Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya

 

 

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I'm sure most of us have head the saying "It's not as good as the book is" Time and time again movies that were best selling novels or books, are being made into motion pictures. Some have been not so great, and some have been insanely successful. But when you think about animated films, there are very very few that have been adapted to the big screen that are box office smashes. And with respect to films that are based on anime franchises, there are even fewer that can be called brilliant. In most cases a film based on a successful anime franchise is usually received with mediocre to negative reviews.

So what is different about The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya? Well for starters it is significantly longer than the vast majority of anime films out there. This movie runs at over 2 1/2 hours long. Most anime films just barely break the 90 minute mark. This film is based on the fourth novel in the Haruhi Suzumiya series. Well I shouldn't say it's based...it's basically the fourth novel adapted into a film. And the reason why some films are often critisized for not being as good as the original material is because stuff has to be edited out. But this film clearly has no signs of anything edited for the original novel. And I think that's what makes the film so great.

If you are familiar with the Haruhi anime series (which is also based off of the novels) then you will be familiar with all of the characters and their mannerisims here. If you haven't seen the anime before or at least read the first three novels, then you will be totally lost while watching this film. It's important to have an understanding of where the characters in the film come from. The Haruhi series is somewhat of a comedy/slice of life story about the strange happenings of an energetic high school girl named Haruhi Suzumiya. She wants the world to be a more exciting place and wishes for things like Espers, Aliens, and Time travellers. She is not interested in the ordinary. The story is always told through Kyon, who is the first member recruited into Haruhi's club the SOS Brigade. And low and behold she gets 3 more members to join the club (some against their will). But the other three are secretly sent to observe Haruhi. One is a time traveller, one is an alien, and one is an esper. They have not revealed themselves to Haruhi, but they have to Kyon, who is always the one who gets caught up in all of Haruhi's antics and wild schemes. and the Hilarity ensues

I would describe the anime series as a mix of the Wonder Years and Crack. But not as addicting. It is a great funny series, and it's always a hoot. The story is always told in the third person by Kyon. The film is no exception. However I would describe the film as the Wonder Years meets It's a Wonderful Life. I often got that vibe because there are lots of similarities between the two. The film is called The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya for a reason....Haruhi Disappears...or at least it looks that way from Kyon's persspective. This film is mainly about Kyon, who wakes up in a world where it appears that Haruhi never existed. All the paranormal activity he is used to has vanished and the SOS brigade members don't know him and they don't have special powers. So in a sense it's one of those...Am I dreaming, this can't be real kind of vibes. Kyon has to go through the film trying to find the keys to getting the world back the way it used to be. And in a sense it is very similar to it's a Wonderful life, because he is trying to restore the world he knew. All the clues from the anime and the novels show up in the film, so it's best to watch the series or read the first three novels before attempting to view the film.

That being said The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya is not your typical anime film. For starters if faithfully replicates the story of the novel to a tee. Nothing is left out. That's why the story flows so well. The novel itself is quite long, and hence so is the film. But a story like this has to be long. The thing I like about it is that it's not a long and boring film. You will always be engaged while watching because you're trying to help Kyon solve the mystery. Viewers are put into the shoes of Kyon as he tries to solve the mystery behind this terrible turn of events. Haruhi is typically a comedic affair, but I would say that this film is actually quite dramatic instead. And although I like comedy, the tone of the film just seemed right.

The film is available on both Blu-ray and DVD formats. And if you purchase the Blu-ray version you get a version on DVD as well...so it's basically a Blu-ray DVD combo pack. In terms of extras, there are quite a nice bunch, which is unusual considering Bandai is the distributor. You do have the traditional trailers, and TV spots like most Anime DVD's, but there are lots of making of featurettes, including the location scouting, the editing and filming process, making of PV (or music video) and a look into the film's premires in Kyoto and Tokyo. The premiere also featured all the voice actors from the series, and in usual fashion, our good buddy Minoru Shiraishi is there to add comic relief and comedy. The extras are longer than the main feature, but they are really good extras.

I really enjoyed this film a lot. As a fan of the Haruhi series I can't seen any fan not owning this. And for non-anime fans, I can say that this film would be very hard to get into unless you have seen or had a little taste of Haruhi previously. That being said I think it's a wonderful movie, and I know that most would enjoy it."

Exactly what I wanted, a great movie for any fan of anime. A must watch and a must buy from Amazon. :)

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