Shirotsugh "Shiro" Lhadatt may be a cadet in the Kingdom of Honneamise's Royal Space Force (RSF), but he has never been in space before—in fact, nobody has. The RSF is often regarded as a failure both by the country's citizens and a government more interested in precipitating a war with a neighboring country than scientific achievement. Following the funeral of a fellow cadet, an unmotivated Shiro is walking in the city one night, when he bumps into Riquinni Nonderaiko, a young, pious woman, genuinely enthusiastic about the significance of space exploration.
As the two gradually bond, Riquinni's encouragement inspires Shiro to volunteer as a pilot for a prospective rocket ship, potentially becoming Honneamise's first man in space. Shiro and the RSF are soon joined by a team of elderly but eager scientists and engineers, and together, they embark on a mission to mold their nation's space program into a success. However, their efforts soon catch the attention of the government, which seems to have a different plan for the RSF in mind. Even as the odds are stacked against them, these men and women continue to stubbornly look to the sky, because somewhere among the frontiers of space may lie humanity's last chance at redemption.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
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Comentários
Master-Murrummba
**THIS REVIEW HAS SPOILERS** I’ve never actually been compelled to actually sit down and write a review, until now. I simply cannot fathom how a seriously flawed movie such as Wings of Honneamise could have pretty much universal 9s and 10s here on MAL. For the positives: the animation is top tier and holds up even today; on level with works such as AKIRA. The art and design also seems to have had a lot of care taken into them, with distinctive designs for especially the clothing and vehicles. The sound for the film is also great, although unfortunately, apart from a few pieces of music,such as during the OP, the soundtrack leaves a lot to be desired, and fails to swell the emotions. The film also has one scene which was nothing short of phenomenal -- this would be Lhadatt flying an airplane for the first time. In this scene, the sense of sheer speed from the airplane is conveyed better than I have ever seen done in any anime, and I was yearning for more scenes like this, however, unfortunately it is the only scene in the film like it. Even the climax doesn’t match it in my opinion - while the climax itself is undeniably well-choreographed, it felt undercooked, i.e. out of a 2 hour film, only a mere 7 minutes is dedicated to this scene, and this honestly isn't enough to build up the tension.
I can’t deny that the film has a lot of relevant commentary on political corruption and war; however this doesn’t necessarily make for an engaging movie, which leads to my biggest gripe with the film. There are few thrills to be had, which would be fine, but it needs to engage the audience in a different way such as with compelling characters and character development, that make you care about each scene that is happening. Unfortunately, this is the area in which Royal Space Force is lacking the most. While the characters can be amusing in a comedic way, they rarely reached the status of becoming truly likeable which is what would make a movie like this shine.
Lhadatt, who starts out of a character with absolutely no interest in space travel, (so little in fact, he arrives late to a dead comrades funeral), runs into a girl who spends her free time preaching on the streets. After a meeting with her, he suddenly has all the motivation in the world to actually do something. I'd perhaps get what the movie was trying to do if this motivation was a gradual thing, but here it comes out of nowhere, and it makes you wonder why the words of this girl had such a profound effect on Lhadatt.
It does mention in the prologue that he had always wanted to fly, but it doesn’t exactly give a lot of explanation as to why he lost this desire; and giving his character a complete 180 twenty minutes into the film cheapens the development that he could have had, and makes him seem more of a joke than when he actually didn't care about anything.
Later on in the film, Lhadatt does go through a small crisis over whether or not it's morally right to fly into space when people on the ground are starving. Which is an interesting dilemma. However Lhadatt doesn't seem to come to much of a rebuttal except running away from his problems and seeking refuge with Nondreiko so he can rape her.
Now the main girl of the film, Nondreiko, similarly offers very little character development or reason to like her. Her main characteristic is that she is shown as a devoutly religious girl, however there’s no debate or discussion occurring with her beliefs.
A tragic event happens to her midway into her film, which she brushed it off, stating that the church would help her, depicting her strength of character and belief. However, I was expecting during the film for her to crack and have her beliefs be tested, (provide some actual conflict, due to the shit the world kept giving her), but when Lhadatt finally returns her generosity during his crisis by attempting to rape her she didn’t snap at all but rather forgave him, and pushed the blame onto herself. Strong character development, yes.
