Evangelion 3.33 You Can Not (Redo) Review
Directors: Hideaki Anno, Mahira Maeda, Kazuya Tsurumaki and Masayuki Yamaguchi
Starring
JAPANESE: Megumi Ogata, Akira Ishida, and Megumi Hayashibara
ENGLISH: Spike Spencer, Jerry Jewell and Brina Palencia
Released
Japan: November 12, 2012
North America: January 10th, 2014
Evangelion 3.33 was originally intended to be the final part of the Rebuild series, unfortunately production for the film became a bit muddled so a fourth film was added to the line up titled Evangelion: Final. With the anticipation at an all time high during to the cliffhanger ending in the past film, fans were highly eager to see the next part in the Rebuild of Evangelion. Living up to its reputation 3.33 has divided fans making this film the most divided entry in the Rebuild films so far.
Taking place fourteen years after 2.22 Shinji Ikari has awakened from a coma and the world he awakens to is hardly the home he was entrusted to protect in the past. Misato is now the leader of an Anti-Nerv organization called WILLE and with the help of Asuka, the mysterious Mari and the original Nerv team they have begun their own personal war against Gendo Ikari and Seele. To Shinji's bewilderment however none of his old comrades want him to pilot an Evangelion ever again, most of them treating him coldly and with no respect, they even go as far as threatening his own life. With his old friends seemingly hating him, Rei being more distant than ever and with out any recollection of her past relationship with Shinji and a world that is seemingly on the brink of destruction Shinji is unable to cope in this strange world he awakened to. However the appearance of the mysterious boy named Kaworu Nagisa helps to mend Shinji's aching heart and to show him exactly what has happened in fourteen years.
Fans coming in and expecting 2.22 will be disappointed with this film, Hideaki Anno was able to finally create a Rebuild film that has maintained the spirit of the original series while offering up something completely new and unexpected. Instead of crazy battles against Angels (which this film does have) 3.33 has decided to reverse the process taking the Eva battles to the back burner while focusing on Shinji's struggles. This was a smart move because I felt that while 2.22 was a great movie it was detracting from what Evangelion is really about, the mental breakdown of a young boy and his spiral into depression. You Can Not (Redo) is in love with the very strange post apocalyptic world its created and the movie tries it's best by giving us little tiny details of what happened during the 14 year time gap however there just isn't enough there for us to truly invest in the world and many audience members will feel just as confused as Shinji (but I think that was intended)
What this film personally thrives on is the relationship between the two main characters Shinji and Kaworu. Most of the bulk on the movie focuses on Shinji's relationship with the highly anticipated fan favorite. Kaworu was only in one episode of the original series but the point of his introduction in the series was very important for the show as a whole and for the development of Shinji's character. Although he was only in the show for one episode he is one of the most important characters in the entire Eva franchise. 3.33 really is Kaworu's movie, the longer screen time really gives the character time to grow and for the first time we are able to see a variety of different emotions to Kaworu which makes his relationship with Shinji all the more tragic. Both Akira Ishida and Jerry Jewell have done a wonderful job of bringing Kaworu (my personal favorite character) to life in a way that has never been achieved.
Having seen the movie both in Japanese and English I can not really pick a definitive audio track to view the film in. Both dubs are superb and it really comes down to your own personal taste when watching anime. Megumi Ogata is always wonderful as Shinji and if you have not yet watched Eva in Japanese this should be the movie you convert to, the entire franchise is worth the watch in Japanese at least once. Funimation has also done a wonderful job with the English translation, with the rights from the series swapping from ADV and Manga Entertainment we've seen multiple actors play different characters, however Funi has really done a wonderful job with what they have been given and I have yet to see a poor translated version of any series they've brought over seas. Spike Spencer couldn't have been more of a perfect choice for Shinji this movie really shows how he has grown as an actor and with the character of Shinji Ikari. Eva has always had a pretty fantastic dub and I always have considered it to be one of the best thats out there, Funimation has continued to hold and raise that standard even higher with this new installment.
The animation style in this movie is also very different from the past two films. The design differences in the characters are very subtle, however the small changes has made a big impact on the film. Every character down to minor ones all look amazing, of course with the fourteen year time gap many characters now look completely different which makes the movie feel fresh and new. However what is really impressive is the background visuals to the movie, as always Evangelion loves to hide religious/disturbing images on screen. Evangelion 3.33 really is a bleak world but it looks beautiful, the movie loves to use bright and vibrant colors in scenes of mass destruction and chaos which makes 3.33 a gorgeous watch. I could watch this movie every day and find new an amazing things in the artwork of the film.
My personal favorite addition to this movie is the incredibly epic yet melancholy soundtrack by Shiro Sagisu, what he's created is a magnificent feat. The sound of this movie is marvelous and Sagisu has cleverly weaved gorgeous piano duets with larger than life orchestrated scores. This is the best soundtrack that Evangelion has ever had and Sagisu has set the bar higher than his marvelous work in the End of Evangelion. There is also a new song from Japanese pop star Utada Hikaru that plays at the end of the film called Sakura Nagashi which is a beautiful song which sets the tone of the emotional ending of the film.
