ANIME: かぐや姫の物語 (The Tale of Princess Kaguya)

Image from Wikipedia

At a glance: Japanese, anime, fantasy, ancient Japan, movie (running time: 137 minutes, says Wikipedia)

Summary

A poor, childless couple finds a child in a bamboo shoot, & raises her as her own. She grows up to be known as 'Takenoko' by her friends. When her adoptive father later finds money and expensive clothes inside bamboo shoots, he is convinced that she is destined for a better life. He takes her into the city, constructs a great mansion for her, and introduces her to higher society - anything he can do to make her a princess. She is also renamed 'Kaguya', to fit with her station. However, this isn't the life that Kaguya longs for...


Luna comments


This is directed by Takahata Isao (Japanese order - so 'Takahata' is surname), whose most famous film is probably Grave of the Fireflies (a very good film & so extremely sad that I couldn't bring myself to keep watching). Just thought I'd like to let you know.

I really liked the style of the art used in this film, & so here, have another picture:

Image from Studio Ghibli Wiki

All the Studio Ghibli films are beautiful, but I think that this art style really suits this particular story. There's something soft & simplistic & fantastic about it that contributes to the nostalgic, quietly & contemplatively sad tone of the film. It also has a more 'Japanese' feel to it.

The other good thing is that it's so pretty I can stare at it for ages. Because the movie is incredibly slow, especially for about the second quarter. The pacing there is so slow, that in the middle of the movie I found myself looking at how much I've watched & being very surprised that, even after watching so much, not much has happened at all. But here, the length also contributes to that sad tone, & I can respect the decision for the pacing.

Things start happening in the second half, though, which is good, but it's still slow. (I'm usually very against slow pacing.)

I also love the soundtrack. Which is no surprise, because it's composed by Joe Hisaishi. But I want to make a particular note of the two songs with lyrics, which are both more or less about life. In case you haven't caught the general thread yet, they're both slowly paced, melodic, quiet, unassuming, & sad. One is the children's song, Warabe Uta (わらべ唄), and the other is the ending theme song. I suggest you pay extra attention! I didn't like the voice very much when I first heard it, but as I got used to it, I felt that it was quite fitting.

I think that the combination of everything in this film establishes a certain feeling, or atmosphere to it. I like it when that happens, so, +1 for the film. :)

The plot itself isn't really spectacular, but you don't watch a Ghibli film for its plot. It's a pretty typical storyline, in that the circumstances of the protagonist force them into a position that they don't like. But that's the end of the similarities. The Tale of Princess Kaguya offers a distinctively different take on the story. Kaguya isn't rebellious & she isn't assertive. It's refreshing to see how Kaguya handles her situation.

One thing I'm quite impressed by is Kaguya's characterisation. To be clear: if you want a strong heroine who actively participates in the story & shapes the world around them, that is not Kaguya. She's passive - things happen to her, & she reacts, & she doesn't even make an effort towards changing them. Her actions & emotions are at times immature & don't make her character particularly endearing.

However, despite all her flaws, I didn't find myself disliking her. There may be a cultural element to this - whereas she would probably be seen as a 'weak' character by western viewers (I'm assuming that, based on reviews I've read that comment on the reviewer's receptions of characters in other stories) - I feel as if I understand where she's coming from, that life isn't just about one's own happiness, but that we all carry certain responsibilities. & her choice, or her perception, of her responsibilities ties her down. I can't say her sadness isn't self-imposed, but I can understand why she does it.

I can't say I liked her character either. But despite her childishness, it is clear that her character carries a great weight. There's a quiet sadness & frustration & yearning for freedom that makes it almost impossible for me not to feel sorry for her. In the end, I don't really feel that anything's her fault - she's just a tragic character.


Closing

I really recommend you watch it sometime! Okay, that 'sometime' being a bit more than two hours of spare time. Don't mind the slow pace, & I'm sure you'll have a wonderful visual experience =] It's atmospheric & poignant, beautiful & musical, & I think its cultural elements are quite prominent in comparison to a lot of other films that make it to wider the English-speaking audience (i.e. more than just anime-watchers).