Additionally, the child she takes care of, Manna, is annoying as fuck. While her unwillingness to smile is funny at first, it grows tiresome very quickly, and becomes borderline frustrating. However, at least when she does finally smile, due to Lhadatt, there is some symbolic nature, but it's ultimately a pretty poor development, especially when it comes right off the heels of trying to rape Nondreiko.
Meanwhile, the movie is trying to convince the audience that these characters are struggling in the face of condemnation; everyone thinks the Royal Space Force a joke. However, it doesn't do much in the way of making us actually want to root for these people for a good portion of the movie (besides the inherent fact that space travel is awesome.) They're often displayed as incompetent, unenthusiastic shmoes.
The other side characters, while amusing, are also complete baboons. The movie constantly tries to build up ideals only to destroy them later on. For example, during a chase scene, where Lhadatt is trying to be assassinated, his friend, rather than help him, yells at Lhadatt to stop following him, as it was putting him in danger. A character, who supported Lhadatt during the tussle with the pilots has to sully that integrity for comedic affect by acting like such a cock here. Here is a scene that could have been serious, and further shown the resilience and comradery of the characters ends up divulging into silly comedy, made even more stupid when the assassin appears to be an old lady.
There is enjoyment to be had with this film, I wasn't particularly bored at all during the film, but I wasn’t exactly thrilled either, with the truly exciting moments coming few and far between. Ultimately, its true let down are the disappointing characters. This definitely isn’t the pinnacle of storytelling or anime, especially considering other films surrounding its release. However, it does hold historic merit as it is Gainax's first film, and because of this I can recommend it to those who are interested in other Gainax productions. For others that only have a casual interest in anime or a plot of this kind, you won't be missing out if you skip this one.
SpiralKing
Wow. I can't believe no one has written a review for this movie yet. I'd have to say that, based on its current 7.8 rating, it's slightly underrated. I myself would call it a masterpiece, but keeping other people's tastes in mind, I give it a conservative 9/10. (See bottom for a quick summary) STORY What makes this movie stand out is its spot-on storytelling. For me, there's not a single dull moment from beginning to end. Fans of action may be put off by instances of character development in the middle, but the movie always picksup and gets right back to forwarding the plot. I myself found the character development engrossing and mostly believable. (I also think it was crucial to let the viewer feel out the world of Honneamise by developing the main character, but that's just my opinion.) The movie has such good writing that it wouldn't have mattered much if they glimpsed over the side characters, but they're given their own time in the sun, and it adds a nice touch to the realism.
Speaking of realism, the alternate universe of Honneamise is so finely tuned that you'll hardly catch all the details on your first viewing. The world will seem so familiar that you'll want to connect it back to our world. I think that's what the director intended, because I felt invested in the unfolding events of the movie, as if the history of Honneamise were somehow my own.
Most importantly, the ending of this movie is epic. And that's all I'll say, because I don't want to give anything away. If you're watching this with your enjoyment meter at 5 or 6, PLZ try to make it to the end.
ART
This movie had an insane budget - I think that's all I have to say. It has great art and fluid action scenes. Sure, it's a little dated (which is why I gave it a 9), but you can't ask for anything that much better even nowadays.
SOUND
The score is amazing. It's far-above-par soundtrack is one of only two anime soundtracks Ryuichi Sakamoto (of The Last Emperor fame) composed (source: fatalist17 on Youtube). However, its sound is fresh from the 80s, and some people may not like it. Still, it shouldn't get in the way of enjoying the movie. Also, the seiyuu is excellent!
CHARACTER
I've already talked about character development when I talked about the plot, but let me just repeat that the main character's easygoing nature was easy for me to relate to, and really helped me immerse myself in the film. I'd have to say every character is believable, even stereotypical stock characters like the quirky scientists. I gave the movie an 8 because there were two characters who annoyed the heck out of me - but that may be just a personal grudge. I won't say who, because I don't want to bias you before you watch the movie.
ENJOYMENT
A great story. Solid characters. Awesome artistry and soundtrack. A nice dose of action. The very recipe for enjoyment. Now, enjoyment is subjective, but I still can't see how anyone would NOT enjoy this unless they were only in it for the action.