Fans will be confused if they watched the trailer at the end of 2.22, none of the scenes shown make an appearance in the movie however I applaud Ginax for creating something truly new and original in the Eva universe. They took a big gamble with the choices that were made in this film but it was all for the better. Although the plot is spliced with not much to offer the interactions between Shinji and Kaworu are more than enough to watch. Evangelion 3.33 is the best installment in the rebuild franchise and I cannot wait to see what Final will bring, I give Evangelion 3.33 an
8.5/10
Starring
JAPANESE: Megumi Ogata, Akira Ishida, and Megumi Hayashibara
ENGLISH: Spike Spencer, Jerry Jewell and Brina Palencia
Released
Japan: November 12, 2012
North America: January 10th, 2014
Evangelion 3.33 was originally intended to be the final part of the Rebuild series, unfortunately production for the film became a bit muddled so a fourth film was added to the line up titled Evangelion: Final. With the anticipation at an all time high during to the cliffhanger ending in the past film, fans were highly eager to see the next part in the Rebuild of Evangelion. Living up to its reputation 3.33 has divided fans making this film the most divided entry in the Rebuild films so far.
Taking place fourteen years after 2.22 Shinji Ikari has awakened from a coma and the world he awakens to is hardly the home he was entrusted to protect in the past. Misato is now the leader of an Anti-Nerv organization called WILLE and with the help of Asuka, the mysterious Mari and the original Nerv team they have begun their own personal war against Gendo Ikari and Seele. To Shinji's bewilderment however none of his old comrades want him to pilot an Evangelion ever again, most of them treating him coldly and with no respect, they even go as far as threatening his own life. With his old friends seemingly hating him, Rei being more distant than ever and with out any recollection of her past relationship with Shinji and a world that is seemingly on the brink of destruction Shinji is unable to cope in this strange world he awakened to. However the appearance of the mysterious boy named Kaworu Nagisa helps to mend Shinji's aching heart and to show him exactly what has happened in fourteen years.
Fans coming in and expecting 2.22 will be disappointed with this film, Hideaki Anno was able to finally create a Rebuild film that has maintained the spirit of the original series while offering up something completely new and unexpected. Instead of crazy battles against Angels (which this film does have) 3.33 has decided to reverse the process taking the Eva battles to the back burner while focusing on Shinji's struggles. This was a smart move because I felt that while 2.22 was a great movie it was detracting from what Evangelion is really about, the mental breakdown of a young boy and his spiral into depression. You Can Not (Redo) is in love with the very strange post apocalyptic world its created and the movie tries it's best by giving us little tiny details of what happened during the 14 year time gap however there just isn't enough there for us to truly invest in the world and many audience members will feel just as confused as Shinji (but I think that was intended)
What this film personally thrives on is the relationship between the two main characters Shinji and Kaworu. Most of the bulk on the movie focuses on Shinji's relationship with the highly anticipated fan favorite. Kaworu was only in one episode of the original series but the point of his introduction in the series was very important for the show as a whole and for the development of Shinji's character. Although he was only in the show for one episode he is one of the most important characters in the entire Eva franchise. 3.33 really is Kaworu's movie, the longer screen time really gives the character time to grow and for the first time we are able to see a variety of different emotions to Kaworu which makes his relationship with Shinji all the more tragic. Both Akira Ishida and Jerry Jewell have done a wonderful job of bringing Kaworu (my personal favorite character) to life in a way that has never been achieved.
Having seen the movie both in Japanese and English I can not really pick a definitive audio track to view the film in. Both dubs are superb and it really comes down to your own personal taste when watching anime. Megumi Ogata is always wonderful as Shinji and if you have not yet watched Eva in Japanese this should be the movie you convert to, the entire franchise is worth the watch in Japanese at least once. Funimation has also done a wonderful job with the English translation, with the rights from the series swapping from ADV and Manga Entertainment we've seen multiple actors play different characters, however Funi has really done a wonderful job with what they have been given and I have yet to see a poor translated version of any series they've brought over seas. Spike Spencer couldn't have been more of a perfect choice for Shinji this movie really shows how he has grown as an actor and with the character of Shinji Ikari. Eva has always had a pretty fantastic dub and I always have considered it to be one of the best thats out there, Funimation has continued to hold and raise that standard even higher with this new installment.
The animation style in this movie is also very different from the past two films. The design differences in the characters are very subtle, however the small changes has made a big impact on the film. Every character down to minor ones all look amazing, of course with the fourteen year time gap many characters now look completely different which makes the movie feel fresh and new. However what is really impressive is the background visuals to the movie, as always Evangelion loves to hide religious/disturbing images on screen. Evangelion 3.33 really is a bleak world but it looks beautiful, the movie loves to use bright and vibrant colors in scenes of mass destruction and chaos which makes 3.33 a gorgeous watch. I could watch this movie every day and find new an amazing things in the artwork of the film.
My personal favorite addition to this movie is the incredibly epic yet melancholy soundtrack by Shiro Sagisu, what he's created is a magnificent feat. The sound of this movie is marvelous and Sagisu has cleverly weaved gorgeous piano duets with larger than life orchestrated scores. This is the best soundtrack that Evangelion has ever had and Sagisu has set the bar higher than his marvelous work in the End of Evangelion. There is also a new song from Japanese pop star Utada Hikaru that plays at the end of the film called Sakura Nagashi which is a beautiful song which sets the tone of the emotional ending of the film.
Fans will be confused if they watched the trailer at the end of 2.22, none of the scenes shown make an appearance in the movie however I applaud Ginax for creating something truly new and original in the Eva universe. They took a big gamble with the choices that were made in this film but it was all for the better. Although the plot is spliced with not much to offer the interactions between Shinji and Kaworu are more than enough to watch. Evangelion 3.33 is the best installment in the rebuild franchise and I cannot wait to see what Final will bring, I give Evangelion 3.33 an
8.5/10
It is a fantastic movie that leaves you with a hard emotional punch in the gut, now the long wait begins for the final movie, and I have no idea how I'll be able to wait.
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