Welcome, one and all, to an all new Reaction & Review. Tonight guys, I'm going to be checking out a Japanese animated film from 2019. That movie is "Promare".
Now, I've wanted to watch this movie since it was announced last year. However, it was almost hard to even find a copy of this movie until about a month ago whenever my local movie store was carrying at least one new copy for it, and so I decided to jump in on it when I had the chance.
Now, I only know one thing about this movie. And that is that this movie was created by a studio called Trigger. For those who don't know, Trigger was the same studio that created "Kill La Kill" and "Little Witch Academia". I loved "Kill La Kill", though I've never seen "Little Witch Academia", so I can't comment on it. Not only did they make those two series, but this is also their first attempt at a full length feature film. Which could go one of two ways. It could be really awesome, or it could be a massive letdown.
Beyond that, I know nothing about this movie. I could read the back of the DVD case, but to be honest, I kinda want to go into this movie as blind as possible. I really want to like this movie, but I am prepared for the worse if this movie turns out to be a massive disappointment. But the only way I'm going to know if this movie is any good or not, is if I shut up, and I push play. And I'm going to do that right now. So without further ado, it's time to kick back, relax, and check out "Promare."
9 minutes later
All right guys, I'd just like to say that Varys's rescue mech is pretty fucking awesome. I just have to question the logic of putting these people, who were trapped in this fire, inside of a squared container. It just seems very unsafe transporting a ton of these people while the mech is moving. It just feels very uncomfortable. I totally understand that I'm complaining about something incredibly minor, but the thought of it just came to me, you know?
19 minutes later
OK...well, I wasn't expecting the Freeze Force to come in and arrest the pizza chef for being a Burnish. I'm wondering how they even knew that to start with? Again, it's probably a trivial thing to think about, but it's beginning to bug me a little bit.
2 minutes later
So, let me see if I understand this. They arrested the pizza maker because he was a Burnish. And they also arrested the owner who was harboring a Burnish. Mind you, the Burning Rescue team has legitimate reasons for explaining that this Burnish wasn't a terrorist. And this douchebag's reasoning is that he's letting the courts decide that themselves. So basically, this movie's another discriminatory story. You know...as tiring as this concept is, I am going to let it slide and hope this isn't just the main conflict, because so far, the movie has been pretty good. I just hope and pray that that isn't all what this movie has to offer.
17 minutes later
So this governor's reasoning for doing these experiments on the Burnish is because the magma in the Earth's core is about to erupt soon. So instead of trying to stop the magma from flowing, their answer is to migrate 10,000 people to another planet. OK. I have a question. How do we know they they don't have the current technology to stop magma from erupting? Don't you think you would try to at least to consider all other possibilities before migrating as a last resort? I'm really curious, guys. And I hope this attempts to explain that.
11 minutes later
All right, guys. Now might be a good time to mention this. This song that's playing right now, which has been played for like the second or third time, is really catchy. So I can at least say that the music in this movie has been really cool, and I'm really liking it.
15 minutes later
So guys...I've now learned why this movie is called "Promare". I'm not going to question the science on it, because that would hurt my brain if I did. But at least I know where this movie gets it's title from.
The Review
Well guys, that was "Promare". Let me shut that off...OK. You know, I wasn't sure what I was getting myself into when I decided that I was going to cover this movie for Reaction & Review. And after watching this, I'm rather...impressed. But I think I should explain myself better by talking about the writing.
You guys may have noticed during the reaction portion that when I was watching this movie, I stated that I was hoping that this movie would not go down the same tired route where we have a race, or in the case of the X-Men, mutants, because that's what the Burnish in this movie are called, that were responsible for burning half of the Earth 30 years ago. And that we would tread the idea of while there are some Burnish are terrorists, not all of the Burnish are like that, as shown with the pizza maker. Because, I am and sick and tired of movies and TV shows, trying to portray a race that are different from humans as these evil, inhuman monsters only to show that not all of them are like that. And I was afraid that this movie would be a preachy mess about how we should treat everyone as equal. Thankfully, this movie doesn't go down that route too much. Because, we have a story that is rather interesting. I already mentioned the Burnish and how they burned half of the Earth 30 years ago. We also have this rescue team known as the Burning Rescue, whose job is to stop these Burnish from, well, burning shit down. Later on, we have a character named Lio, who's sole reason for burning stuff is to stay alive. Otherwise, they die out. That is, of course until later on when you figure out what the origins of the Burnish are and why this movie is called "Promare". And I'm not going to go any further than that because that would result in spoilers.