FICTION: Death Sworn by Leah Cypess

Image from Goodreads

 
At a glance: YA, fantasy, romance


From Goodreads

When Ileni lost her magic, she lost everything: her place in society, her purpose in life, and the man she had expected to spend her life with. So when the Elders sent her to be magic tutor to a secret sect of assassins, she went willingly, even though the last two tutors had died under mysterious circumstances.

But beneath the assassins’ caves, Ileni will discover a new place and a new purpose… and a new and dangerous love. She will struggle to keep her lost magic a secret while teaching it to her deadly students, and to find out what happened to the two tutors who preceded her. But what she discovers will change not only her future, but the future of her people, the assassins… and possibly the entire world.

Luna comments

I've read Leah Cypess's Mistwood & Nightspell, & I liked the plot for both of those. So I was quite keen on this one.

I liked the idea that Ileni used to be a powerful sorceress, but then is in the process of losing her power.

However, in terms of characters, I don't feel there's anything particularly interesting about the characters. I get the feeling that the typical YA characters are:

• (for females) a slightly hot-headed, impulsive, has immature/overly emotional moments despite their very dire situation, clever, skilful, carrying a bit of a burden or mental obsession, has a bit of anger or angst because of that burden or obsession, but has the tendency to not apply their cleverness or skills until something they really care about forces them to do it; & 
• (for males) silent, broody, outwardly unapproachable, skilful, clever, carries another sort of burden that makes them so taciturn & broody & unapproachable, is always cool-headed & calm but then pulls off an out-of-character risk or act of stupidity when something they care about (i.e. the love interest/protagonist) is threatened.

Ileni & Sorin (love interest) fit that mould pretty well.

However, having said that, I don't think it's fair to 'penalise' them for having typical YA characteristics. They're characters in their own right. But anyway, there's a low-down of who they are.

I did, however, like the master of the assassins. I like how he doesn't make much of an appearance, but his presence is always felt because everyone's so scared of him. The only thing is that sometimes I think he acts a bit too overconfident for someone of his experience & reputation, but this is one of those things where I think it could have gone either way.

The plot...I enjoyed seeing how it played out & how everything eventually fit together. So upon reading the ending, I could go, "Oh yes, I enjoyed that book", in a sort of detached way (actually, I can't think of anything I particularly liked, except the premise). But during the process of reading, I didn't feel that. In a way, that could be testimony to how well Cypess has managed to work the undercurrents seamlessly into the narration. But what kept me reading wasn't so much that I was enjoying every moment as that I wanted to find out what on Earth was happening.


Closing

So, upon finishing, I was satisfied. I got a bit impatient in the middle, though. I'm still keen on the sequel & seeing how the rest of the story plays out.

However, I feel that this book has the sort of feeling that successful YA books give off, so perhaps its intended demographic (i.e. young adults) would enjoy it a lot more.

ANIME: 絶園のテンペスト (Blast of Tempest)

Image from Zetsuen.net
From left to right: Fuwa Aika, Takigawa Yoshino, Fuwa Mahiro, Kusaribe Hakaze

At a glance: anime, fantasy, mystery, some probably NSFW moments/scenes; 24 episodes (20-min each)


From Aniplex USA:

One day, a sorceress princess was stuffed into a barrel and banished.
One day, a single girl was suddenly murdered, and the culprit still runs free.
And one day, a battle spanning time and space over magic and revenge began!
Sanity and madness, sense and intelligence, self-confidence and convictions.
The tragic tale of this irrational world starts now.

The Kusaribe family is a family of sorcerers under the protection of the “Tree of Origins”. Their princess, Hakaze Kusaribe, was the greatest sorceress of their family. But Samon Kusaribe, a member of their family seeking to resurrect the “Tree of World's End”, a tree that opposes the “Tree of Origins” and controls the power of destruction, stuffs her into a barrel, and banishes her to a deserted island. From the deserted island, she sends a message out to sea, which is picked up by Mahiro Fuwa, a young boy who's sworn vengeance upon the criminal who killed his little sister, Aika. Mahiro agrees to help Hakaze under the condition that she find Aika's killer with her magic. But once Mahiro's best friend and Aika's lover, Yoshino Takigawa is rescued from danger, he too gets dragged into this tale of revenge.

Luna comments

I'm referring to the characters by first name, because their last names are rarely used in the anime.

