{Spoilers}
This movie reminded me of a Studio Ghibli movie in a way because of the distinct connection to nature that you see with movies like Princess Mononoke or another of Hayao Miyazaki's works. There's just something so beautiful about how the mythology behind the Underworld/Hades/Agartha is reimagined and reinterpreted. Something that really stood out to me was how there were things in Agartha that weren't necessarily beautiful aesthetically, but they had such a great and reverent impact upon the viewer like the Quetzacoatl.
Some may say that this movie is a coming-of-age story for Asuna or that it's a romance. But I think it's much more than that. There's a lot that you can glean from this story depending on who you are and how you're willing to interpret it. It could be conveying a message warning against messing with the balance of nature with the zombie-like shadow dwellers that wanted to hunt down Asuna for not being distinctly light or dark. It could be a message to people grieving that meddling with higher powers doesn't lead to desirable results. It could be a call to arms to preserve what is dear to us and keep it close as long as we can. It could be a thrilling narrative of a little girl who was forced to grow up and how she found herself deep below the world she lived in. It could be any one of those things which is why it's such a beautiful and versatile piece.
Something kind of interesting I thought of as Mr. Morisaki and Asuna journeyed farther to the gateway of life and death was the fact that although there were no stars they still had night and day, they still had wind, and they had what looked to be northern lights. Perhaps it's magic or just an artistic interpretation of a fantasy world, but it's not very scientifically sound. Just my two cents right there.
Throughout the entirety of the movie it was full of different kinds of pacing which added to the overall feel of adventure. There were points in which Mr. Morisaki and Asuna were just traveling and you could watch and enjoy the scenery while and underlying tension developed as more of Morisaki's past was revealed and there was also parts that were incredibly fast-paced like the confrontation between the Archangels and Shin. And we can't forget the times when night would fall and BAM there were the zombies again trying to wipe out Asuna for being a mix of light and dark. Which poses the question if Asuna's dad was actually from Agartha which is why he died so early because he wasn't supposed to live on the surface. This would explain why Asuna was hunted alongside Mana. But that's just a theory. It could also explain why Mimi, a feline creature from Agartha would've had such a strong bond with Asuna in the first place.
Something else that I have to point out is the tone of the whole piece. It was the same kind of feeling you get when you step into a place where a lot of history has taken place or a place of holy meaning, not necessarily a church but a place where you feel part of something much bigger. That feeling was accentuated by the fantastical elements that surrounded the piece like the Quetzacoatl that were beings that used to roam the Earth when humanity was still young. That's a novel idea that the animals that inhabited the Earth before us were really the rulers or it. We just think of them as bones and artifacts to study, but what if they weren't just dumb animals that roamed the Earth? I think visually the muted and cool colors that were used made it that much more somber. That was so random it's just me thinking out loud.
One thing that Agartha didn't have, even though it had clavises which are cool in and of themselves were stars. Did Shun die because he fulfilled his wish of seeing stars? It was obvious that Shin was tied to Agartha out of a debt he owed, but why wasn't Shun similarly tied down with responsibility? Maybe I'm still shook over the fact that Shun died and then when Asuna almost died she was having a fun little tea party with Shun and Mimi and then she was like see ya later when I actually die.
Excuse the poor quality of these screenshots, I watched it in 360p out of convenience.
I thought this was the saddest part, but then I kept watching haha
He told Asuna not to cry but then he starts tearing up. Shin is so pure
This is where I lost it and was about to cry, but then I just thought about how he would wait for her and his wish for her to live a full life and then it was okay, but was it really? Will Asuna go back to Shin and hang out with him sometimes or is she just going to graduate school and then never think about this again? Was this just an Alice in Wonderland type thing where they just pretend like their whole life was not shifted because of moments like these? I need another movie. What happens next??
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