In terms of characters, we get a surprisingly lack of character depth coming from the Burning Rescue team. I'm talking about people such as Ignis, Lucia, Varys, and to a certain extent, Aina. The only reason I mention Aina is because there is a plot-point in the movie where her sister, whom is a scientist, that works for Governor Kray, as she's responsible for running this huge Ark, and also running these experiments on the captured Burnish. The only ones who get any character depth are our main characters, Galo Thymos and Lio Fotia. And we also get a bit of development on Governor Kray. Again, I can't go too deep into his character without spoiling anything, so I'll leave it at that.
But as I mentioned, the majority of the Burning Rescue team doesn't have much of any character depth to speak of. And because of that, they all come off as rather shallow. However, I'm going to give some of that a pass, because the story here is interesting enough to keep you interested. I do have to warn you though, that you may run into a number of logic issues that may or may not make sense. A perfect example being the twist of the origin of the Burnish. Or how Governor Kray says that they don't have the current technology to stop a magma flow from erupting in the Earth's core. Like, if you think about that kind of stuff for too long, then this movie might suck. However, the best I can easily say is that it is a science fiction movie, so...you kinda have to roll with some of the goofy science. And trust me, if you're able to look past all of that, then you still have a really interesting story that is going to keep you glued to the screen. Because, even with the stuff I mentioned in terms of writing, none of it is going to destroy this movie for you, unless you're some weirdo who cares too much about science. Then in that case, you probably won't find any enjoyment out of this movie. But, in real honesty, all of that is completely trivial.
Now let's talk about the voice acting. I did watch the English dub for this movie. And the dub here is really good. Almost everyone turns in an excellent showing, save for one voice actor. And as soon as I heard his voice, I had a strong feeling he was going to suck. And unfortunately, I was right. That one voice actor is Steve Blum. And the reason being is that it's the same problem that I've had with Blum throughout most of his voice acting career. He almost never gives any kind of pitch when it comes to his voice work. And the only voice I hear is Steve Blum and nothing different that makes his voice stand out from everyone else. Mind you, we have veteran voice actors in this movie such as Johnny Yong Bosch, Mike Pollock, and Yuri Lowenthal, and they were able to turn in better showings than Steve Blum. Why? Because they showed me that they still give a shit about turning in a showing that isn't lazily phoned in. Steve Blum, on the other hand, still showed me that he still gives out the same two or three pitched voices that he's been carrying out in the 20 plus years that I've heard his voice. And I can officially say that Steve Blum, at least to me, has lost the will to act. And when the day comes that he stops getting voice-work, is the day that nothing of value will be lost. Now beyond Blum's lazy acting, everyone else turns in a great showing. And I can say, without a doubt, that the dub for this movie is really good.
Now we come to the animation. And...the animation here is it's biggest positive, but also it's biggest curse. One thing that I should mention is that the art style is almost lifted directly from "Kill La Kill". So you're going to get a lot ultra clean, ultra crude, and very flashy animation from that same show, including the character designs. And I know that there are those who are not going to like that style of Japanese animation. So I do have to warn you that if you are not into this kind of flashy animation, then you're probably not going to like the look of this movie. This movie also utilizes a ton of CG. And by that, I mean you will see shots of vehicles, mecha battles, buildings, and a lot of it is a ridiculous mixed bag. Because the stuff involving the mecha battles and vehicles looks really good. And then you'll have shots of the buildings that really stand out. And I don't mean that in a positive light. Because the CG looks as if it was almost rendered for a PlayStation 2 game. And that's not necessarily a good thing. However, most of those shots are at the very beginning of the film, so it's not a big enough deal where it'll take you out of the movie entirely. You might notice it, but it's overly trivial in the long run. And then you'll have shots of a line of fire hydrants and they, somehow, look worse in CG than the fucking buildings. Which, I didn't think was possible, but somehow, they managed it. But again, they only appear for about a few seconds before moving on to something else, so again, it's not going to take you out of the movie, but overall, the CG is a mixed bag at best. And honestly, some of it could've been rendered a lot better.