The plot was pretty good, once I got over the slightly strange idea of two all-powerful trees. I think that the foundation of the plot is the weakest thing in this anime, but I liked the actual plot & everything built around it, so I can forgive that. It's pretty interesting how they linked all the different plot elements & characters together. I do also have a minor gripe with the idea that the 'Tree of Genesis' preserves the logic of the world - I feel that order would have been a more appropriate word (but that might have been just an issue with the subtitles of the English-sub I watched).

My absolute favourite thing about this anime is all the characters (& there are no shortage of major characters, even if there are only really three main characters). I'd recommend this series even if everything else is rubbish (which is fortunately not true), because the characters are so interesting.

There is no true villain in this series. Even though you have various people & groups who work against each other, they each have their own justifiable rationales for doing what they did. There are lies, deception, manipulation, betrayal & mental sparring sessions, but I didn't think any less of the characters because of their underhandedness. In fact, I think it's amazing how they managed to make none of the characters naive & innocent (okay, maybe one), but they're all sneaky in their own ways. Each character felt different & unique.

I especially liked the contrast between the two main characters, Mahiro & Yoshino. They're in a strange, accidentally-friends-but-not-really sort of relationship. Mahiro is impulsive & driven by his desire to avenge his little sister's death, which makes him indifferent to anything else happening around him, even the possibility that the world would be destroyed. For me, this usually makes a character unlikable, but he was interesting because this made him a real wildcard in terms of other people's plans.

Yoshino, on the other hand, is quiet, rational, sensible & altogether very likable. He tags along because he didn't want to leave Mahiro alone, & then gets roped into this massive adventure.

Unfortunately, I felt that Hakaze, the main female character, was a bit lacklustre compared to her fellow characters. Not that she wasn't a good character, but she was less satisfying to watch.

& finally, I like how the only person who can save the world comes in the form of a bumbling, nervous, wimpy boy who's a bit overwhelmed by his own powers. (For some strange reason, he's the only major character who's not on the poster.)

The other characters are also interesting, but I'll leave it there.

In hindsight, I feel that the pacing is a little off (even though I had no such feeling while watching). The story splits into two very neat halves. The first half of the story is very fast-paced; the second half is still fast, but not as much, & I also felt that the tension was maintained better in the first half. Having said that, the characters are more interesting in the second half =]

My favourite parts

• Mahiro & Yoshino's confrontation with Samon
• Flashback of how Mahiro & Yoshino met
• Timing of the title screen in episode 15
• Episode 21

Closing

Watch it, even if it's just for the characters =]

FICTION: The Last Knight by Hilari Bell

Image from Amazon.com

At a glance: young adult, fantasy, humour


For Goodreads users: the book page is here


From Amazon.com

Need a Hero?

You've got one in Sir Michael Sevenson.

Although there hasn't been a knight errant in over two hundred years, this young noble has decided to revive the trade. He's found himself a reluctant partner in Fisk, a clever rogue who has been given the choice of serving as Michael's squire or going to jail for a very long time. Now Michael and Fisk are on a quest to right wrongs, protect the innocent, and make the world a happier place.

It's not going to be easy. On their first attempt at rescuing a damsel in distress, they break a lady out of a tower, only to discover she was there for good reason: awaiting trial for poisoning her husband. Now the would-be heroes must find Lady Ceciel and return her to justice or be condemned themselves.

Luna comments

The edition I picked up didn't even have a blurb. Where one should have been, the publisher decided to reproduce the opening paragraph, & I borrowed the book purely based on that.

Which is to say, I really like the tone of the novel. It's narrated in alternating POVs, so we get a glimpse into the sharp, street smart mind of Fisk, as well as the very noble and naive world view harboured by Michael. Michael does everything based on morals and honour, while Fisk tags along more or less because the law requires it. Both of these characters are very interesting in their own way, and that clash of personalities leads to some of the most interesting character dynamics that I've seen in the books I've recently read.

The story is set in a medieval-like world in which there is magic. There are magical creatures and plants, and people with various Gifts. These are rather typical in fantasy, so the idea doesn't take too long to grasp. I did like the little detail with the two moons in their world, which Bell often refers to. It gives a sense of "familiar, yet very different".

