Oshii heads to the sky with "The Sky Crawlers"

[Lego]

After Innocence and his recent live action movie, Oshii is coming back to direct another anime film. One hopes that it might not be as pretentious this time, but at least it has an interesting plot. ANN and others have had information on it all this week but no ones posted it so I thought why not post it here.

Famed anime and live-action director Mamoru Oshii, who recently announced that he will be directing a full-length anime film based on the Hiroshi Mori novel series The Sky Crawlers, discussed the film at length at a press conference on Wednesday. The film will be Oshii's first fully animated feature in four years.

"There are battleships and planes in the story, so I'm sure some will say, 'Oh, it's another war film,'" said Oshii. "Actually, war serves only as the background of the story. The story focuses on a 16- or 17-year-old boy and girl in a fictional country who are aboard a battleship and fighting in a war. It's a story of love, life, and death." Oshii then joked that "no one believes me when I say that it's a romantic film."

You can read the rest here (http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2007-06-21/oshii-press-conference) . I personally think it sounds decent enough but that might be my love of planes and things like Ace Combat and Macross. With Oshii and Production IG at the helm with Kenji doing the music I'll be checking this one out.

[roastedpekingduck]

I'll be sure to watch this. Even if Oshii becomes pretentious again, I hope that stunning IG visuals would be worth at least a watch.

[Andrew Cunningham]

That bit about wanting to say something to young people is a giant red flag.
I hope he can remember to put the moral hammer down long enough to tell a good story.

[roastedpekingduck]

That bit about wanting to say something to young people is a giant red flag.

Agreed. Oshii himself comes across as a tad elitist and didactic in several interviews I've seen on him on DVD interviews, so that might just be part of his personality. :sd:

[christianlf]

I'm a big Oshii fan, so my interest is certainly piqued. I don't know anything about the books, so I don't really have much of an expectation. And he does go on to clarify that he doesn't want to preach to young people, so I'm not sure there's any "red flag" to be had. He didn't even write the script, so I think it's more on a conceptual/philosophical level relating to his approach in making the film.

[Lego]

I'm a big Oshii fan, so my interest is certainly piqued. I don't know anything about the books, so I don't really have much of an expectation. And he does go on to clarify that he doesn't want to preach to young people, so I'm not sure there's any "red flag" to be had. He didn't even write the script, so I think it's more on a conceptual/philosophical level relating to his approach in making the film.

I remember Oshii stating that he really doesn't like the traditional schoolgirl uniform either when he was talking about Blood: The Last Vampire. Oshii can make a good movie but sometimes his ideas get away from him as they did in Innocence. With a scriptwriter and some familiar faces on board I think it'll be pretty good.

[Gundamhead]

Well that description seems awfully generic. I'd like to learn more before I decide whether It's something to get exited about.

[roastedpekingduck]

Supposedly, the inspiration for this movie came from Oshii's daughter. Who knows, it might be tender?

[Jumbo]

web site is up with a teaser trailer here (http://sky.crawlers.jp/index.html).

[Lego]

web site is up with a teaser trailer here (http://sky.crawlers.jp/index.html).

I saw the newer trailer and the characters and everyone look nice. I'll be checking it out for sure.

[Pastachan]

The trailer doesn't really tell us much, unless I'm missing something in the Japanese text there, but it doesn't matter because I will watch this on visuals alone. This is why I love I.G!

[evilarrex]

That bit about wanting to say something to young people is a giant red flag.
I hope he can remember to put the moral hammer down long enough to tell a good story.

Oshii putting down his moral hammer?? Or passing the opportunity to go a luftpause mid movie with a long introspective burble??
Thats like asking the Pope to quit being Catholic! :>
That said I still love him for it! ;)
It wouldn't be a good Oshii movie without a moment where all forward momentum is suspended and characters muse about works and writings that only cyborgs with unlimited access to data have time to delve through in between their busy lives of stopping conspiracies which threaten world peace.

[Lego]

I remember back when the Blood + TV series was first announced someone(Japanese) mentioned that Oshii didn't like school uniforms heh. His works are usually interesting but Innocence was bogged down and I can't watch it aside from a couple visually impressive scenes.