OVERALL
The production values (art and sound) for this movie are phenomenal! They really tried to make the characters believable - I found it easy to root for the main character. Of course, the storytelling is what really brings this film together. If you like well-rounded works, this is a must-see. If you get bothered by things like the slow scenes in The Godfather, you may not enjoy it as much, but I still highly recommend this masterpiece.
RangFlash
Wings of Honneamise is a perhaps one of the most underrated and under-appreciated animes ever made. It is clearly made for adults, not due to vulgarity or gratuitous violence, but due to its moral ambitions and its seriousness. STORY Ahead of its time. Amazing storytelling, a cut above almost every other anime out there, save for maybe Miyazaki and Satoshi Kon. The young director of this film really knew his stuff. ART The art style is a bit old, but by no means is it bad. It is extremely detailed at times, and the animation is very fluid and stunning. I'd say it's around AKIRA quality. SOUND Sadly, the weakest linkin WoH. The music, while trying to sound otherworldly, fails to enhance the scenes most of the time. There are two memorable songs, though, near the end.
CHARACTER
Some of the best character development you'll ever see in an anime. This is the kind of movie that even non-anime fans will like. The characters are very well handled, and grow after each scene.
ENJOYMENT
Extremely entertaining, well directed, amazing climactic action scene, what else do you want?
OVERALL
An extremely underrated classic. I don't know why the rating is so low. Seriously, go watch this movie. Buy it even, it's not that expensive on VHS. The fact that this movie is so underrated really depresses me, and makes me think twice about the taste of most anime fans.
DrChristmas
I...I just don't understand. I went in to this movie on the backs of dozens of glowing reviews expecting to be, if not blown away, at least in agreement that this was pretty good. It absolutely was NOT. This movie is unique in that no scene has ANY effect on the ones after it. None of the characters are developed at all and none of them have any identifiable motivations. The main character suddenly goes from a bored, lazy guy to CAPTAIN GUNG HO SPACE MAN. With NO explanation as to WHY. I simply cannot fathom the praise for this movie. It is simply awful! For your ownsake please, PLEASE stay away from it.
I wish I did.
The only positive thing I can say for this movie is that is has some fairly high quality animation. That's it though.
literaturenerd
Overview: Wings of Honneamise is a great film, but it also has some serious flaws. For me though, an anime can do lots of things wrong if it also does some things really well. Wings is a loveable underdog story. It's an anti-war film. It's a coming of age movie. It's a steampunk, alternate history retelling of the early Space Race from the POV of the Soviet Union. It also has at least 2 plainly stupid scenes that detract from the film and have no business being there. It can be more than a little sappy and it is happy to trade realism for emotion, whichI will explain later in this review. This was written by a 23 year old kid with no writing experience, who after this dedicated his career to writing and directing pure schlock like Mahoromantic Robot Maid. I will warn you that this film is NOT like Mushishi or a Yuasa anime where it has an ironclad defense and is impermeable to critic snark. It is however worth your time!
Plot and characters: (Spoilers ahead! Skip this next section if you don't want anything spoiled!)
There is a Cold War brewing between 2 super powers in this alternate dimension. Honneamise is an authoritarian, poor, industrial power while its rival is a wealthy and powerful democracy called "The Republic". The government of Honneamise wishes to create a space program and send the first man into space in order to uplift their people and score a propaganda victory. However, they have a shoestring budget and most people don't even believe that human spaceflight is possible. A hero is needed who is willing to throw safety to the wind in order to achieve a truly beautiful feat for all Mankind. Our hero is a man named Shirotsugh Lhadatt. Yeah...this is an alternate history so everyone has silly fantasy names like Zap Rowsdower. I'm just going to call our hero Yuri Gagarin because this film leaves ZERO doubt of who he is supposed to represent.
Just like the real one, our Yuri at first is an aimless youth from a nowhere town. He comes from nothing, but he has big dreams and balls of steel. One day he meets a highly religious woman, which is seen as unusual because Honneamise cracks down on religion and is very dismissive of faith. This woman gives Yuri a new sense of purpose in life and now he starts to take his job as a Cosmonaut seriously and has an unquenchable thirst to reach the stars. All appears to be going well, but tragedy strikes and Honneamise's chief rocket engineer is killed in a freak accident. This is seemingly a reference to the death of chief engineer Sergei Korolev during the middle of the Space Race. Nothing will deter Yuri though from his dream. Yuri becomes a famous celebrity and is used as a propaganda figure by Honneamise, always forced to smile big in public despite how he may actually be feeling. He is also promoted to the rank of colonel. You know, just in case there are 5 people left in the theater audience that haven't figured out who he is supposed to be.
