Okay, it’s not that I’m
absolutely obsessed, but I just wanted to mention this for fun. I’ve always
said to myself that if I could go back in time, I’d visit Studio Ghibli during
the production period of Spirited Away
around the year 1999 and help out in some way. It’s just that when I first saw
the film, I automatically thought: I wanna do something as glorious and
beautiful as that. And if the chance to be part of the glory of that movie ever
comes to me, I’d take it! I’d be satisfied with contributing in drawing on
one of the animation frames, or being among the lowest ranks of the staff…and
seeing my name somewhere in the end credits XD.
Now, what I really want to do is talk about a few
films/animations where I think the use of time travel is truly admirable, at
least for me. Let’s start with:
The
Girl Who Leapt Through Time : I first found out about this
anime movie when I stumbled across it on the internet. I immediately read its
summary in Wikipedia, and was SUPER impressed from the start, as the story
begins with the death of the main character. WHAT? You never see that happen in
your average films directed to high school audiences, especially if it’s
animated. THAT hooked me into the story. Then, I liked the idea of applying
time travel to a suburban high school setting. What if a high school student
could leap through time? What would she do? It’s a simple yet very fun idea,
especially if one has enough imagination to come up with clever, interesting
and creative answers. When I finally watched the film, I saw that, at least in
my eyes, the time-leaping element was nicely fitted into its setting: she uses
her power for trivial, ordinary stuff, like coming early to class, getting
perfect grades, repeating her favorite activities, and even avoiding awkward
situations. The result is a very good “slice of life” teen comedy/drama,
light-hearted, really delightful and enjoyable. However, it doesn’t limit
itself to comedy, for she later finds out that her leaps are affecting the
outcomes of other people’s lives. I liked this detail very much. For example,
there’s a scene where she time-leaps to avoid being hit by an object that was
hurled towards her, and the object hits the student behind her instead, injuring
her badly. This sequence gives much food for thought. Everything happens for a
reason, even if it’s a harsh event or situation. That’s why it’s best not to
mess with time (if the opportunity is given), or things might get worse. What
has passed took place for us to mature and improve the future, by focusing on
the present.
*Note: One might say that the film has some
flaws, regarding coherence in the way the whole time-leaping thing works, but
it’s actually one of many typical flaws in anime and Japanese films that can be
excused for cultural reasons. I would have tweaked that if I had done the film,
but it’s not that it’s BAD or a defect. In a nutshell: you must be open minded
when watching Eastern stuff, or you’ll never get them.
Samurai
Jack : I barely watched this show, but enjoyed the little that
I saw. It was not until a few months ago
that I realized what it was actually about. In a mythological-like
ancient Japan setting, an evil supernatural being called Aku opens a portal in
time and thrusts his enemy, the brave Samurai Jack, into a very distant future, where Aku’s power is
law. Jack must now try to return to the past to annihilate Aku when he first
rose, but meanwhile tries to survive the hostile future. I was blown away by
this remote synopsis. Wow. Awesome. It explained the visual strangeness of the world
displayed in the show, with alien-like futuristic places and a few ancient
Asian elements scattered about, including a Samurai that’s not supposed to be
there. Really creative in terms of the plot and the visuals, the art style. The
whole concept opens lots of doors to good, interesting options and possibilities;
you can go crazy with your imagination and have fun.
And finally,
Back
To The Future saga : I saw only the first movie a long
time ago, and know vaguely what happens in the sequels. Recently, though, I’ve
been told how awesome and clever each of them is plotwise. First film: boy
visits his parents’ teen years and gets tangled in their love story; second: he
travels to the future, meets his son, must confront his enemy (hehe the year is
2015, wasn’t it? XD); third: boy and scientist friend go farther back to the
“cowboy” era. Very humorous AND interesting. Wow! I REALLY have to see them.
And they’re from the 80’s. Take that, present-day films who’re obsessed with
exaggerated 3D special FX.