That or his Basset hound..

[Shsway]

web site is up with a teaser trailer here (http://sky.crawlers.jp/index.html).

Nice music, bad CG planes. And someone's trying to pull a Shinkai! :P

[roastedpekingduck]

How does Production IG get the money required to produce such beautiful art, when IG neither produces a prolific amount of series, or produces that much stuff pandering to the otaku mindset? Does their stuff strike a chord with the Japanese mainstream? I haven't seen any evidence of that either. If anything, it looks like their stuff isn't too popular from all sides.

[evilarrex]

How does Production IG get the money required to produce such beautiful art, when IG neither produces a prolific amount of series, or produces that much stuff pandering to the otaku mindset? Does their stuff strike a chord with the Japanese mainstream?

Being prolific doesnt guarantee you a high return.
If you produce stuff that only pander to Otaku your audience is probably more limited.
IG does a lot of subcontracting work for other anime studios. They often appear in the credits for series being produced by other studios quite a bit.

[roastedpekingduck]

I see. So in a sense, it's like scriptwriters who work on many projects in the background and slowly build up funds for their own movies.

[Lego]

I see. So in a sense, it's like scriptwriters who work on many projects in the background and slowly build up funds for their own movies.

Yep. Things like GITS SAC, Moribito, and Ghost Hound look amazing. By not being prolific I guess it saves money as well. You have to remember though that this is the production house behind GITS, so I'm sure they're still getting returns from it. But I have to agree in that they work on so many projects that they have the money. Hell they even worked on Kill Bill.

[HellKorn]

Other than the scenery of the green field, I'm not getting any Oshii vibes at all.

... Which, uh, I can't tell if that's a good thing. Love him as a director, at least, so I hope that there is a substantive amount of indulgent yet fascinating scenic shots.

[roastedpekingduck]

web site is up with a teaser trailer here (http://sky.crawlers.jp/index.html).
Always a sucker for beautiful-looking crowds and harp-filled soundtracks. Instantly drove up my curiosity.

[Teisuu]

There's new 5-minute long special trailer on the official site (http://sky.crawlers.jp/index.html).

I'm utterly impressed. There's everything that makes a good movie: the visuals (the moment when an aircraft is flying through the rain is so beautifully done), the music, and, it seems, the story. I'm a bit unsure about the main character's voice actor, however, he is supposed to be rather emotionless anyway.

[djanss]

I'll be sure to watch this. Even if Oshii becomes pretentious again

"Again"? When was he not, after "Beautiful Dreamer"?

[Lego]

There's new 5-minute long special trailer on the official site (http://sky.crawlers.jp/index.html).

I'm utterly impressed. There's everything that makes a good movie: the visuals (the moment when an aircraft is flying through the rain is so beautifully done), the music, and, it seems, the story. I'm a bit unsure about the main character's voice actor, however, he is supposed to be rather emotionless anyway.

Nice. I'm really looking forward to this, and it's coming out this year :bigsmile:

[avalonwarrior]

After Innocence and his recent live action movie,

what is the name of the live action film you are referring to?

[Lego]

After Innocence and his recent live action movie,

what is the name of the live action film you are referring to?

http://www.productionig.com/contents/works_sp/35_/s00_/index.html

[djanss]

After Innocence and his recent live action movie,

what is the name of the live action film you are referring to?

http://www.productionig.com/contents/works_sp/35_/s00_/index.html

(...Oh, the remake of his UY episode?) :P

[vanfanel]

A few notes on this:

I'm reading the Hiroshi Mori novel that this is adapted from now. We've got a female commander whose family name is Kusanagi. And references to a pilot named Jinroh. Maybe it's just coincidence, but I've got this mental image from that of Mori waving a flag at Oshii crying, "Adapt me! Adapt me!"

The book, so far, is an introspective character study, and I can see why Oshii chose to work on it. Its war is a fact of life for the hero, but at page 125, I still don't know who's fighting who, or why. I'd wonder if it's even going to matter, but since there are three more novels (so far), I doubt Mori can keep the particulars of the conflict at arm's length for that long.