Now we get to last 3rd and things get a little rough. Yuri gets increasingly frustrated with Jesus freak, because she ain't given none. One night, he just loses control and flat out tries to rape her, but she knocks him out with a statue. The next morning, he's a bit embarrassed and tries to apologize for the whole rape thing, but she says it is her fault for not putting out. She says that Yuri is a nice guy and deserved her body, but she was being selfish. Yuri is forced to accept her apology and she walks off. She is a little passive aggressive for about 10 minutes and then it's like the scene never happened. Yeah... I can see why Ebert wasn't very gentle in his criticism of this scene. Next we follow up with another stupid scene. The dastardly Republic decide that Honneamise must not be allowed to win a propaganda victory and send an octogenarian assassin to kill Yuri! The old man at first tries to kill Yuri with a pistol, but he has the worst aim in the history of anime. Then the old man tries to run Yuri over with a street cleaner, which is only slightly less silly than the steam roller from Austin Powers. Our hero kills the old fucker with a knife and we enter the final act.
Honneamise is FINALLY ready to launch the rocket, but the Republic refuses to see them succeed. You would think the Republic would pool their superior resources and send their own guy into space. They would probably end up beating Honneamise to the moon, but that would make too much sense. Instead they decide to launch an all out invasion of the Soviet Un- I mean Honneamise and try stop the rocket from taking off! Yuri rallies ground control to launch the rocket anyways and the Republic is so awe struck by this beautiful moment that they throw down their arms and stop fighting! Yuri reaches the heavens and sends a transmission to Earth telling Mankind to stop fighting and unite as one. If we can send a man to space, then we can accomplish anything! Yuri then begs God to forgive Mankind for our many sins. His beautiful act of courage, determination, and heroism achieves a level of redemption for Man. This is an anime that essentially ends with Yuri Alekseyivich Gagarin becoming the Second Coming of Christ and rocketing for our sins!
Art:
The art and animation is actually quite spectacular for 1987. The chief animator on this product was Hideaki Anno, so they were in good hands. He restrained himself from adding giant robots to this film, but I could have done without the full frontal nudity and giving Christ freak such massive boobs. I know you love titties Anno, but this was NOT the right time! Unless the scene was intended to be erotic...which would actually make it even worse.
Sound:
The music adds well to the powerful emotion and both English and Japanese dubs are spectacular. I personally like the Enlglish dub thanks to the presence of Bryan Cranston, who plays Yuri's best friend. If your casual buddies start getting bored by this film's run time, you can start adding Breaking Bad quotes every time he's on screen.
Overall:
Is this the perfect anime? Well...no. However, I would rather love something flawed with lots of heart and soul than something immune to criticism that feels boring, cold, and sterile. This anime has some truly beautiful moments. Yeah the rape scene and old assassin scene were dumb and should have been cut. Yeah the Republic's reactions to Honneamise's space program made little sense and weren't realistic. Yes, the level of Russophilia is SO high this film is probably banned in Poland, Ukraine, and the Baltic States. Despite all of this, it's a good film and I'm NOT a Gainax fanboy.
Now. Let's end this review with a good old Church of Gainax hymn!
What would Yuri Gagarin do if he was here right now?
He'd make a plan and he'd follow through!
That's what Yuri Gagarin'd do!
When Yuri Gagarin was in the Olympics
Skating for the gold,
He did two salchows and a triple lutz
While wearing a blind fold!
When Yuri Gagarin was in the alps
Fighting grizzly bears
He used his magical fire breath
And saved the maidens fair!
(Guitar rift) Yuri! Fight! Yuri! Fight!
So what would Yuri Gagarin do
If he were here today?
I'm sure he'd kick an arse or two
That's what Yuri Gagarin'd do!
When Yuri Gagarin traveled through time to the year 3010
He fought the evil robot king and saved us all again!
When Yuri Gagarin built the pyramids
He beat up Kublai Khan!
Cause Yuri Gagarin doesn't take shit from ANY-BODY!!!
