This blog will contain spoilers. Be sure to check out my non-spoiler review
I also apologize for any strange typos. Something is wrong with this entry code that cause strange glitches. I can't fix some things so I hope you can bare with that.
Barely in time for Valentines Day, It's another deep analysis from yours truly. Ah, February 14th. A day that has also come to be known as "Single's Awareness Day". Oh, hey! I just noticed the abbreviation there. Heh, cute. Being a member of the single category for the majority of my life, you would think that I would hate this holiday. Well...yes. Yes I do. However I do have a bit of a romantic side. Today we are going to be looking at a great romantic anime film from the great Mamoru Hosoda know as Summer Wars.
Okay okay so that might seem a bit odd for me to say for some. Summer Wars doesn't really have a strong focus on romance. I mean yes two main characters end up together by the end of the movie but there isn't much focus on that element in the film. It focuses more on the viral threat that is taking over the movies social network on steroids known as OZ. But there is a romance brewing underneath it all in this film with small visual touches here and there to show for it. Now whenever I watch any show where the two love birds take forever to finally get together, I tend to re-watch and determine if the romance is well written. If there is anything there that warrants one character falling for another and if they truly fit as a couple. I wasn't expecting to find much in a movie about epic digital battles against a super virus called.....Love Machine (man, the irony in this blog is like a punch in the face). But the more I looked, the more I found that shows these two teens to be quite the perfect match. [I like to point out that I'm basing some of my points of the inflection and speech from the English dub]
The Start
Kenji is a systems moderator for OZ and is preparing for boring lonely summer in front of a computer screen working with his friend Takashi when suddenly Natsuki burst in asking if anyone of them to help her on a trip out to the country. Kenji ends up being the one to go by winning a game of rock, paper, scissors. So for the most part Kenji's involvment is by chance in this scenario. But I question if this result was not something Natsuki wanted to begin with. I say this because of how she acts around him on the trip. She informs him that they are meeting up at the estate to celebrate her great grandmother,Sakae, and her 90th birthday. She also begins to question Kenji on his involvement with the mathematics club. She seems interested in this and not just making random conversation. She's always smiling and seems to truly be enjoying his presence. I think from this we can gain that she didn't pick people at random when she stepped into that room.
Later when they finally arrive and she drops the bombshell of introducing Kenji as her fiancee, Natsuki then takes Kenji aside, apologizes, and explains that due to her grandmother fainting a few days ago, she worries that she will pass soon and wanted to keep her promise of introducing her fiancee before she passes. Natsuki begs Kenji to play along and also mentions that they should seem lovey-dovey when seen together. Now I can't say for sure one way or the other if Natsuki had any feelings toward Kenji at the start, but from all this I can say for certain that she knew Kenji before hand and really trust him to ask him to do all this. As for Kenji, well it isn't hard to figure out about him. He randomly leaves a secure job for a trip out to the country to help this girl without even asking what he'd be doing before they get on their way. Yeah, He's totally into her. If that wasn't enough, it's driven home when he is brought to Natsuki's grandmother and she starts questioning him sternly, unsure of this new man before her.
Love through Tragedy
A good friend of mine years ago was talking about this married couple he knew when during the conversation he stated how he knew they would get married not long after they had "that bad car wreck". Understandably confused I asked what he meant by that. He told me how a couple will grow closer together when they experience things together and that this bond becomes strongest when they experience a tragedy together. They have someone who experienced it with them and they can more easily confine and console one another. I have no clue if this is a theory that he came up with himself or if this is a common theory that has been around for a while. I had it in the back of my mind while watching this movie the next few times and I think it works for this film. There are several times that Kenji and Natsuki share intimate moments but don't realize it as such because they are busy dealing with the chaos that is going on around them.
When Love Machine breaks into OZ and the news sources point to Kenji for the blame,the truth is revealed to the family of who Kenji is and that the relationship was a fraud. As one of the family members handcuffs him to take him away, he goes to Sakae and thanks her for the hospitality and explains how with his busy family he doesn't get to have family dinners like the one they shared the night before. This little speech clearly touches the family in some way but most clearly in Natsuki. As he is driven away he looks back towards the estate. To his shock he sees Natsuki running after them. Why this is could be for a number of reasons. Maybe she wanted a chance to apologize for what she put him through or maybe she really didn't want him to be taken away because she didn't think he could be guilty for what he was blamed for. What ever the reason, It's a bit striking to see. At least to me anyway. Kinda supports the idea that she had some emotional connection to Kenji.