Oshii is interviewed in this month's Animage about the movie. He seemed a little concerned that the first half may be a little slow for audiences, though he adds that once Chiaki Kurihara's character enters the scene, the plot picks up and keeps going straight through to the end.

Animage also reveals that the movie contains the world's very first Oshii-directed love scene. This frightens me for some reason...

[Lego]

A few notes on this:

I'm reading the Hiroshi Mori novel that this is adapted from now. We've got a female commander whose family name is Kusanagi. And references to a pilot named Jinroh. Maybe it's just coincidence, but I've got this mental image from that of Mori waving a flag at Oshii crying, "Adapt me! Adapt me!"

The book, so far, is an introspective character study, and I can see why Oshii chose to work on it. Its war is a fact of life for the hero, but at page 125, I still don't know who's fighting who, or why. I'd wonder if it's even going to matter, but since there are three more novels (so far), I doubt Mori can keep the particulars of the conflict at arm's length for that long.

Oshii is interviewed in this month's Animage about the movie. He seemed a little concerned that the first half may be a little slow for audiences, though he adds that once Chiaki Kurihara's character enters the scene, the plot picks up and keeps going straight through to the end.

Animage also reveals that the movie contains the world's very first Oshii-directed love scene. This frightens me for some reason...

Wait, Kusanagi and Jinroh? Thats one hell of a coincidence ;). Oshii's first love scene? You sure theres no Basset Hounds around?

[vanfanel]

Oshii's first love scene? You sure theres no Basset Hounds around?

Oh, there is indeed a basset hound in some screen shots I've seen. Not in the book, though. At least not yet :)

[jojo_home]

If Oshii directs a love scene where the participants are sexing while dryly quoting from Corinthians, I will laugh my ass off.

[roastedpekingduck]

There's new 5-minute long special trailer on the official site (http://sky.crawlers.jp/index.html).

I'm utterly impressed. There's everything that makes a good movie: the visuals (the moment when an aircraft is flying through the rain is so beautifully done), the music, and, it seems, the story. I'm a bit unsure about the main character's voice actor, however, he is supposed to be rather emotionless anyway.
Mass plane dogfights=soooo coool

By the way, the thought of a sex scene filled with philosophical quotes sounds so titillating.

[Busaiku]

By the way, the thought of a sex scene filled with philosophical quotes sounds so titillating.

You should check out the one from Mind Game.

[roastedpekingduck]

By the way, the thought of a sex scene filled with philosophical quotes sounds so titillating.

You should check out the one from Mind Game.
Heh, I just rewatched that movie before reading that post. Mind Game has one of the greatest sex scenes ever. The sex scene doesn't get me aroused at all, but it's so awesome to look at with the swirling psychedellic colors and everything. Not philosophical, but downright cool.

[Teisuu]

Its war is a fact of life for the hero, but at page 125, I still don't know who's fighting who, or why.It's not revealed even by the end of the book - or I've missed that completely. Sadly, this book's language is harder for me to follow, and a good dose of pilot's jargon doesn't help either.

It seems that the movie trailer gives more highlights into that: "war as a show" and civilian companies fighting each other just to entertain the public.

but since there are three more novels (so far)Five novels in total and a collection of short stories, says Japanese Wikipedia (http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%B9%E3%82%AB%E3%82%A4%E3%83%BB%E3%82%AF%E3%8 3%AD%E3%83%A9).

[nakimushi]

I got back a couple of hours ago from seeing Sky Crawlers in Shinjuku, and I realize this will most likely be too early for most people, but on the off-chance that other AoD'ers in Japan will see it soon, and there is always possible that other means of seeing it might come up before it is released in R1, I wanted to post a few questions along with my impressions.

I'm guessing an R1 release will be likely, based on the fact of the big WB logo that appeared on the screen first, and the bilingual opening credits (the closing credits were in Japanese).

Non-spoiler impressions.

