Ri Chang

I'm really torn about this movie. It's simultaneously *really* bad but also *really* good. [The Bad] The plot and characters are very forced. Without giving too much away, Hosoda Mamoru tries to explore themes of internet violence, mental health and abuse in this movie, but it seems like he's bitten off more than he can chew. The representation of these issues feel forced, fake and superficial. Similarly, none of the characters are particularly fleshed out, everyone feels like a caricature with barely any real personality or development. Even the protagonist, Suzu's development and behaviors make zero sense. Hosoda, also tries to take the mosaic flashback storytelling method he used in Wolf Children to the next level here, but the execution is poor and the whole movie just feels choppy. On a whole, the narrative of the story feels contrived and makes no sense. And I say this as someone who has watched and appreciated more absurdist anime like Penguindrum and Bishounen Tanteidan. [The good] That said. Visually and musically this movie is STUNNING. As in, despite the atrocious storytelling and characters who have as much personality as a piece of printed cardboard, the visuals + music + voice-acting are so gorgeous, impactful and compelling, I still find myself being moved to tears. And if you consider just how bad the plot, it further goes to show just how phenomenal the animation, music and voice-acting had to be to overcome that and still touch people's hearts. [Overall] My overall impression is that Hosoda is trying too hard to do too much with this movie. But even well-known directors and animators deserve space to try new things and make break-throughs. Just cause he wasn't successful in this one (to me) doesn't mean he won't be in the next one. So looking forward to see how his artistry grows from here. As for whether or not I recommend this movie: The music and visuals are so so so so SOO stunning that I have to recommend people watch it. But it's really a roller-coaster. The bad is really bad and the good is really good.

I preface my 5-stars on several important facts: 1) I am a monster hunter fan 2) I rate this 5 stars based on my expectations of a trashy movie. Because Mosntsr Hunter is a very GOOD trashy movie. And it doesn't try to be anything it's not, which is exactly what we appreciate. No one (or at least I hope) no one goes in to the cinema hoping to watch some life-changing movie. If that's the bar you're setting for this, you'll be disappoint and hate this movie. Monster Hunter is clearly produced as a love letter for fans who hope to see the world of Monster Hunter brought to life with Hollywood magic. And it does this perfectly. The monsters, the weapons and just the world look like they were taken straight from the game, but with some real world grit injected in. It's beautiful and everything a fan could even ask for the capitalistic movie industry. So it goes without saying that the plot and characters are exist taped on to deliver the world to you. because you can't really make people sit in the cinema for 90 minutes watching nothing but wide shots of scenery and fighting montages. (Or can you)?) Plot wise, it's a socially white woman gets isekai-ed into fantasy world and tries to find a way home while fighting monsters along the way. The acting is just convincing enough to get you to ignore glaring plot holes...which you should be expecting anyways. As critics would say, this is a forgettable movie, but I'm not sure why that's a bad thing. We all need some mindless movies in our lives. And one with game-accurate monsters are even better.