空の境界矛盾螺旋

KARA NO KYOUKAI: MUJUN RASEN

MOVIE

MOVIE
Dubbed
SOURCE
OTHER
RELEASE
August 16, 2008
LENGTH
114 min

DESCRIPTION

November, 1998: Shiki meets a boy named Tomoe Enjou, a runaway who claims to be a murderer. Shiki allows Tomoe to use her apartment as his hideout, but one day, Tomoe sees his mother whom he's sure he's killed.

(Source: Aniplex USA)

CAST

Shiki Ryougi
Maaya Sakamoto
Touko Aozaki
Takako Honda
Mikiya Kokutou
Kenichi Suzumura
Tomoe Enjou
Tetsuya Kakihara
Souren Araya
Jouji Nakata
Azaka Kokutou
Ayumi Fujimura
Cornelius Alba
Kouji Yusa
Daisuke Akimi
Hiroki Touchi
Takayuki Enjou
Jin Yamanoi
Kaede Enjou
Miki Itou
Akitaka Suzurigi

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REVIEWS

Inf1nit3
97/100
The peak of film-making.
Kara no Kyoukai 5: Mujun Rasen (Paradox Paradigm) review

"Araya what do you seek?"
"True Wisdom"
"Araya where do you seek it?"
"Only within myself"
"Araya where are you trying to reach?"
"That's obvious. To the end of this paradox spiral of a world."

The fifth installment of the Kara no Kyoukai series takes an different approach compared to it's earlier chapters. This time not only the movie is longer (almost 2h), it has changes in it's direction and storytelling. Using gimmicks that show us just how talented the staff at ufotable truly is.

Before delving deeper into the review i wanted to point out that i have read all Kara no Kyoukai novels. I already knew what i was getting myself into and that this movie would adapt in my opinion the best chapter in the whole franchise.

This movie takes place roughly around two months after the event of Kara no Kyoukai 1: Fukan fuukei (Overlooking View). It is split into two arcs (Shiki's and Mikiya's) that take place around the same time.

Shiki's arc begins with a boy named Tomoe Enjou, who is saved from a group thugs by Ryougi Shiki. He claims to have committed parricide, she then allows him to use her residence as a hideout. Few days later Tomoe is shaken to discover that his mother is alive, even though he is convinced that he killed her. Then they go the newly constructed Ogawa apartment complex where he committed the murder to uncover the truth.

Mikiya's arc begins with him investigating a tip that his associate Touko Aozaki receives regarding the murder at the Ogawa apartment complex. Mikiya takes interest in Tomoe Enjou and decides to investigate him further. Which makes him discover the disturbing and cruel truth about that unique apartament complex.

Each entry in Kara no Kyoukai always had a small cast, but this time the amount of important characters is noticeably bigger. The main characters are given their own spotlight which makes them not one-dimensional. The returning trio: Ryougi Shiki, Kokutou Mikiya and Aozaki Touko. As well the newly introduced Tomoe Enjou. This chapter's antagonist is Araya Souren who was apparently an colleague/associate of Touko. Sadly i can't go into full depth as to why he's an amazing villain since it I would have to go into the spoiler territory, but his characterization and motives make him a great character. I mean he's voiced by Kirei (Fate/Stay Night) so you already know what to expect.

The music in Kara no Kyoukai is phenomenal. It is arranged by none other than Yuki Kajiura so you already know that you're in a feast. I instantly bought the full soundtrack. I consider it not only to be one the best works by her, but i could even argue it's one of the best in any anime i've seen. As well the ending song "sprinter" by Kalafina is so epic that it enhances the experience even more.

From the technical standpoint Kara no Kyoukai 5 doesn't disappoint. From the amazing studio ufotable it is no shock that the movie looks amazing and that the animation is consistent and for it's time still looks better than most of the stuff coming out nowadays.

At the beginning of the review i said that the movie uses gimmicks that shows just how amazing at film making is the director. Kara no Kyoukai 5 felt different compared to it's earlier installments due to it's visual presentation/techniques.The director wanted to convey the feeling of paranoia and spiral-like effect. To give a drier and more mundane feel, film grain was added alongside giving the film a more orange hue, the camera was pulled back to create greater distance with the viewer, as well repetition of the scenes and changing the order of the events.

Kara no Kyoukai 5: Mujen Rasen is a movie which i deeply love and for any nasuverse fan it was an amazing gift. From it's direction to storytelling and characterization. I consider it to be the best adaptation of any nasuverse work to date.