Ok, I didn't time it, but I think the requisite Basset Hound made its first appearance within the first 10 minutes of the film. :)

First the really good news. The CG arial dogfights look absolutely terrific, and Skywalker Sound earned their money, because they sound great as well - it felt like the theater was shaking.

As for the non-dogfight visuals, well there is a soft focus effect (and apparent digital "film grain") that is added to the picture, that will probably annoy the heck out of anyone who buys the inevitable Blu-ray release. Perhaps it won't be as noticeable on even a big HDTV, but it was on the movie screen. It isn't really that distracting though, and I quickly got used to it.

I imagine that the effects were added to soften the generally realistic, but somewhat simple facial features. Production IG seems to do this at times and IMO it can lead to characters' faces looking cold or even approaching corpse-like/(or in the case of the original GiTS - appropriately cyborg-like). The characters don't look bad (well, except for maybe occasionally Yuuichi's head), previously, I've noticed this coldness in Kurau and Otogi Zoshi, so if you liked or didn't mind the designs in those shows, you shouldn't have a problem with them in Sky Crawlers.

The animation though is generally very fluid and looks good - characters move very naturally.

I remember reading that Oshii wanted to make this film more accessible to young people than his previous films like Innocence for example. Well, no characters start quoting philosophers or sacred texts, but this isn't Area 88 either, it is closer IMO to Yukikaze, (no aliens though).

It definitely isn't as accessible as Oshii's original Patlabor OVA. If I had to pick a title of his that I found it most similar to, it would probably be Jin-Roh, and it isn't just because there is a character the never appears in the movie but is referred to several times as being named Jinroh.

The movie has some blatant ambiguities, e.g.: there is a war going on, but it is never explained what it is about.

It appears to be almost exclusively a war fought with airplanes - no infantry or naval battles are ever shown or, as far as I can remember, even mentioned. All of the planes are propeller based, there are no jets. The technology seems consistent with early WWII era technology.

Interestingly enough there is a fair amount of English used. Even though all the pilots have Japanese names, they speak English when they fly - so I suppose English is the approved aviation language in this world as well. However, there were other parts where it appeared. There was a character who was reading a newspaper and the part the audience could see was clearly in English and even mentioned the place name of Donnegal, but when he folded it up laid it on the table, only Japanese writing could be seen. There also was a scene where tourists/patriotic middle-aged women visited the air base, and they all spoke English and the main character spoke English back to them.

Now for my spoiler questions about some key points and the ending. One caveat here, in case my questions and assumptions seem to be completely off the mark, although my listening comprehension has improved, I am not fluent in Japanese and this film did not have English subtitles, I'm pretty sure I understood almost everything that was said, but I very well might have missed or misinterpreted some lines.



I haven't read the books that this film is based on, but it seems to be an allegory - although I haven't completely figured out for what it is an allegory. :)

Yuuichi says several times that he considers himself to be a child, although his actual age is never revealed. Is it an allegory of people being thrust into a brutal adult world before they are ready?

The one thing I am definitely unsure of though is during the final dogfight, did Yuuichi say that he had killed his father?

The apparent reincarnation of characters that die, both Yudagawa(? - the guy with the white hair), and Yuuichi are replaced with characters with the exact same idiosyncrasies, folding newspapers and breaking matches respectively. Does this symbolize a never-ending cycle?

How about Yuuichi's and his reincarnation's helmet? Yuuichi's had the workd "Cairn" on his. Cairns can be used as both burial markers and trail markers. His replacement's helmet says "Norfolk". There is a US Naval Base in Norfolk VA. I don't see a connection here. I don't think anyone else had anything written on their helmets.

I wasn't sure what to make of why Kusanagi was in the whorehouse when she was a child. I didn't exactly follow what Fuuko(?) said there. It seems likely that's where she became pregnant with Mitsuki at a young age though.

[Lego]

Sounds like a great movie, can't wait to see it on R1.

[vanfanel]

The movie has some blatant ambiguities, e.g.: there is a war going on, but it is never explained what it is about.


I think that basically, this world has outsourced its warmaking to private companies, and in the process ensured that the war will never end, since either side winning would result in the collapse of the business.

