I'm usually quite cynical about anime movies, especially the ones from mainstream shounens that make it to the top 10 on anilist and MAL the second they start calculating the score. I always (and oftentimes wrongly) expect their scores to be inflated for various reasons. Seeing as this movie is, as of writing, rated 2nd overall on MAL and 4th on anilist, I had similar prejudices going into it. However, to my ego's dismay, but much to the pleasure of my soul, I was proven very wrong.
This movie is phenomenal. The direction is great; well done and extravagant when it needs to be, but not to a fault. As you would expect, the animation was stellar throughout. Something that caught me by surprise was the sound direction. It may be because I'm not the biggest cinephile and thus am not accustomed to the acoustics of cinemas, but I felt that the soundtrack (also outstanding) was mixed with sound effects almost perfectly. I recall multiple scenes where I couldn't tell whether what I was hearing came from the BGM or if it was a sound effect, which made for a very immersive experience. The fanservice, although prevalent, was not especially disruptive, nor did it take too much space. Fanservice is never the full focus of a scene, save for a certain scene with Denji near the beginning, during which the fanservice was necessary in moving the story forward.
Another part about this film that left me pleasantly surprised was how damn funny it was. A lot of anime overemphasize that which is supposed to be funny with ostentatious sound effects and visuals, which can be very disruptive if not used carefully, especially if you don't find the joke funny. This is a trait that the Reze arc movie largely lacks. As a result, the movie avoids having intrusive comedy even if said comedy is placed in scenes that are otherwise serious. The story and characters are great. In spite of this only being a 100 minute movie, and Reze not being present for all of them, I ended up getting rather attached to her character. Reze didn't take all the spotlight though, because Aki and Angel Devil had some significant development as well, which remains one of the most memorable parts of the movie. I could write a great deal about why I think Denji is a great protagonist, but I'll leave that for another day. Just let it be known that he is. If I had to complain about anything, it'd be the length of the action scenes. I wanted more character interactions and development. This is probably just a me thing though, I feel like most people wouldn't take issue with this.
If you are in doubt about whether the praise this movie has received is at all warranted, then I assure you it is. If you have any interest at all in this film, then I implore you to watch it, whether that be in cinemas or at home, because you will very likely not be disappointed.
oh and for the record, I'd rather be a country mouse.
