What Are You Watching? (May, 2017)

Ok, this is going to be kind of like a favourites. So, on the last Sunday of every month (hopefully) I shall write a post all about the things I have watched whether they are new, old, weird and/or wonderful. I'm going to split them up into two sections: TV and Film. Although let's face it the TV is just going to be anime isn't it? I'll try to watch english spoken programming too ok? .......that isn't Buffy or Firefly. Hopefully it will help me track of my watching too, which will be helpful.

TV

• I have finally finished Fairy Tail. It only took me four months to finish the 300 (round about) episode long show and to make it even better the new film came out a few days after I finished it! How lucky was that? Full of funny characters that I got very attached to and story arc after story arc that was interesting and kept my attention. This is the longest anime I have watched and honestly I'm beyond glad that I took the time to do so. 
• Assassination Classroom - A very funny anime indeed. It is very intertextual of other anime shows which I love. The characters are loveable and the plot is very interesting and enjoyable. An extremely fun and easy to watch show that I shall miss, and probably re-watch at some point as it is only 47 episodes long for the main plot. 
• Say "I Love You" - A super short anime series about love. My favourite genre next to magical adventures. The characters are fun yet insanely frustrating. It's very gooey romantic, so if that isn't to your taste then maybe stay clear as that's kind of all there is to this. There are themes of friendship and personal development but all of that comes out of the theme of love which enters the series. Possibly my new favourite romance anime (sorry, My Little Monster)

Film

• Voices of a Distant Star (2002, Shinkai) - A short film that discusses relationships and time, and how that can take its toll on that relationship and the people. It is sci-fi meets teen-romance and I love it. Honestly, my favourite anime director at the moment.
• Tales from Earthsea (2006, Miyazaki) - Perhaps my least favourite of the Ghibli films I have watched (I've watched most of them) but still very high on the list of films that I have seen. Adventurous and spiritual, magical even. 
• Whisper of the Heart (1995, Kondo) - I love this one. Studio Ghibli you put cats into everything and I love it! A tale about love and discovering your future, very sweet and heart warming. 
• Fairy Tail: Dragon Cry (2017, Minamikawa) - I loved it, very funny yet did not give me the closure that I wanted from the supposed final anime instalment to the series (yeah right). Classic characters that I have come to love in a new setting and a whole new adventure. 
• Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2 (2017, Gunn) - If you want to know my thoughts I did a review a couple of weeks ago that you can read here - http://galaxysearcher.blogspot.co.uk/2017/05/guardians-of-galaxy-vol2-2017-gunn.html 
• Snatch (2000, Ritchie) - A pretty good film, funny at moments and absolutely killer cinematography. Confirming my thought that Guy Ritchie is indeed the UK's answer to Bad Luhrmann (whom I adore as a filmmaker). Would recommend. 
• A Silent Voice (2017, Yamada) - It's beautifully animated and has a heartwarming story, what more could you want. A narrative about transformation, forgiveness and friendship. Truly beautiful and will make you cry. Probably my favourite film of the month (review will be up next Sunday).

Thank you for reading, hopefully this has given you some good material to watch next month. Keep an eye on this blog as there is going to weekly posts up every Sunday at 7pm (UK time)! Have a nice week, and tell me in the comments what you have been watching this past month!

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Is Eromanga Sensei ok?

  Let's start out by saying that I love this anime even with its slightly troubling themes but honestly it is hilarious and makes me laugh out loud.

  So now, let's begin with my issues with it. There are very strong themes of incest especially now that we are 6 episodes in. In addition to this there is a lot of sexual themes surrounding very young characters (I think around the age of middle schoolers from comparisons with other anime character designs). To some these themes would put them off immediately and I understand that. Themes such as these can create a lot of hate towards the creator, the show and its fans somewhat unnecessarily. Just because one watches something doesn't mean that they do it. I began watching the show because I wanted something that had started recently with few episodes, possibly a simulcast, as a break from Fairy Tail as I had been watching it non-stop (pretty much) since February. I went in blind and just enjoyed the first episode so carried on watching. Neither of the themes are taken seriously, as it is a satire of the situation, it is simply there for comedic effect. Although I have no real issue with the incest as I just see it as a joke not to be treated seriously but I do have an issue with the sexualisation of young girls from a feminist or even just a female perspective. Women in anime are very sexualised in their design and that becomes troubling when the characters start to get younger and younger. I don't think it helps at all with the way modern society across the world treat women. Women in media are so sexualised and it makes people think it's ok to behave like that towards women in reality, when it simply isn't. This is my only issue with anime (although really it's media in general) and this one specifically. 

