of this month!
But you might ask, "Hey, Coop. What do intergalactic idols and sword lesbians have in common?" Well, both of these films come from a very specific tradition of anime film—the complete reimagining. These works forgo the simple TV series compilation film format (like the Mobile Suit Gundam Trilogy or the Jujutsu Kaisen films) and opt to create wholly new works that seek to distill the core concepts of a series to their essence. Among Western anime olds and critics, Do You Remember Love and Adolescence of Utena might be the best-known examples of this approach, but they're FAR from being the only films of their kind.
Chris
First off, Coop, let me say that I'm so glad to see Sylvia's prophecy of a theatrical release of Adolescence of Utena, as foretold in our Angel's Egg column, has come to fruition. You can thank TWIA for this one, and we promise to only use our precognitive powers for good (and hopeful releases of Dragon's Heaven).
I'm also thrilled that cracking this egg has allowed something like the Utena movie to drive into theaters here. As some readers might recall, Utena's a conspicuous gap in my viewing catalog. And I always kinda assumed that Adolescence was a full-on follow-up, something I needed to have seen the full series for, rather than a complimentary alternative. So I'm excited to make this my first dive into the series!
Is that advisable? As we'll cover, sometimes even as they're not directly connected, these reimagined films can be...oddly related to understandings of the source material.
Adolescence is an excellent example of a film that plays in that exact space.
Among a certain contingent of Utena enjoyers, the film reads as a sequel to the series. While I can see where they're coming from, it might be better seen as an "emotional follow-up" rather than a straight-on sequel. In grand Kunihiko Ikuhara fashion, most (if not all) of the interpretation is left up to the audience. Is it a sequel of some sort? A riff on everything Utena, including the manga? A jaw-dropping work of art that can be enjoyed on its own? Oh baby, it's all of that and then some.
I can see why that makes Adolescence one of the best-known instances of this phenomenon. The alternate telling isn't just a move to make the movie work for those who haven't seen the anime; it's an opportunity to exist in conversation with the series and a creator as...conversational as Ikuhara. Watching and interpreting is not a passive act with his stuff.
Probably leads to all sorts of interesting fan discussions about the effects of watch order on your experiences as well. I know I'm not the only one who started (or will be starting) the ride down the Utena highway with the movie. And I think that opportunity for comparisons and contrasts is what makes the world of these kinds of movies so interesting, compared to the typical cut-and-paste compilations.
When it comes to the Utena watch order discussion, I always think back to Sylvia's initial encounter with the series through this film. The two of us spoke at length on the series earlier last year, and I could feel just how much that chance encounter with Adolescence of Utena had changed her life.
And I'll say this too: this film is a perfect cap-off to Pride Month, exuding the kind of energy many of us in the queer community want to put out into the world, especially now. The world is terrifying, and there might not be a clear path forward, but fighting to live as our true selves is so worth it. Adolescence is equal parts horny, harrowing, and breathtaking.
This isn't going to be the case with many of the other films we're about to cover, but Adolescence of Utena is streaming over on RetroCrush. The film is otherwise out of print in North America, so hopefully these upcoming screenings signal a potential home video release from GKIDS. Maybe the series too! I wholeheartedly believe that everything Utena should be easily available and in print—it's just that important to the medium. Luckily for me, I already have Nozomi Entertainment's Blu-ray release of the film (which came packed in with the final arc of the TV series), but boy would I love a 4K of this one!
Everyone deserves to have Utena in their lives, but who knows when, since it seems we're still waiting on Angel's Egg to get its own physical release from GKIDS. That's frustratingly par for the course for several movies like this, I found in researching this subject. Sometimes it comes with the territory, like a whole franchise that was hard to come by previously, with the movie reimagining being its own bugbear.
DYRL has loooooooong been embroiled in the exhausting legal quagmire surrounding the series, but I'm thrilled to see that it's finally getting to play for an American crowd. I'm unsure if this will signal a larger change behind the scenes, because this could simply be an exhibition screening, which had been unsuccessfully attempted with a 2013 Comic-Con screening of both Macross Frontier films. But like those Frontier films, at least there's a brand-spanking-new Japanese release of the film with English subtitles.
Ah, imported Blu-rays, the standby Macross fly-around. Most I saw of DYRL was some that was shown (absolutely unlicensed) on a monitor in a barcade during a convention weekend, but it speaks to how I know more about the film's tumultuous legal reputation than I do its relationship with the Macross TV anime.
The conversation around its licensing situation will probably be the top-level point around DYRL for years to come, but the film itself is abso-lute-ly gorgeous.