Interestingly enough there is a fair amount of English used. Even though all the pilots have Japanese names, they speak English when they fly - so I suppose English is the approved aviation language in this world as well.


I had to rely on the Japanese subtitles during the dogfight scenes; I couldn't make heads or tails of the English. :-) There's Polish too.


I haven't read the books that this film is based on, but it seems to be an allegory - although I haven't completely figured out for what it is an allegory. :)


Serious spoilers here. Not kidding. Be warned.

This is basically Buddhism realized by an SF setting. Each chapter of the novel begins with a quotation from J.D. Salinger's "Nine Stories," and I am told by colleagues that Salinger was very interested in Buddhism and ideas of reincarnation. The quotes involve the ideas of death and rebirth. Basically what's going on is, the pilots fight until they are killed (or kill themselves), and then their memories are somehow recovered and put into new bodies created (and apparently owned) by the companies that are fighting the war. They do not remember their "past lives" but sometimes recognize reborn traces of people they knew in the past who got killed (the guy who folds the newspaper, for example). Everyone in the movie reacts to Kannami in a weird way, because they all knew his predecessor, Jinroh.



Yuuichi says several times that he considers himself to be a child, although his actual age is never revealed. Is it an allegory of people being thrust into a brutal adult world before they are ready?


That's the SF angle. The "kildore" soldiers were created by the genetic experiments of the war companies, and at some point they stop aging. I'd guess Yuichi is fresh out of the vat when he reports for duty, but to him his past is just a cloudy haze.


The one thing I am definitely unsure of though is during the final dogfight, did Yuuichi say that he had killed his father?


I thought he said he was going to kill his father, whom I assumed to be the man in the panther plane (who used to be a boss at their own company, until he switched sides). I'm not sure how this revelation would have been arrived at, however.

[vanfanel]

My review:

Mamoru Oshii's newest film, "The Sky Crawlers," like most of his work, is not going to be for everybody. It's based on a novel by Hiroshi Mori, which concerns the daily lives of pilots fighting a war whose origin, location, objective, and exit strategy are murky at best. These men and women are in the war, and to them the war simply seems to have no beginning and no end. They don't think about the reasons; they just do as they're told. And yes, there's a reason for this -- which I will leave you to discover.

One month prior to the movie's release, I set myself the task of reading the novel. This wasn't because I wanted to spoil the movie; it was because I wanted to have some hope of understanding it when I saw it in the theater. Oshii movies aren't exactly easy to understand even when there are English subtitles, so without them, I knew there would be no hope.

Anyway, the story begins with the arrival of Yuichi Kannami -- a new fighter plane pilot recently assigned to a small base run by an icily-efficient female officer named Suito Kusanagi. He is quickly introduced to his fellow pilots, and the following day goes out on a recon mission with one of them. Along the way, they are attacked by three enemy planes. Kannami shoots down two of them, and his partner and roommate Tokino takes care of the third. They report the incident to Kusanagi, and afterward Tokino drags Kannami out on what-passes-for-the-town. They share a quick meal at a local diner, followed by an evening with two prostitutes of Tokino's acquaintance at the local house-of-ill-repute.

Kusanagi seems to be hiding something when she first sees Kannami. The head mechanic seems to know something too. Tokino drops hints of scandalous things involving Kusanagi and his predecessor that he seems to want Kannami to piece together. The cook at the local diner takes on an especially bland demeanor when Kannami is introduced. And the prostitute with whom Kannami shares a night seems to know things also, mentioning a man named Jinroh, for whom Kannami is the replacement pilot. Kannami suspects that Jinroh is dead, but his airplane is in perfect shape, which means that if he did die, it wasn't during combat.

Kannami goes along with everything quite passively, consuming vast numbers of cigarettes along the way (in the book, hardly a page went by without someone lighting up).