  However, even with its strange and somewhat inappropriate themes one must remember that it is anime. It is fiction. It isn't based on truth, although one would be slightly ignorant to think that it doesn't happen anywhere in the world. This show is a comedy, somewhat a satire of the situation. It is made to make you laugh and cringe slightly. Yes, it is strange as no Western show would take on these themes in such a humorous light but you're not watching a western show are you? I would not recommend this show to someone that has never watched anime before but to someone that enjoys 'slice-of-life' satire-esque comedy they would probably enjoy it. I believe that one should enjoy watching and not take it too seriously as it wasn't made to be taken seriously. Although, I don't think it helps women very much it does discuss female sexuality in a positive light (whereas a large amount of media seem to suggest that women don't think about sex at all) but from the perspective of the age of the female characters I'm brought back to questioning how appropriate that is.

Ok, that is my thoughts for now on the slightly controversial Eromanga Sensei currently being simulcast on Crunchyroll. 

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P.S. This isn't sponsored and all thoughts are my own but if Crunchyroll wanted to sponsor me I'd totally be up for that. 

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2 (2017, Gunn)

So, urm, I liked it but it is nowhere near as good as the first one. It simply fell into the realm of sequels I probably won't bother watching again unfortunately. It is funny, although the jokes are very similar if not the same as the last one, so just lacking originality of which the original had buckets of. The acting is good, the CGI at times is honestly just awful, and the plot is actually quite different although I wouldn't say unique.
In this volume of Guardians of the Galaxy we get to learn more about Peter Quill's (StarLord) father, and although this is the main plot there are side plots that concern the other characters that are honestly very, if not more, interesting. But, Quill is the main character so obviously his plot will be the main one. We learn more about Gamorrah, and Rocket (whom is honestly my favourite character). We also get introduced to some very gold people that could probably do without even being in the movie at all if it weren't for a very funny moment with a carpet.
Honestly, I did enjoy the film and would happily recommend it to people that enjoyed the first one. However, I would just say that one should not get their hopes to high as it just simply isn't as fresh and shiny as the first one. The music selection isn't as good, they overplay jokes that are already in the first one, and the main plot is honestly not the most interesting (they certainly could have gotten it under two hours). Overall, I feel conflicted about whether I really like it that much or not and I think this review shows that. Y'know actually just save your money and watch the original its much better and you can watch it in bed.

Rating: 2.5 out of 5

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The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (Hosoda, 2007)

  I may have a new favorite film. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (Hosoda, 2008) is a Japanese animated film that falls into the sci-fi genre with strong elements of romance. However, the film stays grounded in reality as it tells the tale of tom-boy Makoto Konno as she travels back in time to correct what she deems as mistakes. It starts out with changing her grades and waking up early but she soon discovers that small things here and there create big changes, even life threatening changes. From the simple, yet beautiful animation to the touching story that leaves your heart feeling warm and fuzzy I can’t give enough love to this film. So warning, very lovey dovey review coming up.

  Is there anything bad I can say, maybe screw the ending which I have mixed feelings about. I love it and yet I cannot stand and since I don’t want to give away any spoilers to a lesser known anime film that I bet many Britain’s have not seen (but should) I shall leave it there.

Where to start with my rave review, let’s go for characters. Our antagonist, the tom-boy Makoto, is so relatabley average it’s almost strange. Makoto isn’t particularly good or bad at anything, when one thinks about it she could easily slip into the background but then we’d all miss out on one amazing story. Her two best friends are guys that are loveable, attractive, and are constantly making fun of her for being how she is but that’s what friends are for right? Makoto’s aunt is somewhat important as a guide to Makoto, she helps her see how her time leaping may be affecting others. She makes Makoto open her eyes a little bit.

  The animation, oh it’s so beautiful. If I could live in that watercolor world I would be happy forever. The background is like those of most every other anime film or TV series but what was different was that the characters would go from regular anime movie, ghilbi-esque faces to much more cartoon like faces, like their mouths taking up the entire bottom half of their face when they cry. It kind of took away from the reality of the film without pushing you out of the world of the film. I think it worked well, as I think it reflected Makoto’s character. She seems carefree and quite childlike which I think is shown through how she is animated. In fact all the characters kind of have this, especially one of her guy friends, Chiaki Mamiya, whom always has a hidden face as though he is hiding something about himself. Enough animation ramble I think, moving on.