I took a look at that aforementioned 4K UHD release of the film early last year, and it's a film everyone should see at least once if they're at all interested. DYRL served as the explosive springboard for Shōji Kawamori, Ichirō Itano, and much of the Gainax generation. These once-hungry creatives wanted to blow the work they'd done on the original Macross TV series out of the water, and they absolutely crushed it. However, as I pointed out in my review, DYRL suffers from a pain point present in many films of this nature: dealing with its extended cast. In some cases, this isn't too much of a problem, but the cast of Macross plays a load-bearing role in the story. The film either turns these characters into insulting caricatures (as is the case with Roy Focker) or into a background cameo. DYRL's main love triangle is strong, but everything else kind of falls apart as a result of that increased focus. The insufferable bits of misogyny sprinkled on top of the film don't exactly help it either.
Again, DYRL is worth seeing solely for the spectacle and sheer artistry on display, but the original Super Dimension Fortress Macross TV series is unmatched in its storytelling. Even if you have to deal with some wonky animation from time to time.
Those sound like the sorts of issues you might expect to encounter with any work looking to adapt what was previously done as a full-length anime series. "Reimagining" can give you a freer canvas to make things work compared to cramming everything in via compilation, but you're still dealing with all the characters, concepts, and beats expected at the base. It's a little like a live-action film adapting any long-running previous work (parallel to this subject; it could be its own column) and makes for some interesting results. Plus, a fresh coat of paint!
And speaking of fresh paint on a Kawamori kit, Sylvia and I were just talking about Escaflowne last week, so this discussion was a good enough reason for me to revisit its own movie version!
Move over, white boys, it's depressed girl summer now.
Kidding aside, I quite appreciate how understated and true-to-life this depiction of depression is. Many of us (myself included) have experienced these exact feelings before, and Escaflowne isn't beating around the bush in regard to them. Honestly, I found the film to be a powerful allegory for dealing with these feelings, with the "allegory" part kicking in once Hitomi gets isekai'd.
Can't help but think a little bit of Bowie would've helped Escaflowne: The Movie in my eyes, though. Coop, you're my friend, and I respect your interpretations, but my own experience with this rewatch was a reminder after so long as to how I do not care for this film very much.
I totally understand that, Chris. Admittedly, this flick is a bit controversial among Escaflowne enthusiasts, primarily for its heightened emphasis on intense violence and sidelining most of the supporting cast. Like, it's kind of hard not to be scarred after you see Van gruesomely explode a horse with his mind. Seems like some folks are coming around on this, but not many. This might be my personal favorite of the Kawamori-flavored reimagining films, as the streamlining of characters actually worked for me here in regard to our main couple. I'd also like to point out the strong overall direction from returning series director Kazuki Akane (who's directed many under-discussed classics). In an interview about the film, I recall Akane speaking about the specific struggle of boiling down a twenty-something episode series down to its essence for a 90-minute movie, but I think he does a pretty solid job here given those parameters.
Yeah, I'd say I can see the struggles there! For my part, I couldn't stop laughing at accelerated elements like Hitomi melting Van's heart and curing both their misanthropy in one rescue romance moment after they'd barely spoken to each other. Never mind that said personality problems are just spilled out in descriptive dialogue, like so much in this movie.
The apex being Hitomi ending by declaring Van a kindred spirit and assuring him that, "We will always be together." Girl, you have known him for like thirty-six hours!
It's emblematic of the accelerationist pacing of the film. While I honestly dig the style and a lot of the vibes (I don't even mind the ultraviolence! It adds flavor!), the actual telling of the story is just so fundamentally thin that I couldn't help but be hit with the classic "I could just be watching the TV anime" reaction.
For sure, I have the same feeling largely about DYRL these days. I can't fully put my finger on it, but I think my enjoyment of Escaflowne might be tied to that pacing. It's structured and paced like a 90-minute '80s fantasy or action film, not unlike Jim Henson's Labyrinth. There are paper-thin elements for sure, but something about it just clicked with me. I'm sure many other folks feel similarly about DYRL, even though I have my criticisms of it.
I love that we have to specify the Labyrinth we're talking about now. Ha ha ha.
Traversing the labyrinth of Kawamori apocrypha is something we can attempt in due time. But your enjoyment of Escaflowne The Motion Picture is one thing to appreciate about these kinds of movies: they provide different versions of the stories that different people might click with. If that clicking involves turning Allen into a rizzless wonder, then I can't judge them for that. Too much.
This is what I mean when I talk about the availability of some of these. While the Clannad TV series is still available on HIDIVE, the movie adaptation, which apparently does the neat thing you can do with visual novel adaptations and takes this opportunity to adapt a different ending to its route, doesn't seem to be available anywhere!
Yeah, these movies kind of break down into three categories.