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NHL2004
100/100
This movie will fuck your head and trust me, you will love every second of it
I will never understand why this show isn’t popular. How can a masterpiece like this get swept under the rug? I can’t describe how much this bothers me. Anyways lets me share my thoughts on this gem
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Animation – 10/10~
Honestly, the animation on this is divine! Like explain to me – HOW? How is an anime from 2007/2008 sooooo much better looking than most anime today? How does something almost a decade and a half old have better fight scenes and more dynamic movement than 90% of shows today? I swear, out of all the shows I have watched, the only ones that have even comparable animation are other Ufotable anime and a select handful of other shows

~
Soundtrack – 10/10~
I wish my writing was better so I could do justice to the soundtrack Yuki Kaijura did for this one. Absolute master class. The music in this aren’t just good. They create a whole new atmosphere. They suck you right in and make you pay attention to every piece of dialogue and story and when the time comes boy oh boy are they hype.
___Characters - 9/10___ The characters here are well rounded and very interesting. The main character, Shiki Ryougi, is a top tier kuudere waifu, and while she has a very strong and emotional character arc throughout the series, for this movie at least, Tomoe Enjou takes the cake for me. His valiant struggle against fate was simply too captivating and powerful. Trust me, by the time the credits roll and the ending theme begins, one cannot but admire and respect that heck outta that guy The villains here pull off some real gory stuff (definitely not for the faint hearted. The main bad guy is a mage called Souren Araya who has good motivations (as long as you're smart enough to understand them) while the other dude Cornelius Alba is a crazy ass lunatic who definitely belongs to be locked up at some place like Alcatraz....... some of his scenes genuinely freaked me out tbh _ __ _Story – 10/10___~~~_____ The movie is very philosophical in nature and draws heavily from Buddhist ideas and mythology for its symbolism. The lore and magic system is also one of the most complex I have seen in fiction. To be honest his might be the most unique storytelling I have seen in any movie. The story is not told conventionally (ya know, one scene follows the next chronologically) instead someone decided that this movie should be a jigsaw puzzle – literally so. As the name suggests, the whole movie feels like an oppressive spiral that and keeps you intrigued and on the edge of your seat till the very end. This movie literally leaves no stone unturned when it comes to shocking you to the very bone and forces you to keep watching on with bated breath. Plus there is no shortage of WTF moments that knock the air right out of your lungs Aside from that, the movie also has strong emotions that will definitely pull hard at your heartstrings. So watch out, mate It’s a roller-coaster ride either way. ____
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R2R
80/100
"Paradox Paradigm" is the best film in its franchise.
https://anilist.co/anime/4282/the-Garden-of-sinners-Chapter-5-Paradox-Paradigm/

Paranoia and Paradoxes

Tomoe is just killing someone.
He's either too paranoid to keep a straight mind or too caught in the act, but for some reason, he couldn't stop stabbing the woman in her belly. And she is, his mother. He kept stabbing on and on, and at one point, he took out her intestines and finally confirmed, that he really did committed matricide, and runs away. When a postman arrives to the dead apartment with not a single soul around, he calls the cops. But when a cop arrived, the woman of the apartment, aka Tomoe's mother, simply asks them,
"What's wrong?"

One of the key characters is seen committing matricide as the film begins. What unsettles us in this scene more than the act itself is this strange feeling of terror lurking around which makes it potentially worse for our confused Tomoe. Throughout the film, we stick with this completely new character who had no mention or relevance to the story up until now, and the film does a great job at bringing his confusion and madness in a 2-hour experience, with its non-linear storytelling. The entire film centers on Tomoe Enjou's guilt which is the only proof about murder he commits. As the film goes on, we start to find out about the complexity of the apartment and its owner, Araya Souren. VA'd by "Jouji Nakata", Araya is an intimidating yet tragic villain.
He believed, after encountering countless 'pointless' deaths, that the ideal world humanity dreams of, of life and peace in a cruel world, is ugly. He wanted to save humanity from this ugly world, from its own fantasy, and wanted to preserve it. Which he finds out that is possible, if he can destroy the 'Origin of Life', for which he wanted to use Shiki, and her attachment with the 'Boundry of Nothingness', as a way to ultimately save humanity. In which he fails.
The movie is heavily plot-oriented and ensnare its viewers in a tangle of paranoia and paradoxes while incorporating aspects of horror, mystery, and even action. And as usual, Yuki Kajiura's OSTs are fire, no question there.

The biggest demerit in this movie, or for the entire franchise, is it's hallowed emotional core. As the story and plot are so mechanic and complex, it is hard to understand character motivations and get behind their often-confusing dialogue. The dialogue in the entire series is another debatable aspect. I remember on my first watch, when I watched the sub, I was focusing more on the subtitles and rewinding just to 'get' what they are saying, despite wanting to experience the visuals more. It's a common problem for a sub-watcher, so maybe that's just me.

Watch Order

There's often a question about whether this series is meant to be watched in chronological order or creator's order. After rewatching up to this film, I safely say that it is meant to be watched in the creator's order. The fast-paced non-linear cuts and transitions in this film can feel overwhelming and confusing, if viewers are not used to that technique. So, I recommend watching in creator's order first, and the chronological order for later rewatches.

Creator's Order: 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8.
Chronological Order: 2-4-3-1-5-6-7-8.

Conclusion

I gave this series a try, just because this film has a pretty high rating, while not much for the rest. And after rewatching, I can safely say, it's definitely worth getting into, even if it's just to watch this great film.

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