The plot somewhat resembles that of a 'questing'-type story, but it has a certain element of mystery surrounding Lady Ceceil and the circumstances of her husband's death. I enjoyed reading through Fisk and Michael's adventures, and the longwinded path they took to arriving at the conclusion.

Things to look out for

• Fisk, when he's getting ideas or planning or cheating people
• Character interactions between Michael and Fisk

 
Closing

I quite liked this =]

MUSICAL: Wicked

I finally got around to watching this, after "Defying Gravity" first took (a fraction of) my grade by storm, once upon a time in high school.

Image from Ticketmaster.com.au website

From the Australian official website

Awe-inspiring and spectacular, WICKED is the untold story of the witches of Oz. Long before Dorothy dropped in, two other girls meet in the land of Oz. One, born with emerald-green skin, is smart, fiery and misunderstood. The other is beautiful, ambitious and very popular. WICKED tells the enthralling story of two unlikely friends and how they became the wicked witch of the west and Glinda the Good. 

So it's a good idea to know the story of The Wizard of Oz, because this musical is adapted from the novel which justifies the actions of the 'villain'. (If you're interested, that's Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire)


Luna comments

A note on musicals

This is the first professional musical I've watched, & it doesn't disappoint. In fact, it did the exact opposite, & I've been obsessing over the soundtrack ever since.

Wicked is about a witch, Elphaba, who was born green & unsurprisingly subject to discrimination because of it. She eventually befriends Glinda, the popular girl, and they take sorcery classes together. Meanwhile, the animals of Oz are losing their powers of speech. Elphaba sets out right things. (Except you can probably guess that it didn't turn out well, since she ended up as the villain.)

Before the first time I watched musical, I had doubts as to them - really, a story being told while the people burst into song every so often? How does that even work? But every musical I've watched since tells me that it does work. It's just a different way to tell a story.

So if you haven't watched musicals before, Wicked wouldn't be a bad place to start =]

The actual musical

A list of the things I liked most about it: the humour, the music, the props. More on those later.

The thing about the musical is that it's very fast-paced, and so it breezes over certain things - most notably, Glinda and Elphaba go from hating each other to being best friends in the span of about two scenes. I could keep up partially because I've read the novel. So from a novel-reader's point of view, that isn't done too well. (From a musical-goer's perspective, well, I haven't been to enough musicals to say.) Having said that, I prefer the plot of the musical over the plot of book, perhaps because I like the simplicity of the musical plot.

I really liked the characters in here. I didn't think I would, because you start with somewhat typical raw materials from a very typical sort of YA high school story: 1x withdrawn, rejected girl (Elphaba); 1x popular bubbly queen bee (Glinda); 1x handsome, charismatic young man (Fiyero). Despite this, I ended up quite liking the characters and their interactions, especially how Glinda and Elphaba came to be friends. Some things also hint to me that, even at the start, Glinda isn't the airhead that the musical initially presents her to be, but that's up for interpretation.

But, since it's a musical, it's probably best to dedicate more attention elsewhere. Like humour, music and props!

The musical was surprisingly funny. Even though I'd heard some of the songs before, I didn't expect it to be so light-hearted, because the novel was heavy.

Now the props. One can practically see the dollar signs on stage. There's so many props and so much detail in the props that there was no hope of catching it all. There's a dragon, numerous lights, nice backgrounds. My favourite of them is Glinda's bubble =] (I didn't know it was a bubble until Elphaba said so, much much later, so I don't think it hurts to say so here.)

And finally the music - the highlight of the whole thing. I'm not a seasoned musical-goer, as I've already said, but I think that Wicked deserves the hype. One thing that amazes me is how much better and entertaining songs sound when you watch them performed live, compared to listening to live recordings. It's hard to describe music, but I guess I can say that I think they really do depict the emotions and thoughts of the characters very well. If you're interested, the WICKED official Australia website even links to the Soundcloud for the original Broadway cast recording. Altogether, it sounds EPIC. =]

Lastly - I think it's rather sad that the musical is almost an independent thing to the cast, & that even if I watch it again, it'll be a different combination of actors & actresses on stage. The cast can be replaced, but it's the same musical. So I want to note that I really like the cast I watched (Jemma Rix, Lucy Durack, Steve Danielson, Edward Grey, Emily Cascarino, Glen Hogstrom, Reg Livermore, Maggie Kirkpatrick) =]

My favourite parts

• All the songs, but I'd make a special note of: "Dancing Through Life", "Popular", "Defying Gravity" and "For Good".
• Glinda and her bubble =]

Closing

If you like music and pretty costumes, I think you should watch it. If you're mentally adventurous, I think you should watch it. Musicals are on the expensive side of things (especially if you start comparing it to novels or movie tickets), but it's worth it.