From here, I'll leave the slow unraveling of the mystery for you to discover, and just make a few general comments. Naturally, a few of Oshii's favorite things were added here and there: there is the obligatory dog, part of the movie is set in Poland, and the head mechanic got changed into a woman so that Ryoko Sakakibara could play the part. Those who are worried about literary quotations can breathe easy: there weren't any that I noticed, even though the novel opens each of its five sections with a passage from J.D. Salinger's "Nine Stories."

With regard to the novel, the movie is an extremely faithful adaptation, almost. Most of what's in the movie comes scene-for-scene from the book, and I really think Hiroshi Mori should have shared the screenplay credit, because a ton of his dialog is used in it. But at the very end, there is one difference in the movie that really did count.

And I can't talk about it because it would spoil the whole movie.

The book ended with some surprising revelations to be sure, but when I finished reading it, I didn't feel like the author had really justified the 300-odd pages leading up to his finale. For me, it lacked weight. I don't think Oshii dumbed down the original ending...I think he just followed his own instincts about what Kannami would or should do, and from there let things play out within the logic of the strange world that Hiroshi Mori had created. I'd love to read what Mori has to say about it -- if he approved the change, if it was taken from one of the later books I've not read, if he felt betrayed or not -- but I gotta say I liked the movie better. Oshii gave me a character who -- at the very end -- I was finally able to care about, and left me feeling more satisfied with the film than I had really expected to, given my lukewarm reaction to the book.

Other stuff: Art-wise...sheesh, it was animated by Production I.G. on a theatrical budget. You know it's gonna look great. Skywalker Sound worked on the audio end of things, and the Japanese release is by Warner Brothers. Top-shelf treatment all around. Be sure to stick around through the closing credits, or you'll miss the last scene.

By the way, to those commenting on my previous post, a "love scene" doesn't necessarily mean a sex scene :)

[nakimushi]

With regard to the novel, the movie is an extremely faithful adaptation, almost. Most of what's in the movie comes scene-for-scene from the book, and I really think Hiroshi Mori should have shared the screenplay credit, because a ton of his dialog is used in it. But at the very end, there is one difference in the movie that really did count.

And I can't talk about it because it would spoil the whole movie.



Thanks for replying to my questions above. Since I've already seen the movie, would you mind letting me in on the one difference, using spoiler tags of course. :)

One question about your reply above. The Buddhism angle seemed likely with the reincarnation. However I don't remember any mention about "kildore" soldiers or war companies in the movie (although I might have just missed it because my Japanese comprehension is far from perfect) was that just from the book?

[vanfanel]

Thanks for replying to my questions above. Since I've already seen the movie, would you mind letting me in on the one difference, using spoiler tags of course. :)

All righty!


In the book, when Kannami takes the gun from Mitsuya in Kusanagi's office, he proceeds to shoot Kusanagi through the heart, completing what I interpreted as an "inter-incarnational" double-suicide pact. When he fired and missed her in the movie, I felt like I could sense a "hey, wait a minute!" kind of reaction from some people around me in the theater.


One question about your reply above. The Buddhism angle seemed likely with the reincarnation. However I don't remember any mention about "kildore" soldiers or war companies in the movie (although I might have just missed it because my Japanese comprehension is far from perfect) was that just from the book?


That's my romanization of キルドレ (it's in the trailer, I think), which I'm guessing to be a made-up word based on "children." There are vague references to them here and there throughout the movie, and Mitsuya spells out things out pretty well when she comes to talk to Kannami in his room near the end. She's been thinking about the kildore, and imagining what their lives must be like. If you lived a long, long, life knowing only the same war every day, finally got killed, and then had your memories put into a new body...and the same thing happened over and over...the past, she reasons, would be like a fog. It would be hard to tell yesterday from a week ago from a year ago. Because her own memories of the past feel like they're starting to blur together, she's afraid that she's kildore, even though she thought she was a regular human. That scene was quoted word-for-word from the book and I wouldn't have had a chance of understanding it if I hadn't waded through that conversation in print beforehand. The company angle isn't explored in much detail (and would probably fall apart if it were), but it's there in both versions. The pilots don't refer to "our army," but to "our company," and Kusanagi referred to the black panther pilot not as "my commander" but as "my boss."