Yuri Gagarin was born on the planet of Krylock
He came to Earth to save us all from war and death and suck!
Hideedodee! Hideeday!
Yuri Gagarin's here!
So round up all your lasses and tell 'em to have no fear!
Say, "Come over here my honey
And come and I'll take off my pants!
And I'm gonna make dirty love to you
Cause that's what Yuri Gagarin'd do."
Cause that's what Yuri Gagarin'd Do!
Fear_the_Reefer
Honneamise is a country at war. It’s conflict with a neighboring country has been going on for longer than anyone can remember, and the ongoing battle has shaped it’s society as well as it’s economy. Many lives have been affected by this war, but a certain unit called the Royal space Force likes to think of themselves as above the conflict... So above it, in fact, that their lifelong mission is to break through the sky and take mankind to the stars! And they’re so enthusiastic about that... Well, that they have no drive whatsoever. It’s unclear why theyjoined the royal space force... Perhaps they wanted a taste of military pay checks without having to actually fight... But the general attitude among the base is one of blasé apathy, as the entire squadron would rather meander around the red light district than attempt to make any progress towards the heavens, to the great chagrin of their often disrespected superiors, who want nothing more than to kick their butts into shape. For a while, it looked like there was no hope for the program. Enter Shirotsugh "Shino" Lhadatt, a cadet who grew up with dreams of soaring above the clouds, and eventually, the atmosphere.
That starry-eyed boy has grown up into a literal and figurative space cadet, plagued with ennui and depression at his lack of direction and overall dissatisfaction with his life. Even the death of a comrade fails to affect him, much as he pretends otherwise. This all changes when he meets a pretty young woman handing out religious pamphlets in what can only be described as a more modern version of Sodom or Gomorra, and the idea of acquiring God in his life does pique his interests, if only a bit. They hit it off, and her amazement at his profession inspires him to volunteer to be the first man in the history of the world to enter orbit! That’s all well and good, but surprise surprise, space training is no walk in the park. There are several road blocks standing in his way, from harsh physical conditioning to the hassles of team work, to shadowy figures on both sides of the ongoing war who are trying to sabotage or straight up assassinate him for his efforts. For that small step for a man, they’ll have to take a giant leap of faith if they’re ever going to have a chance of reaching the heavens.
It should go without saying that not all Gainax anime look like masterpieces. That’s not to say any of them have necessarily looked bad, at least not so far from what I’ve seen, but several of them have looked a bit on the mediocre side. Wings of Honneamise is NOT one of them. To be perfectly honest, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a 1980’s era anime that looked as good as this one does. The animation is smooth and consistent, peoples’ movements are graceful and almost feel natural, even if certain shots do feel like you’re watching an animation flip book. The level of detail in the visuals is insane, from the elaborate backgrounds to the well-thought-out lighting and shading techniques, even all the way down to the gravity of a person plopping down on a bench, which bends ever so slightly from the impact. Facial expressions are also on point, highly expressive while never going off model. There are no short-cuts taken, at least not from what I can tell, and there was clearly a very high budget that went into it.
The artwork carries a very retro style... Once again, this is the eighties... And character designs skew more towards realism than exaggeration. While the color palette wasn’t really bright or lively, it still worked very well as a complement to the film’s gritty, down to earth tone. A lot of imagination went into the little details of this world that’s intended to be alternate to our own, from fashion and the technology of the times to architecture, and even the way the lines are painted on the road. This all speaks to the show’s highly distinctive design, which is consistent all the way through, and just feels right, like yeah, this is how an alternate version of Earth who’s culture revolves around war would look, with nothing... And I mean nothing... Feeling anachronistic or out of place. Studio Gainax obviously put a lot of effort into creating this world, and I have no doubt that their brainstorming sessions went way beyond what ultimately wound up making it to the screen. This would prove to be a double edged sword, as it does make the story’s landscape feel more immersive, but it also leaves out a lot of details, and makes me feel like there’s a lot of necessary world-building that got dropped.
