Bits Pieces
Being new to anime, I watched this with no expectations and no background knowledge. This is one amazing, intelligent movie.The early scenes have a persistent, eerie, dislocated feel to them. Soon it's obvious that this is deliberate. What the characters do not say, and do not do, is more important than what the viewer sees and hears. The stillness and emptiness on screen hint at something very menacing off-screen.The hints gradually give way to answers. This is a horrific, predatory world where humans exploit perpetual adolescents - "kildren" - to keep the peace. By fighting and dying in stage-managed battles, the kildren help maintain a comfortable stable social order for the adults to enjoy. The adults also get to enjoy, vicariously, the thrills of warfare.The kildren do what they have been trained, engineered, and ordered to do - kill their own kind. But as they slowly, one by one, become aware, of the nature of their lives, the kildren suffer. Some turn suicidal. Some try to blot out the awareness with continual distractions, of chain-smoking, alcohol, sex.How do you live, when you realize you have been bred like cattle, for butchering, and your last day could well be this day? There are some thought-provoking themes here, and it's a nice touch, somehow very fitting, that the sex scenes are as sad as they are modest.Predation of the young, abuse of power, the pain that comes with awareness. These are difficult high-level concepts, skilfully handled in this artful piece of work.
jazzy663
Just watched the movie using Crackle on my Xbox 360.To be honest, I thought this movie would involve a lot of blood and fighting. But actually not at all, the majority of it involved conversations between characters. The fight scenes that did happen were entertaining, however, especially the opening one. I'll also admit that I initially thought that "The Teacher" was the main character. That part was confusing for me.I couldn't really see a clear storyline. The plot summary on Crackle was short and not informative, so I had a hard time gathering information and putting it together.Characters were uninteresting at best. Everyone seemed 'cryptic' in nature. By that, I mean they seemed to lack a personality. I never like that sort of thing. I enjoy seeing characters that express their personality, and when there's none to express, it gets boring really fast. This is one of the most beautifully-animated movies I've ever seen. Realistic explosions and movements, especially the props on the aircraft, were pleasing to the eye. No bright or vibrant colors were used, but somehow I found that appealing.If I were to improve this movie, I'd add more fight scenes (the battle between Kannami and The Teacher, especially) and take out a lot of the conversations. One key scene that I thought about for a while was the bombing attack - I seriously disliked that they didn't show the bombing, the interceptors, or how they "botched" the job.
hajj628
I'll admit, it was difficult to get into the right mood to watch "Sky Crawlers." I was expecting one thing, a war film, and while there were moments of that, I found myself confronted with a world full of characters with human concerns, and a strict atmosphere that called upon the audience to pay attention to the details. Having watched and enjoyed other films by Oshii (this one most resembling "Avalon" in tone and theme), I knew that I'd be in for something demanding and stoic, but I was also surprised by just how initially uncharismatic the two main characters were. However, as the film progressed, I found myself drawn in by their mysterious histories, and eventually deeply sympathizing with their tragedy. To explain the nature of the pilots is to spoil the film, but rest assured, every frustration and question you have concerning the characters is answered by the end –just make sure you sit through the end of the credits! However, whether or not you are satisfied in the end is another question entirely. While the chaotic, crowd-pleasing dogfights and strikingly rendered landscapes are sure to get a rise out of any audience, the mystery of the characters themselves is initially impenetrable and unwelcoming.On the other hand, Oshii's depiction of emotionally mature, personally tortured characters is a unique landmark in animation. While there have been other animated films concerned with serious character drama, few of them have chosen to completely eschew melodrama with the exacting discipline of this film.The film strikes a strange balance between frenetic action scenes and serious character exploration. It won't please everyone. But if you enter "Sky Crawlers" with an open mind, you may find something exciting, brutal, and heartbreaking here.
DoubtfulHenry
Locked in a long time battle, two waring factions look to gain the upper hand on one another. Kildren, eternally young pilots put their lives on the line for a conflict they don't understand to begin with.The Sky Crawlers is a deep film that draws you in with it's stunning aerial battles and complex characters. I immediately liked the main characters, if for no other reason than that they broke away from typical Japanese character clichés. They're layered and have back stories that propel them forward in the story and brings the viewer into their world.The animation is amazing throughout. The art is gorgeous. The plane fights were amazing. Each time a dogfight began, my heart would be racing and i'd be concerned for the characters involved. The music is very Mamoru Oshii. It felt a little odd, but did seem to fit well enough that it didn't distract me from what i saw.The pacing was skewed wrong. At times it felt subtle, slow and decisive with the characters, which is fine in it's own right, but when you open with an explosive dogfight, you leave the subtle approach coming off as sluggish. I would have preferred the character scenes to move a little faster and to be presented more aggressively.The ending is left me disjointed, however it fits the mood of the film so i won't count that against it.The Sky Crawlers is a beautiful and touching experience that's among the best of the year. My highest recommendation
AD