The music here is great. Both in score and in soundtrack. I could remember one song that played when I fired up the DVD menu for the movie. And that song plays about two or three times throughout the movie and it is really catchy. I may have to download the song at some point. And the sound-mix is done very well.
So, when all is said and done, am I able to recommend "Promare"? Totally. I mean, hell yes, I can recommend it. However, I do have to mention again, that if you're not into goofy science-fiction films, or if the animation style is not your thing, then there's no way I can recommend it. But honestly, like I said, all of that is trivial in the long run, if you're able to look past those minor issues. This movie is certainly really good. And for a first outing from Trigger, I have to say, I am genuinely impressed. And if they decide to make more movies, I highly encourage it, because I want to see what else this studio can do. And if they're able to turn out a great film like this one, then I think this studio will have a bright future in the animation film industry.
Anyway guys, with that, we come to the close of another Reaction & Review. Until next time, ladies and gentlemen, take care, and I will see you all in the near future. Peace.
Now let's talk about the voice acting. I did watch the English dub for this movie. And the dub here is really good. Almost everyone turns in an excellent showing, save for one voice actor. And as soon as I heard his voice, I had a strong feeling he was going to suck. And unfortunately, I was right. That one voice actor is Steve Blum. And the reason being is that it's the same problem that I've had with Blum throughout most of his voice acting career. He almost never gives any kind of pitch when it comes to his voice work. And the only voice I hear is Steve Blum and nothing different that makes his voice stand out from everyone else. Mind you, we have veteran voice actors in this movie such as Johnny Yong Bosch, Mike Pollock, and Yuri Lowenthal, and they were able to turn in better showings than Steve Blum. Why? Because they showed me that they still give a shit about turning in a showing that isn't lazily phoned in. Steve Blum, on the other hand, still showed me that he still gives out the same two or three pitched voices that he's been carrying out in the 20 plus years that I've heard his voice. And I can officially say that Steve Blum, at least to me, has lost the will to act. And when the day comes that he stops getting voice-work, is the day that nothing of value will be lost. Now beyond Blum's lazy acting, everyone else turns in a great showing. And I can say, without a doubt, that the dub for this movie is really good.
Now we come to the animation. And...the animation here is it's biggest positive, but also it's biggest curse. One thing that I should mention is that the art style is almost lifted directly from "Kill La Kill". So you're going to get a lot ultra clean, ultra crude, and very flashy animation from that same show, including the character designs. And I know that there are those who are not going to like that style of Japanese animation. So I do have to warn you that if you are not into this kind of flashy animation, then you're probably not going to like the look of this movie. This movie also utilizes a ton of CG. And by that, I mean you will see shots of vehicles, mecha battles, buildings, and a lot of it is a ridiculous mixed bag. Because the stuff involving the mecha battles and vehicles looks really good. And then you'll have shots of the buildings that really stand out. And I don't mean that in a positive light. Because the CG looks as if it was almost rendered for a PlayStation 2 game. And that's not necessarily a good thing. However, most of those shots are at the very beginning of the film, so it's not a big enough deal where it'll take you out of the movie entirely. You might notice it, but it's overly trivial in the long run. And then you'll have shots of a line of fire hydrants and they, somehow, look worse in CG than the fucking buildings. Which, I didn't think was possible, but somehow, they managed it. But again, they only appear for about a few seconds before moving on to something else, so again, it's not going to take you out of the movie, but overall, the CG is a mixed bag at best. And honestly, some of it could've been rendered a lot better.
The music here is great. Both in score and in soundtrack. I could remember one song that played when I fired up the DVD menu for the movie. And that song plays about two or three times throughout the movie and it is really catchy. I may have to download the song at some point. And the sound-mix is done very well.
So, when all is said and done, am I able to recommend "Promare"? Totally. I mean, hell yes, I can recommend it. However, I do have to mention again, that if you're not into goofy science-fiction films, or if the animation style is not your thing, then there's no way I can recommend it. But honestly, like I said, all of that is trivial in the long run, if you're able to look past those minor issues. This movie is certainly really good. And for a first outing from Trigger, I have to say, I am genuinely impressed. And if they decide to make more movies, I highly encourage it, because I want to see what else this studio can do. And if they're able to turn out a great film like this one, then I think this studio will have a bright future in the animation film industry.
Anyway guys, with that, we come to the close of another Reaction & Review. Until next time, ladies and gentlemen, take care, and I will see you all in the near future. Peace.
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