Having said that, it still looks beautiful, in it’s muted, downtrodden and poverty-stricken kind of way, carrying a bittersweet taste alongside the stunning visual quality. You get the sense that the people are making due with little resources and money, and that’s not just true of the many civilians that show up and move fluidly in the background of certain scenes, but also surprisingly of the Space force’s uniforms, which look goofy and low budget yet still more than prideful. I wouldn’t go quite so far as to say that it’s dripping with layers of atmosphere like diebuster was, but it comes pretty close without going over the top, and there are a few certain scenes that are simply amazing in their presentation... Particularly, there’s the scene midway through with Shino flying a plane for the first time, soaring through the air above the clouds in such a way that could almost be considered to reach Miyazaki levels of quality. It does occasionally feel like they were a little lacking on the inbetweening, as some shots do feel a little choppy, but that’s an easy enough problem to ignore, especially with the rest of the product looking so beautiful.
The music was okay,but aside from a few standout tracks, it was pretty generic. I also don’t want to spend too much time on the English Dub, as the Japanese track is vastly superior and will obviously get my recommendation, but still, if it’s English you’re looking for, the dub is okay. There certainly nothing overtly bad about it. There are a ton of appearance by well known voice actors in it, including over a half a dozen minor roles played by Steve Blum, and they even have Bryan Cranston playing Shino’s best friend, Matti. You know, the slightly taller and slightly rougher looking guy who... Does stuff? Arnie Hanks has also had a relatively long career, although most of it has been live action TV work. Wendee Lee shows up in a brief cameo before taking on the role of Manna, an orphaned girl who barely talks throughout the story, but she still plays her like someone who doesn’t talk often and isn’t fully comfortable in their own voice. They all take part, they all put in their work, and they do a fairly good job, for what’s often considered to be the Dark Days of anime dubbing.
But the two actors who get the most screentime are the ones playing the lead roles. Robbie Matthews, or more accurately, David Allen Thomas, has done barely any anime work, as the majority of his output has been video game roles. He’s playing a very subtle character, and thus is putting forth a very subtle performance, hitting all the necessary points of his character’s development. He obviously used a fake name, which was common practice at the time for union reasons, but the reveal of his actual identity didn’t shock me nearly as much as the church girl Riquinna’s voice actor did. Melody Lee, when I did a little digging, turned out to be Patricia Ja Lee, a former Pink Power Ranger. I’ve heard good work from her... Most notably in an episode of Cowboy Bebop... And she’s also done a lot of cringey roles, like in Lucky Star and the live action Haruhi skits. Her work as Riquinni blows even Bebop out of the water, as she dances on the line of an incredibly nuanced character, one who preaches and tries to save people, even when her own struggle for survival has led her down some dark paths.
The acting in this dub is great, and it would be even better with the help of good writing, but alas, that was apparently a bridge too far. Well, maybe that’s not fair. The writing isn’t really bad, per se, and you won’t have many complaints with it if you’re just watching it on it’s own with the subtitles off... Except for one little part that I’ll get to in a minute... But if you actually know what the original dialogue was, you may feel cheated over the lack of subtlety and constant unnecessary changes. For example, right before attempting to go into space, Shino gives Manna a message for Riquinni, and it gets changed from “Tell her i’m leaving, and can I bring you back anything” to “Tell her she changed me, and I want to repay her.” Either way, Manna asks for him to bring back a star, either for her or for Riquinni. But the worst part is the ending, which takes a more or less okay monologue about not corrupting our home to speech about how hey, once we get into space, there’ll be no reason to fight anymore!” Which has to be the most pretentious explanation of war that I’ve heard since Aldnoah Zero. The dub’s fine, but I highly recommend the sub.
So, there’s a certain comparison I’ve been making about Studio Gainax for a few years now, and even though I’ve been doing four years of a theme month in it’s honor, I haven’t found the perfect opportunity to talk about it until now, as I believe it to be the crux of this movie’s problems. In my opinion, if Studio Gainax were an American director, it wouldn’t be Michael Bay... It wouldn’t be be Quentin Tarrantino... It would be Zack Snyder, the man who rose to fame with Watchmen and then proved to us all what a joke he was by making Sucker Punch, but he firmly cemented what kind of filmmaker he was with last year’s Batman vs. Superman. Like Gainax, Zack Snyder is someone who you can call many things, but lazy and uninspired are not among them. He believes in his projects, he pours effort into them, and he really, really wants them to be good, but he just isn’t as talented as he would have to be to pull off the scope of his ambitions. He respects great writing and profound ideas, but he doesn’t understand them.