Natsuki Has The Best Cry Ever
Tragedy and chaos has stuck Natsuki's family greatly through out the rest of the film. The reveal of the lie about her and Kenji's relationship is exposed, Love-Machine is causing hysteria, and it is revealed that Wabisuke, Natsuki's most loved and cherished uncle, is the man behind Love-Machine and has run off. But tragedy hits them with one final blow with the death of Sakae. An emotional scene as they try frantically to resuscitate her while the doctor explains that it's too late. After pronouncing Sakae dead, the doctor explains that due to Love-Machinces actions, the signal that should have been sent to him when Sakae's peacemaker failed never reached his phone. The scene that follows is one of the most poetically moving scenes I've ever witnessede wu. First, the slow pan. The camera scans slowly through the room focusing on the family. It shows how each family member is dealing with the tragedy of Sakae's death. When something terrible happens, the whole world seems to stop and you are forever trapped in that moment. This slow pan displays that idea.
Some of you are familiar with this other anime reviewer know as That Dude In The Suede. He did a review of The Girl Who Leapt Through Time about about year ago. In it he took the time to discuss crying film. He said there are three types; The "sexy cry" which involves a character showing no emotion while a tear streams down their cheeks, The "public sob" where the emotion slowly bubbles over but is still held back, and then the third cry which he didn't give a name. It's a full on pouring out of emotion with no concerne of how the character looks. It's not made to look pretty because crying never truley is.
The Start
Kenji is a systems moderator for OZ and is preparing for boring lonely summer in front of a computer screen working with his friend Takashi when suddenly Natsuki burst in asking if anyone of them to help her on a trip out to the country. Kenji ends up being the one to go by winning a game of rock, paper, scissors. So for the most part Kenji's involvment is by chance in this scenario. But I question if this result was not something Natsuki wanted to begin with. I say this because of how she acts around him on the trip. She informs him that they are meeting up at the estate to celebrate her great grandmother,Sakae, and her 90th birthday. She also begins to question Kenji on his involvement with the mathematics club. She seems interested in this and not just making random conversation. She's always smiling and seems to truly be enjoying his presence. I think from this we can gain that she didn't pick people at random when she stepped into that room.
Later when they finally arrive and she drops the bombshell of introducing Kenji as her fiancee, Natsuki then takes Kenji aside, apologizes, and explains that due to her grandmother fainting a few days ago, she worries that she will pass soon and wanted to keep her promise of introducing her fiancee before she passes. Natsuki begs Kenji to play along and also mentions that they should seem lovey-dovey when seen together. Now I can't say for sure one way or the other if Natsuki had any feelings toward Kenji at the start, but from all this I can say for certain that she knew Kenji before hand and really trust him to ask him to do all this. As for Kenji, well it isn't hard to figure out about him. He randomly leaves a secure job for a trip out to the country to help this girl without even asking what he'd be doing before they get on their way. Yeah, He's totally into her. If that wasn't enough, it's driven home when he is brought to Natsuki's grandmother and she starts questioning him sternly, unsure of this new man before her.
Sakae: "I'm asking are you man, enough for her?".
Kenji: "um...y-yes I guess" (turns away befuddled)
Sakae: "Man enough to die for her?"
Kenji quickly looks up at her bewildered by the question. But what is amazing to me that he only pauses for a second before answering yes, his eyes locked onto Sakae. He is trying to play a part here I know, but in the delivery of that answer, I think he was telling the truth.
Love through Tragedy
A good friend of mine years ago was talking about this married couple he knew when during the conversation he stated how he knew they would get married not long after they had "that bad car wreck". Understandably confused I asked what he meant by that. He told me how a couple will grow closer together when they experience things together and that this bond becomes strongest when they experience a tragedy together. They have someone who experienced it with them and they can more easily confine and console one another. I have no clue if this is a theory that he came up with himself or if this is a common theory that has been around for a while. I had it in the back of my mind while watching this movie the next few times and I think it works for this film. There are several times that Kenji and Natsuki share intimate moments but don't realize it as such because they are busy dealing with the chaos that is going on around them.
