"Eureka seveN - good night, sleep tight, young lovers" Talkback (Spoilers)

[Malitha C]

I'm seeing this in an hour. I'm totally psyched.

[Danzinar]

I'm heading out in a couple hours to see this. It's playing 7:00 p.m. my time, but I'm leaving early to grab dinner and get in line (if there is one).

[anotherstalker]

I'd like to see it...if it were playing anywhere near me.

...

What? It is?

*checks theater list*

Holy crap, it IS! Wow, that NEVER happens around here! I thought these movies always played in New York and Los Angeles and nowhere within 500 miles of Kansas City! How lucky is that?

(P.S. That wasn't sarcasm. It really IS playing near me. )

[tennie]

People really seem to be rather divided about this movie everywhere I look. Guess I'll have to try it and see for myself.

[iamzuma]

Man, what did I just see? I was following it just fine until the final act or two, and then it got metaphysical on me. The myth angle had me going. It's the kind of thing that you may need to see twice to make sense out of. I can also see how it would divide opinion, given that the ending strikes me as bittersweet.

The character-driven stuff was great, though, and that made up the majority of the movie. Renton and Eureka basically carry the film, and the conflicts were earnest. The antagonist, such as he is, is not a despicable character. There isn't a good vs. evil story here and it isn't a war story either, though one could be tricked into thinking otherwise with the early talk about the conflict between humanity and the EIZO. But no, that's all in the background, and the movie is probably better off for it.

By the way, those who disliked Renton in the series will probably like this one much more. One of the key lessons in this movie is to not treat Eureka badly in any way, lest Renton show up and smash your face in. He's constantly standing up for himself too. If he thinks someone is wrong then he says so, even when it's Eureka. So take that for whatever it's worth.

If you dislike romance in your movies then stay far away from this, because Renton and Eureka basically declare their love for each other several times. I found this endearing for the most part. But anyone that goes in expecting a "giant robots = explosions = fun!" equation is bound to be disappointed.

Ultimately, the heart of this movie is the best thing about it, though the strangeness of the plot toward the end holRAB it back. I presume that the series is more straightforward. I suppose this movie just manages to make three stars. I didn't dislike it, nor did I fall in love with it.

I do enjoy these one night events. They need to do this for the Gundam 00 movie in 2010.

[kurious kat]

I'll have to post my whole spiel on this movie tomorrow when I have the time, but I just got back a little while ago, and I've gotta say, I am thoroughly pleased and hella impressed with the awesome job that they did on this movie, through my eyes.

Until then.

[Bubba G.]

I have just returned from the movie.

And it was...different.

Noticeably different.

Obviously the storyline was completely unlike the TV series, not to mention a little bit darker. You got the same characters, only their roles seemed to be switched around completely. I tried my hardest not to nitpick between this and the original show, but the differences are there.

[spoiler]I noted a couple of scenes from the EIZO attack at the start of the film were similar to the show (e.g. mother and son drenched in alien blood).

I was surprised that they killed off Hap and Stoner so easily. And also, was Eureka mute at the end of the movie? What was up with that?[/spoiler]

However, I will not say that it was a bad movie. The animation was good, on par with the original series, and the characters were pretty much the same with two notable exceptions: Renton appeared to have lost his Shinji mode, and Eureka's personality was more concrete as well. And basically the main point of the story hasn't changed--it's still all about a boy and his alien girlfriend and their feelings for each other.

If you stayed for the behind-the-scenes feature after the movie, they pretty much tell you that naturally fans of the TV series would find fault with the film and you just have to go into it with an open mind.

I'd have to agree.

Grade: B.

(P.S. I didn't know Crispin Freeman was a blonde.)

[Horny Porcupine :)¤FC¤]

Okay so I went to see this tonight too and I have a few things to say about this. First off, even though this is a reversioning of the TV series I still spent the last three days marathoning all 50 episodes of the TV series so I could make comparisons. What I really hate is that whoever was in charge of showing the film put it on a few minutes before the movie's actual start time so I missed a good portion of the chibi-Renton and Eureka prologue (THE MOVIE'S START TIME IS 7:30 P.M. NOT 7 FRICKIN 24!!!). Still the beginning of the movie left me with a sense that I was thrown right into the middle of the movie with no real sense of fleshing out or developing the characters or pacing. It didn't help that you had Renton and Eureka suffering "Call my love interest's name repeatedly" syndrome. If they did do it in the TV series it wasn't noticeable because of the good writing while her I had to be subjected to five minutes of:
EUREKA...EUREKA. EUREKA! EUUUUUUUUUREEEEEEEKAAAAAA!!!!
RENTON! RENTON! RENTON! REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEENTOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!

While I liked Stephanie Sheh's performance as Eureka in the TV series here she had too many moments of getting a little too shrill and taking me out of the movie.

Another thing is during this whole movie I was having Rahxephon TV vs. movie flasrabroadacks since this was more or less the same type of thing. Difference is I personally felt to some degree Rahxehpon had much better pacing while here I didn't really get into the movie until 45 minutes in and things calmed down a bit. I do like how some characters got completely different personalities especially for Amenome and Dominic. One thing that really annoyed during the film was how they literally turned the Nirvash into Pokemon-like creatures that say things like "Mukyuu!"

I didn't hate the film but it all just seemed a little off and uneven.

BTW, did anyone who went to go see this get about 45 minutes of "extra" footage showing how Bang Zoom dubbed this film including outtakes during the extra footage?