I feel that this is the best way to describe Studio Gainax, a production company that’s all heart and little brain, who dreams of creating awe inspiring, emotionally impactful anime, but often bites off more than they can chew and winds up losing focus on the story they’re telling. A good example of this would be the religious symbolism in Evangelion, which shouldn’t be that difficult to use, I mean hell, Death Note used it well by complete accident, but no, it just winds up leading to a confused and muddled mess of an ending that only really kind of stands up under a literal interpretation of the events. Even their attempts at tackling depression and existentialism digs them into a hole so deep that they have to pull an emotional deus ex machina out of their asses just to reach a satisfying conclusion. That’s not to say they can’t put out great work... With shows like FLCL and Gurren Lagann, simple ideas and elements were pulled off so well that the products didn’t even NEED good writing to support them... But from what I’ve seen, it’s been the problem for most of their work. They know the what, they know the how, but they never truly manage to grasp the why.
So how does this relate to Wings of Honneamise? Well, if there’s one thing people like to trumpet about this movie, and I will give them this, it’s that they did a really great job writing the main character. Shino has a complete character arc, and I’m sorry, but talking about it is going to go into some spoilers. At the beginning of the movie, he’s depressed, he feels empty and unmotivated, and he knows he shouldn’t feel that way. He meets a religious girl in the middle of a street of utter depravity... Which is a little touch i’ll also admit I really like... And he begins to find a renewed purpose through religion. Faith in something greater gives him faith in himself and his mission, and when his faith in the former is challenged, the latter pulls him right back up before long. He grows as a person, from a deadbeat louse to a model soldier and pilot, and in the end, when he reaches space, he realizes(in the sub, at least) that mankind can’t run from it’s problems, or it’ll just keep on making the same mistakes, spreading it’s sin wherever it goes. Change comes from within.
On the surface, this seems like a great message, and it even ties into his arc. It’s a great resolution to his conflict. The problem? Well, once all that’s said and done, the only thing I have left to say is... So what? It’s great for the character, and it teaches something to the audience, but consider this: He’ll have to come down eventually, or he’s going to die, whether from starvation, suffocation, or hypothermia. While the movie went into great, and hell, almost too much detail on how the spaceship was being built and how it was going to fly, I don’t recall anything being said about the return trip, which has to happen. And even if he does manage to get back safely, it’s still not going to satisfy the people who criticized the royal space Force for wasting potential war and/or food money on a pointless endeavor. In fact, they’ll probably be even more pissed off, since they’re likely going to need even MORE money for their next trip to the stars. I’m also having a hard time believing that their accomplishment will end war, because even though the rocket blasting off was shown to shock fighting soldiers into freezing in their paths, what does reaching space have to do with poor foreign relationships?
If anything, their enemies will be either jealous of them, want to fight them even harder to obtain their technology, or they’ll become afraid of what an enemy with space travel possibilities can do to them, forcing them into action. I also don’t see what good Shino’s speech is going to accomplish, because while I don’t THINK it’s ever explained what the two countries are fighting for, but there’s usually some kind of reason for fighting to take place, and whatever it is, no logic is going to cause warring powers to lay down their guns and start getting along. Yeah, Shino went into space, and gave everyone a lecture, but once he comes down, everything’s going to go back to the way it was, both for him and for his country. He hated being a celebrity before the flight, now it’s just going to be worse. He’s going to become the most famous man on the planet. I don’t see his flight changing Riquinna’s life, unless he marries her and shares his wealth with her, and the odds that being back on Earth with his space faring days behind him will drive him back down into a brand new cycle of depression are disturbingly high.
And that’s where Gainax’s true failure lies. They were so focused on writing out Shino’s character arc that they didn’t stop to think about the bigger picture, and the effect that his accomplishment would have on the world they built. It’s fine if you don’t think about it, but when you do, Shino’s big moment just feels like an empty, pointless blip in a long timeline of life just generally being shit. I legitimately can’t see a sequel to this movie feeling realistic without him coming back to Earth, and eventually committing suicide over the fact that his life dream has already ended, and his life’s purpose has already peaked. For a story that strives towards one goal, one symbol of impossible hope that’s meant to inspire it’s audience, nothing is really accomplished, which just ends up making the overall experience feel empty and bleak. Would it be like this if there was a tighter focus on the main character, and the war was left out of the story completely? No, I don’t think it would be. But on that note, there’s a lot of stuff in this movie that should have been cut out.