Overall, this film is gorgeously animated (if I hadn’t made that clear) and the story is heart warming, yet infuriating and will always have you absorbed and guessing what’s going to happen next. There wasn’t a moment when I wasn’t with Makoto, I honestly forgot about the real world for 98 minutes. It’s such an amazing story, and character piece. It’ll leave you with tears in your eyes and thoughts in your brain. It may leave a little heartache as well, no spoilers but it’s so moving. Honestly a film I didn’t know about, had no intention of watching, saw it on sale in HMV so I picked it up and now has a firm place in my favorite  films of all time. If you love animation, watch it. You love sci-fi, watch it. You love film, watch it.

Rating: Do I really have to say, could you not guess? 5 out 5, if I could give it higher I would.

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The Lego Batman Movie (Mckay, 2017)

Let’s start out by saying that this film is a Batman film done entirely in Lego. Yes, it has a ‘The Lego Movie’ take on that but if you are not inclined to the Batman universe from Adam West to Ben Affleck there are a lot of jokes that you probably won’t get. The Lego Batman Movie (McKay, 2017) is a very well done family film that anyone can enjoy as it is just funny even if you don’t understand the insane amount of references. The film follows Batman as he yearns to have a family and yet won’t admit to such because he is batman and he works alone. This film questions the batman universe, much like its big brother did as well with the Lego universe.

Ok, so what I really enjoyed about this film was of course the animation because it’s so well done, to the point that my friend was convinced the film was in stop motion. The humour is sarcastic and yet simple enough for younger viewers to understand without it boring to adults. Will Arnet as Batman is perfection, his batman voice is much better than others *cough* Christian Bale *cough*, to be honest all the casting in this is pretty perfect. None of the voices took me out of the film and made me think ‘woah, that didn’t sound right’ or make me think about who the actor was as they sounded different from themselves which is always good.

Now the stuff that wasn’t so good. My only real complaint about this film is the amount of jokes. There was just too many, it was as though the next joke had started being told before you had even finished laughing at the first one. It was just a constant barrage of jokes, some of which not everyone would have gotten anyway because they where so deep within the batman universe that very few of the biggest batman fans would have understood them fully. But again, this is really my only complaint. Which I guess means that it’s a pretty good film.

Overall, a very entertaining film where you get to see Batman rap and be lonely which is an interesting take on the character. If you liked The Lego Movie then you will most likely enjoy this film too because the humour is very similar. I would say that even if you aren’t the biggest Batman fan go and see it because past it being a batman film it is a very clever satire of superhero films in a more general way, obviously specifically batman but don’t let it stop you is my point because it is a little bit more than that. Although, any Batman fans reading this that haven’t seen it, you will probably go mad with the amount of references.

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Strong women in cinema

Warning, may be slightly rant like as this subject pisses me off just about a lot. 

The representation of women in cinema is a complicated matter to begin with but the representation of 'strong women' in particular annoys me maybe too much but I can't help it. Why do so called 'strong' women of film become masculine or psychotic and murderous? Try to think of a 'strong woman' that isn't covered in defined muscles or psychotic, it's a tricky task. I want a strong woman that cries, wears a dress, falls in love and yet is strong because woman are just that. Women cry, women wear dresses (or whatever else they want for that matter), women fall in love and are strong. The amount of shit that women have to put up with is ridiculous, the amount of times I get stared or whistled at by men when I'm wearing a skirt (basically anything to be honest) is ridiculous and makes my mood boil. Why do men think it's appropriate to do that, oh yeah because the media tell them that it's ok. That women are flattered by this kind of attention. Honestly, I cannot recall a conversation with another women talking about this where we haven't concluded that it makes us feel like nothing but objects, that we are nothing if not loved by men.
Honestly, fuck you society. Woman are strong: we create life, we break and break and yet continue to build ourselves up over and over again. We don't need some man staring at us to make us feel good about ourselves. Women should look into the mirror and be happy, feel safe and strong. We shouldn't have to worry that what we are wearing is too provocative, I doubt that a man taking his shirt off in public has that thought cross his mind and yet before we go outside we ask ourselves this question.
Cinema needs women that are girl bosses, that get mad when men whistle and stare. We need women that aren't super muscley and yet can be powerful with not physical strength but the strength of her mind. We need a dorky girl that doesn't get a makeover in order to save the day. We need a women that can save the day without looking like a man.
The representation of woman in cinema needs to change for the better of our own minds. Cinema brainwashes all to think that whatever it shows is the norm, it has done since the 1950's. It needs to show positive images of woman that don't die, don't kill, don't imitate men. It needs to show woman that are woman as they are in reality: Strong, powerful, and independent. Beautiful, smart, and kind. (The lists could go on)

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