Worth: $18.00
FilmInk rates movies out of $20 — the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth
Cast:
(voices) Amanda Lee, Colleen Clinkenbeard, Brandon Potter, Christopher Sabat
Intro:
Its kaleidoscopic visuals, intense soundtrack, and heart-rending story all synchronise to create a film that reaches beyond what these sorts of franchise entries regularly strive for, and reaps colossal rewards in the process.
It has pirates with super-powers!
Up to this point, that simple concept was all that was needed to sell One Piece. It has stood tall and proud as a Shonen classic on par with DBZ, Naruto, and Bleach, and the extent of its raw badass appeal is… well, summed up in five words.
The latest cinematic installment of this franchise could have easily just coasted on that appeal and still delivered quality material. But instead, what has been cooked up for One Piece Film: Red goes far beyond such simplicities, and the result is something truly special.
Set on the island paradise of Elegia, the adventures of Monkey D. Luffy and his Straw Hat Pirates find them attending a concert by singing sensation Uta (Amanda Lee, AKA Vtuber Monarch). Both the visuals and the music operate on the purest of bright and colourful pop, getting the closest that any modern animation studio has to recreating the symphonious bliss of Disney’s Fantasia.
A perfect blend of 2D and 3D animation, everything from the supercharged fight scenes to the numerous performances by Uta (with Ado’s commanding voice soaring on every note) look fantastic; as much as it will get the heart pumping, it’ll likely get your tear ducts doing likewise.
While there are a lot of familiar characters appearing, all of whom get at least one moment to themselves to really stand out and shine, the story is ultimately about Uta herself.
Raised as a musical prodigy, she seeks to unite the world in song; to bring sunshine to a world that is continually ravaged by the conflicts between the World Government, the pirates, and other combative entities. She represents an ideal within pop music that seemed to have disappeared from Western ears after Lorde’s cultural reset, when poptimism was a genuine outgrowth of optimistic thought and music was the backdrop for a party that never stopped. You can see why the World Government wants to stop it, of course.
There are shades of Madoka Magica in Uta’s urge to bring light to a dark world, and between her lyrics and the imagery around them, it’s like a full realisation of what Katy Perry attempted with Witness. A lonely girl who wants to save the world, wrapping herself in lyrical golden armour like a knight of the round tablature.
Without question, Uta is one of the most nuanced characters in any film this year, and the fact that she’s intrinsically attached to a genre of music that regularly is slammed for its superficiality gives her even more of an edge.
One Piece Film: Red, beyond any previous familiarity with its franchise, narrative genre, or even musical genre, is an animated work of art that deserves to be seen. Its kaleidoscopic visuals, intense soundtrack, and heart-rending story all synchronise to create a film that reaches beyond what these sorts of franchise entries regularly strive for, and reaps colossal rewards in the process. You will believe that music can change the world