When Love Machine breaks into OZ and the news sources point to Kenji for the blame,the truth is revealed to the family of who Kenji is and that the relationship was a fraud. As one of the family members handcuffs him to take him away, he goes to Sakae and thanks her for the hospitality and explains how with his busy family he doesn't get to have family dinners like the one they shared the night before. This little speech clearly touches the family in some way but most clearly in Natsuki. As he is driven away he looks back towards the estate. To his shock he sees Natsuki running after them. Why this is could be for a number of reasons. Maybe she wanted a chance to apologize for what she put him through or maybe she really didn't want him to be taken away because she didn't think he could be guilty for what he was blamed for. What ever the reason, It's a bit striking to see. At least to me anyway. Kinda supports the idea that she had some emotional connection to Kenji.
Natsuki Has The Best Cry Ever
Tragedy and chaos has stuck Natsuki's family greatly through out the rest of the film. The reveal of the lie about her and Kenji's relationship is exposed, Love-Machine is causing hysteria, and it is revealed that Wabisuke, Natsuki's most loved and cherished uncle, is the man behind Love-Machine and has run off. But tragedy hits them with one final blow with the death of Sakae. An emotional scene as they try frantically to resuscitate her while the doctor explains that it's too late. After pronouncing Sakae dead, the doctor explains that due to Love-Machinces actions, the signal that should have been sent to him when Sakae's peacemaker failed never reached his phone. The scene that follows is one of the most poetically moving scenes I've ever witnessede wu. First, the slow pan. The camera scans slowly through the room focusing on the family. It shows how each family member is dealing with the tragedy of Sakae's death. When something terrible happens, the whole world seems to stop and you are forever trapped in that moment. This slow pan displays that idea.
"It's the kind of cry that isn't attractive because sadness isn't attractive. It's the kind of cry that make you feel guilt and embarrassed for witnessing someone breaking down in front of you".
That is why I give this section the title I have because it displays all three cries in one scene and does it amazingly. The camera pans to Natsuki and Kenji sitting alone trying to take in all that has happened. Natsuki makes a request to Kenji, one that I can say all men fear to be requested to do. "Make them stop. My tears".Every man has the same internal instinct to protect their love ones. Fight for them and shield them from harm. But when it comes to the matters of the heart we men are all hopelessly lost. We love to fix things but a broken heart tends to be the hardest thing to repair. "Hold me. Right here. Please". It's the only thing Kenji can do in this moment to help her so he grabs her pinky. The tears don't stop however, they increase. Kenji then grabs Natsuki's hand and she finally lets all her emotion out in a long howl of sorrow with her face covered in tears. Through all this Kenji says nothing. What can he say? In this moment he can do nothing. The only thing left to do is offer a shoulder to cry on. To tell someone, "let me grieve with you."
Moral Support
Kenji and some of the other family members make a plan to capture the viral AI during a battle with King Kazuma, an avatar of one of the family members. However it fails and the attack has made Love Machine take things to even bigger extremes by taking control of a satellite and having it hurdling toward a nuclear plant with a time limit of a little under an hour before it hits. At this point the whole family is in the same room witnessing this when Kazuma make one more made dash to try and take out Love Machine. The AI however has taken form with all the millions of avatars it has stolen and the sheer numbers are too much. The visual of Kazuma being defeated drives home to the entire family, some of which before this point were not taking it seriously enough, the threat of this AI. You can see the shock in everyone's face and Natsuki is the most visually disturbed. As they sit there in shock and clearly defeated, Kenji suddenly speaks up saying "It's not over yet". Natsuki's terror fades and amazement falls her face.
Final Thoughts
Kenji and Natsuki have indeed gone through a lot through this film. They have both faced trials and sadness and through the process have grown close. And we can see that this love that is forming between them is compatible. Kenji stays by Natsuki's side when she is sad and gives her hope and courage though his sheer determines to find a solution to their problems. Natsuki shows kindness and compassion towards Kenji. She Cheered him on as he fought. It's hard to see all this through the insanity that is happening around them, but how they handled things shows that they as a couple truly work.
Sources
-That Dude In The Suede "The girl who leapt through time review"
-Image from His and Her Circumstances
-All screen shots and title card taken and edited by me.
Does not matter that spoilers are included. It still gets me interested enough to see the movie.
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