Posts by Jennifer Sol
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If anyone on this site is a fan of anime, I saw Summer Wars over the weekend and it was excellent. Stylistically, it makes use of all the visual conventions of anime - it's no TekkonKinkreet. And in some ways the boy gets manipulated by girl romance felt a bit predictable. We're not talking deep, complicated emotions, although certainly ones most of us could relate to. However it's the getting from Point A to Point B that takes you through some adventures. There were a number of places where things happened that I was not expecting at all. Outside of the main romance there are some interesting family dynamics.
It also highlights the way Japanese culture retains some of its ancient and unique characteristics, while updating itself into an extremely modern society. I've often thought Japan should be an example to those more reactionary cultures that think that to advance technologically means losing all of what makes them unique. Japan is living proof that this is not necessarily the case. The defeat of the bad guy in this film is a prime example - I doubt that you would see such an enemy defeated in this way in any Hollywood movie, that's for sure.
If you are already a fan of anime I highly recommend it. If not, this may be the one to pull you in.