This is my first review ever, and I'm glad it is this movie in particular. The movie dances gracefully as it threads between themes that almost everyone has gone through; making new friends, parting from old ones, accepting loss, and rising back again from it. Violet Evergarden the movie excels exactly where the show did; by constructing small yet significant moments between characters, the intimacy of them granting them both gravitas and familiarity. It carries on with the overarching theme of building your own identity, accepting oneself, challenging our own limitations, and understanding the meaning of emotion.

Anyone with the tiniest bit of emotion will find themselves unable to resist a few tears, but not all tears are bad, happiness, love, and acceptance are positive emotions that Violet allows herself to experience, and with great mastery of sound and image, the studio manages to convey this to the audience in a way that's powerfully heartfelt and fleetingly subtle. After finishing the movie, and now a few months later I still find some strength to be gained from it, and overall gives a positive aftertaste instead of a bitter one.

Much like the movie's parent studio, Violet rises from the ashes, from the pain, and takes on all this suffering and instead of letting it consume her, turns it back into the world in a wonderful way, filled with all sorts of joy and bringing a sense of peace to all. It's difficult to get over a lost love, difficult to know what is love in the first place, and while the show put emphasis on the journey having as much relevance as the destination, the movie gives a strong importance and value to the destination itself, it lends a strong closure to the character arc of Violet, and her emotional development.

In the script department, the plot is solid, following Violet a moderate amount of time after the events of the show, it ties up several threads left open back in the original, brings back some characters, and also introduces new ones that seem to fit all too perfectly. Dialogue doesn't feel clunky or pompous, it isn't lecturing and instead follows an organic development of the plot and the character arcs.

Sound wise, the soundtrack is an excellent ambience setter, but don't really shines on its own. Sound effects are good, and the composition has nice delicate themes that compliment everything on scene without substracting from it. The voice acting is solid just as in the original show.

Animation wise, as you'd expect from the studio, the movie shines in a wonderful fluidity and set of visual effects, it's lush and adds exquisitely to the mix.

All in all, Violet Evergarden delivers on the expectations set on it, and adds even more with heartfelt craft and serious passion going into every aspect of it.