1. It's currently unlicensed
2. Discotek or GKIDS has swooped in
3. Macross
These situations sure make things difficult if you're hunting for an official stream or home video release, but at least points 1 and 3 are seemingly starting to become less common occurrences.
It's frustrating because, as you alluded to with Akane's solo direction of Escaflowne, these adaptations can be opportunities to see different teams put their own unique spins on material. Clannad: The Motion Picture is directed by Osamu friggin' Dezaki, I'd love to see what his take on something like this looks like.
This is also where I should clarify that the Clannad movie is a treatment that actually predates the full TV adaptation. It's a maneuver that Dezaki isn't new to, similarly tackling series like Space Adventure Cobra with sexy results.
It's funny because the kind of gloss-overs I could criticize with that Escaflowne treatment feel better suited to Dezaki's movies. Big swings and postcard memories and all.
Compare this to a movie take on something Dezaki handled that didn't work as well even with new blood and radical reinvention. Like uhhhh, that Rose of Versailles movie sure was a thing that happened.
As I said, if we counted live-action reimaginings in this category, we'd be here all night. To say nothing of how this is a well-known tokusatsu series are similarly known to dip into.
But before we get slapped back by the hand of editorial insight, that does let me ping over to the point that this movie gets pulled by anime also targeting young boys. Dragon Ball had Curse of the Blood Rubies, an early DB reimagining which is itself unavailable, and One Piece has taken swings with everything from "The Alabasta Arc in 90 minutes, somehow" to "What if they recruited Chopper after Robin and Franky joined?"
It provides...options for people eyeing long-running series like this, anyway.
If we're talking long-running series primarily aimed at a younger audience, I can't think of a better film than Galaxy Express 999.
The first time I saw Tetsuro take off into the stars aboard the titular space locomotive filled me with a sense of childlike wonder I hadn't felt in years. A feeling that's not too dissimilar from how many describe their first encounter with Star Wars as a little kid. I've never been a Star Wars kid, but I understand that feeling now. Aside from this trailer, I'd honestly recommend going into this one completely blind! It's how I first experienced the film, and it's become one of my favorite films in the years since. I bet part of that is probably thanks to stellar direction courtesy of the legendary Rintaro. He's popped up in the news recently for another notable reimagining, right?
...sort of! See, it came out on ANN this week that X² - Double X, the music video OVA version of Clamp's X/1999 manga, would be debuting on Crunchyroll for the first time ever. Now, we could talk about music video adaptations as a whole separate subject, but pertinent to our discussion, Rintaro had handled X/1999 getting the "movie adaptation before a full series" treatment I offhandedly mentioned earlier. Holy editorial serendipity!
Especially if you want to talk about adaptations that score on style.
X has been on my bucket list for a good long while now, especially since I ran into it while hunting for a nonexistent Mega Man X anime at the local Suncoast decades ago.
It's one I caught on the Action Channel late night in my tweens, myself. I could barely comprehend it then, but for as much as I've seen people talk up this movie as confusing, it's actually pretty straightforward, watching it as an adult. Accelerated and overstuffed, to be sure, but perfectly comprehensible.
Maybe it's because I have less knowledge and appreciation for the full X story compared to Escaflowne, but I can look past skipping through the story way more to dig this one for its design and direction. It's utterly message-board-signature-pic-core, and I love it for that.
Welp, looks like I'm going to have some music videos to watch in a few weeks. This seems to just ooze that over-the-top 90s energy.
To be sure, the music videos were directed by Shigeyuki Hayashi, while this Rintaro-directed movie is still in limbo. Annoyingly so, given the 2001 X TV series is also available on Crunchyroll. Again with the movie exclusion, though hopefully this can bode well for a future release so all versions of X can share a Coke and get along.
I'll take that Coke, Chris, because it's looking like we're ending where we started. We absolutely have to mention the mother of all reinterpretations, plagued by questions of what it actually is.
It does mean I can't comment on how the Rebuilds actually work as stand-alone films. Sure, they start as seeming readaptations and tell their own closed, complete story by the end. But they're so dense in context and conversation with the original that they're arguably subtextual, or even textual, sequels.
Which is what the most interesting of these examples we've covered have done, so uh, question answered as to whether they count, I guess!
I'd be curious to talk with someone who's only seen the Rebuild flicks, because Thrice Upon a Time (the final film) hinges on prior series idea and knowledge way more than Adolescence of Utena does. However, both films tap into the vein of the "emotional follow-up" idea I mentioned at the top of this column.
But no one turns into a car in Eva. You're going to have a blast learning the context for this much-lauded meme, Chris.
Look, you know I'm extremely accustomed to movies where characters turn into cars. Between that and the whole Pride Month thing, maybe this movie really will turn out to be made for me.
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