00:00Nihongo o Hanasu Sanchocha no Minasamu ni Kotoba no Ayamami ni Suite
00:07Uwabi Moshi Aiju Maso
00:17Mononoke, not to be confused with the Hayao Miyazaki film, was an anime series that was a spin-off of
00:22Ayakashi Samurai Tales.
00:24The main premise of the show was about when a serious medicine seller gets himself into various supernatural encounters
00:29with Mononoke, the type of Ayakashi that linger in the human world.
00:33I love the series for its dark and eerie atmosphere and the beautiful and complimentary animation,
00:39but I was excited for the movie and I can proudly say that Mononoke the movie, Phantom in the Rain,
00:44is well worth the wait.
00:45This time the film sees the medicine seller having to deal with the goings on at Oku.
00:50For those of you who don't know your Japanese history and had to do a quick google halfway through the
00:54movie,
00:55and Oku was an area in the Edo castle where one related to the Shogun lived.
00:59In the film there's something serious going on, but may or may not have connections to the disappearance of the
01:04concubine.
01:05Now if you know the inner workings of Oku, then you know that it didn't allow male adults in,
01:09so most of this film is actually focused on two new characters, Asa and Kame, as they deal with the
01:14inner workings of the Oku.
01:16Now this would seem like a cop-out, not having the medicine seller be the main focus, but I liked
01:20it.
01:20Because some of the best stories from the show mainly had other characters be the main focus,
01:24and the medicine seller be an observer who was to sell the supernatural issue.
01:28Think of the Shashiki or Warashari or Nobbera Borg arcs, and you can see how this film goes.
01:35Asa and Kame here are compelling, and seeing them deal both with the essential office politics and the supernatural
01:41in its works, well, remind me of stuff like Black Narcissus or that Sydney Sweeney non-movie Immaculate that came
01:47out earlier this year.
01:48As I mentioned, those arcs on the show, the film does bore those arcs themes and observations about women in
01:53society as well.
01:53Sure, Asa and Kame are free to fulfil their roles in the Oku, but they're still contained within one building,
01:59and have to make sacrifices to a Shogun who we don't see much in the film.
02:02It's a fascinating theme that connects the film to the show.
02:05The whole eminence here are strongly used effectively, the film carries the series' eerie and creepy atmosphere,
02:09but with a bit more fast pace than the show, lots of rapid editing, while it would be a bit
02:13disoriented,
02:13it still works to keep moving the film forward, but still making it very deliberately odd and unnerving.
02:20Now this is an anime film, how's the animation? It's great.
02:23Like a lot of film continuation of shows, the animation looks a bit upgrade, while the animation
02:27of the show was great, the film has a more wider scale. The colour of the film is a bit
02:31more
02:31brighter and vibrant, which creates a great contrast to the horror aspect of the film.
02:35That also makes it a little bit darker, but there's an unnatural element to it.
02:39The film character designs are also good, making them strike a fine line between what you'd call
02:43a recognisable anime style, with a Nokia-e painting look. Praise the director, Kenji Nakamura,
02:48who also directed the anime series, and here brings the full style of the show to the film,
02:51with a bigger, grander style. More than I K, the movie, Phantom in the Rain, is a vibrantly creepy film.
02:57The film brings the show's iconic style and animation back in goals, all in with a grander
03:01sculpt that a film would allow, but a TV show would not.
03:05No, even though there are some elements I kind of feel like are left hanging, probably because this
03:10is the first part of a film trilogy, so that obviously will be followed up in two sequels.
03:16You can watch the film if you're much a fan, because it's a standalone film, and the show as well.
03:21Both are currently streaming on Netflix at the time of recording, and I full-heartedly recommend you watch it.
03:35So, let's take a look.
03:43You
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