My favorite part:
Eureka: Idiot...
Renton: B***h!

It was nice to see the actors show off some of what they did during the film. It was especially nice seeing that apparently Crispin Freeman is a blond now and Kate Higgins was pregnant (as was her character) during the recording. Kari Whalgren also got to show her range by playing the same character as both an old woman and a 14-year old girl.

Overall, average anime film but it gave me something to do the day before my birthday!

O-chan

[bANd gEeK!!]

I initially saw the movie months ago, so tonight was my second viewing. If you asked me before tonight I would have said the movie was pretty mediocre and not that great...but I really have to admit this second viewing was significantly more enjoyable. Already knowing what happens gives me a totally different perspective and I was able to follow the story far better than I did the first time and it turns out much better as a result. The dub helps a lot too, since the script does a great job at conveying the story in a not-so-literal way that the subs do. Overall...I have to encourage people who were turned off the first time to see it again, it's worth it. But the bonus footage is what really made the night great, it was genuinely interesting to see and hear opinions from voice actors and the Japanese director. Plus the blooper reel had me laughing so hard I cried. Really hope Bandai manages to get the blooper reel on the DVD, but I know the interviews were exclusive theater content.

[lovergirl]

[spoiler]The way I understood it, Eureka sacrificed her mind (i.e., essentially connected with EIZO) in order to save the rest of humanity and Renton. Ironically, that's what Renton was so strongly against throughout the entirety of the film ("Have you ever thought about my feelings?!") But at least Eureka sacrificed herself knowing that she would survive in Renton's dreams, so her thoughts weren't entirely as selfless as before. Still, though, I can't help but feel sorry for Renton. [/spoiler]
But yeah, my mind was blown by the film. GWOtaku and zoid9000 are definitely right in that it'll likely take multiple viewings to totally appreciate and comprehend the movie...and even then, there's probably different ways of interpreting it.

When I first saw the movie, I was like "This isn't Eureka Seven!" But then towarRAB the end I was like "Oh my God, this is Eureka Seven!" Really, the themes, morals and strong characters from the TV series are all there. It wasn't just entertainment, it was entertainment with a purpose. I'd really like to write an essay on the movie now, but the circumstances don't allow it. I guess a simple list of pros and cons will have to suffice:

Pros:
As I said, the themes and morals that made Eureka Seven the show it is are all present in this movie, especially the critical philosophy. It's not that superficial philosophy that so many other anime out there today reek of, but rather a relevant critique of our human nature.The character development, another strong point of the TV series, is also done quite nicely here. Obviously it's much harder to do it in a two-hour movie than a fifty-episode TV series, and is mostly done in the form of epiphanies (Eureka, Renton and Holland are all prime examples of this), which obviously is less realistic, but it works in the context of the film.The new mythos was also executed well and obviously done with extreme detail and care. It was different enough to make a intriguing story, yet similar enough to keep the central aspects of the Eureka Seven universe. However, I was kind of torn on the idea that this take places in essentially our time frame, compared to 10,000 years in the future. I understand that the director did this to establish a connection with the audience, but it honestly feels rather quirky having the Eureka Seven story so close to home. My opinion on this issue could (and likely will) change in time, however.I really liked this version of Eureka. She was rather reserved in the TV series - understandably so, of course - but it was really cool seeing her take matters into her own hanRAB towarRAB the end of the film.The animation was thrilling, especially when seen on the big screen. My favorite scene in terms of animation was the opening scene...the snow, the innocent childhood versions of Eureka and Renton, the calm and cool Dominic, and the blooming flower. The scene was painfully heartwarming, especially when Eureka made her wish. And like the series, I'm sure there are several details inscribed into the film that I won't notice until multiple viewings.The score was also well done and entirely brand new as far as I could tell, save for one piece of music.Cons:
Didn't really get the point of making the Nirvash and theEND into chibi-creatures. In the first scene, chibi-Nirvash complemented young Renton and Eureka fairly well, but the idea seemed really off in the rest of the film. (EDIT: Now that I think about, their inclusion was probably to make the movie seem more light-hearted...honestly they were the only thing NOT serious and mature about the movie. Still, I think they could've found a better method to incorporate some comedy and light-hearted fun).I was kind of put off by the fact that they recycled animation. Granted, there's probably only five scene tops that use recycled animation, but still...pretty lazy on their part.I really didn't like how they portrayed Hap and Stoner. I know this an alternate universe and all, and that their actions were a key point in driving the plot along, but I can't imagine Hap and Stoner ever, ever doing that (those who saw the movie know what I'm referring too) with their friendly nature. Everyone else's beliefs and actions were plausible within the new mythos, so it just makes the Hap and Stoner's personality changes that much more out of character.The ending was a bit hard to follow, but I remeraber being confused a bit by the TV series' ending too at first. I also can't say I was happy about the bittersweet ending, but at least there's still got the ending to the TV series. Makes me glad that this was a different mythos and not a continuation.So...I think I'm going to give the film four stars. It has some flaws, but the film holRAB up the legacy of Eureka Seven and reminded me why I love the franchise so much.

P.S. Yeah, the thoughts on the movie by the actors and staff was very insightful. How coincidental that Kate Higgins was pregnant during the recording of the film. And I really hope that behind-the-scene segment is on the DVD, if only for the blooper reel.

Stoner: But Eureka doesn't have wings.
Hap: No ****, Sherlock.

Holland: Yes, the secret item is Eureka...the most commonly mispronounced word in the Greek language.

Yeah...that was awesome.