Film review: Summer Wars

                               

Recently, I’ve re-watched Summer Wars, and my reaction was: director Mamoru Hosoda really knows how to make it BIG. It’s action-packed, it has explosive visuals, and a really modern story (at least for the moment it was released— in the year 2008). It explores what would happen if Japan depended on a single social network for EVERYTHING—from shopping and telephone calls to business and government. This social network is Oz, where everyone interacts through personalized avatars. In this setting, Kenji, a high school student who’s a mathematical whiz but a social klutz, is invited by Natsuki, a popular girl in his school, to spend a week with her extended family to celebrate her grandmother’s 90^th birthday. During his stay, he accidentally lets loose an unknown entity into the Oz world that hacks the network and halts not only all virtual but also external activity, as the entire nation depends on Oz in order to run. As the world falls into disorder, Kenji joins forces with Natsuki’s family to put an end to the hacker’s chaotic endeavors.

This is the best Summer Wars trailer out there, neither the official Japanese nor English trailers do it any justice:

 What really surprises me about this movie is that it’s the kind that I dislike the most: the blockbuster, guided by action, the kind that is made to entertain the masses, that is really commercial—here and there you see famous brands like Adidas, Apple, and Dell—and mainstream, in this case by Japanese standards (regarding the super anime styles found in the virtual world). However, strangely enough, this time I actually love all of its fast-pacedness. And why would that be? It’s because it’s done with CLASS. It all feels just right. Part of the things that makes up this CLASS is the story telling and the mastery of cinematic techniques. Sure, the film’s fast-paced on the whole, but it knows when to pause or slow down in certain moments, whether it’s to introduce you to the virtual world and the extended Jinouchi family, or to portray the characters’ reactions to bizarre situations. And by slowing down, I don’t necessarily mean only that the action in a scene moves slowly, but also that a scene may be energetic, yet it lasts enough to be believable or to let sink in what’s going on. The use of cinematic techniques—such as camera movement and positions, editing, shot composition and the use of music—play an important role in these aspects. I’ve recently watched a really interesting video on You Tube that deals with Hosoda’s use of camera movement, by the way, and one of the things it mentions is how this technique helps illustrate the characters’ emotions. I really like how in this film, as well as in other Hosoda works, the use of these techniques are at the same level as those in live action films; he treats his animated movies as though they were live action in this sense. 

Another element that makes up the “class” in this movie is its sense of humor. Summer Wars is basically a comedy, there’s no drama about it; its main purpose is fun, the more dramatic elements aren’t principal to the plot and can be taken lightly. Really, when it comes to comedy, you can barely criticize a movie because it’s all just a goof off, there’s nothing to be taken seriously. The humor in Summer Wars is really wacky, and it’s found mainly in the realistic portrayal of a family reunion, which is one of the chief themes of the movie, in all of its informality: the kids running about, the aunts and uncles joking around, 

and Kenji having a headache trying to remember how they’re all related. Much of the humor is also found in the characters’ interactions, faces and movements. One part I really liked was when Kenji learns through television that he has been accused of hacking the Oz network, and he chases some kids in circles trying to take the remote control from them to change the channel, until he finally unplugs the TV. As the kids stand puzzled trying to turn the TV back on, you see behind them Kenji scrambling out of the room on all fours. The composition of that shot is really funny—the kids staring at the “fourth wall”—which would be the TV for them—and a clumsy Kenji in the far back. One other part was when the family finds out that Natsuki had made up a big lie; the camera is placed from Natsuki’s point of view and it pans speedily from one hysterical relative to another, each time getting closer. Again, here we see the clever use of camera movement that I had mentioned earlier. 

Finally, everything's so bold and visually stunning in the scenes inside the virtual world. The virtual avatars are depicted in highly colorful, cartoony anime styles. Here, you can really feel that the filmmakers are having a blast designing these avatars and imagining the internet world—and it’s mostly here is where the film feels BIG. It’s all so technological, so edgy, so avant-garde. Add King Kazma’s theme song, and it bursts with LIFE.

There’s one scene that serves as an example that sums up all of these elements, and it’s the opening credits scene. It shows you snippets of the setting and characters that you will be exploring for the next two hours: the Oz world, how people use it, a few members of Natsuki’s family, some talk about Natsuki’s grandmother in anticipation of her birthday, all the while with a humorous—yet not corny—orchestral track playing in the back. Just like an overture at the beginning of operas and ballets, which tends to be a medley of all of the main themes—well, basically, opening credits scenes are the same concept as an overture. It was at the end of this scene, where the blackened screen finally reads: “Directed by Mamoru Hosoda”, that I found myself saying: now THAT’S how a movie is done!

Two words for Summer Wars: fun and slick.

NOTE: This movie can be enjoyed ONLY if you are familiar enough with anime or at least with the Japanese’s tendency for crazy things. If you aren’t, DON'T WATCH IT.

2^ND NOTE: Another movie that’s also real commercial but worked out well is The Lego Movie, and it’s all for basically the same reasons as in Summer Wars.