May the songs stick in your head the way they're sticking in mine.

FICTION: Momo by Michael Ende

Happy New Year! & happy start to my blog, I guess.

I can't reasonably start this blog without a reference to my favourite book of all time: Momo by Michael Ende.

Image from Amazon.com

Audience/At a glance

Momo is ostensibly a children's fantasy, but it is actually an allegorical in nature, about how people choose to allocate their time. It's suitable both to be read like any other fantasy story, or to be read more deeply and have meanings extracted from the text.

From Amazon.com

At the edge of the city, in the ruins of an old amphitheatre, there lives a little homelss girl called Momo. Momo has a special talent which she uses to help all her friends who come to visit her. Then one day the sinister men in grey arrive and silently take over the city. Only Momo has the power to resist them, and with the help of Professor Hora and his strange tortoise, Cassiopeia, she travels beyond the boundaries of time to uncover their dark secrets.

For Goodreads users

Here is the page for this edition, & here is the page with many more editions.

Note about editions 

The novel was written in German.

The first English translation I read, and my favourite translation, is by John Brownjohn, and the above cover is for that edition. The John Brownjohn translation is also the one on which I'm writing this post. There is a newer one, by Lucas Zwirner.

Luna comments

Reading the summary, it sounds as though Momo has a superpower, which she doesn't (at least not in the sense of the Marvel/DC superheroes). Her special talent is just listening - she can help people solve their problems simply by listening to them. 

Back to the story.

General comments

I absolutely love this novel. I think this novel is pretty much the closest that any novel can get to my idea of 'everything done right'.

The central theme of this story is about time, and how people choose to allocate it. To rip a quote from the book: 

Time is life itself, and life resides in the human heart.

Perhaps in line with this, the story begins slowly, meandering through Momo's scant backstory, friendships and neighbourhood. It's slow, but it's never boring. The pace picks up about a quarter of the way in, but it's worth the wait.

I enjoyed the plot a lot =] I don't want to say too much because I don't want to deprive anyone of the experience of reading it with relatively few prejudices.

John Brownjohn is an excellent translator, and the writing is lyrical and soothing without being ostentatious. I really like the fairy-tale-like atmosphere created by the prose. It's a shame that none of the (more recent?) English editions feature the original pictures drawn by the author, for example, the book cover:

Image from the Thienemann-Esslinger website.

Momo isn't a typical hero or heroine, even though she's very much like a typical child. In the face of the crisis, she's lost and clueless, and unsure of how to proceed. Her actions are very much reactive, rather than proactive. Refreshingly, her triumph isn't due to her physical or mental superiority, but her circumstances and her special ability to listen. I do enjoy a good physical or mental battle, but it's nice to see something different.

Despite this being an allegorical tale, and despite Ende not being subtle about his message, it never feels as if he's forcing his readers to accept his viewpoint. His ideas are elegantly woven through the characters and plot. This is one of the books in which, the more you read it, the more you see in it.

Things to look out for (i.e. my favourite scenes)

• Girolamo's stories and tall tales, some of which he tells to unsuspecting tourists who think they're listening to a tour guide.
• The Men in Grey roping in one of their first victims, a barber named Figaro.
• Momo's first meeting with old friends after she returns from a visit to Professor Hora, and seeing the way the world has changed since she left.

Closing

It'd be nice if Momo were required reading for school, except I don't want anyone to have bad memories of it just because they were forced to read it. Anyway, I think that Momo is almost perfect in terms of children's literature, and that you should really read it if you haven't already. Consider re-reading if you have. =]

I also wouldn't mind seeing a Studio Ghibli take on it. (Or any other anime/cartoon versions, as long as it's 'done right' & to my liking =P It's just that so far, I feel that Studio Ghibli & select other anime directors would be more likely to get the tone right.)