For starters, while Shino and Riquinni are pretty well written, everybody else... Literally everybody else... Gets the shaft. Shino has a lot of friends... The big doofus, the long haired short dude, the best friend who does stuff, and while I promise you they all have names, you won’t know them, and if they even say them... I can’t remember... You won’t remember them. They might as well not even be in the movie. That would at least make the training montages(yes, plural,) a little shorter. There’s also a character named Doc, who only has three scenes, is actually kind of likeable in two of them, but then he dies offscreen leaving no impact whatsoever. That’s a named character dying. There’s a lot more pointless characters, but what’s even more damning is the pointless world-building, as the ongoing war does nothing other than to add some tension to the launch, and the attempts at assassinating Shino and Matti are nothing more than filler. With so much going on, and so many problems happening with this fictitious world, the stakes for Shino’s space trip feel a lot more paltry than they would if all that material were just left by the wayside in the first place. At two hours long, this movie didn’t need to be more than forty-five minutes.
There’s also a controversial scene where Shino tries to rape Riquinni, and while a lot of people think of it as the single blemish that keeps this movie from becoming a masterpiece, I honestly don’t mind it so much. I mean, it bothered me the first time, but... We’ll get to that. People tend to think that it comes out of nowhere, that it makes a good person character look like a misogynist asshole, it’s sexist, it seriously undermines the religious aspect of the story... I disagree on all counts. That’s not to say it was important, or that what it accomplished couldn’t have been achieved better through other means, but it’s really not as bad as everyone says. First of all, and I’d never try to make excuses for a sexual assailant, this didn’t come out of nowhere... The catalyst was just way too subtle. See, Shino has tried to become more than friends with Riquinni, but was rejected, and he took it like a champ, respecting her and continuing to come to her for religion and deeper meaning. But then he finds out something about her that flies under the radar of a lot of viewers, including myself on my first viewing... She’s a prostitute.
Now, obviously this is a situational thing, as she’s just selling her body to put food on the table for herself and Manna, but in Shino’s disenfranchised mind, the same religion that’s keeping him away from her hasn’t been keeping her away from other men, so for that one brief moment, he becomes beset by jealousy and entitlement, and sees her as less than a person. I know rape is a thing that deserves to be demonized, but it’s important to remember that while it’s definitely a bad thing, good people do it, too. No matter who you are, you can make a mistake that will affect you and another person for the rest of your lives, because even good people can succumb to poor judgement. Now, don’t get me wrong, humanizing rape does NOT excuse it or defend it, it just teaches you that yes, even YOU could rationalize yourself into performing terrible acts, so don’t ever think of yourself as above them, or you’re more likely to wind up doing the same thing Shino does. Thankfully, he stops himself.
Riquinni also defends herself, justifiably so, which is where I really don’t get the sexism criticism. She doesn’t just blush, turn her head and ask him to be gentle, as a FUCKING TON of anime would have her do, she clocks him for it. If anything her apology for using violence to defend herself says a lot more about the effect religion can have on people than it does about gender politics. In any case, like I said earlier, this is the event that challenges his faith in a higher power, which he recovers from thanks to his faith in himself and his mission, and this could have been achieved in a number of ways that DIDN’T involve rape, but the reason I think it doesn’t work, and the reason I think it makes people so damned uncomfortable, is because, as I said, the reveal of her turning to prostitution is way too subtle. the visual of her pouring money out of her boot just isn’t clear enough to explain what’s going on, so yeah, that is a huge problem, but is it the single blemish on an otherwise masterpiece? No. Not even close.
Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honneamise is available stateside on many different DVD releases, including a Pioneer release, a Manga Video release, a couple of imported versions, and most recently, a Maiden Japan release, and chances are you can find it online for cheap. A four minute pilot to the movie, commissioned by Gainax two years prior, has not been released stateside, at least as far as I know. You can also view the film on Hulu.
Wings of Honneamise is considered by many to be a Gainax classic, an untouchable masterpiece with a very important place in anime history. I don’t disagree with that last part, as pretty much all of Gainax’s early work has been highly influential on the medium, but I kinda feel like squeezing the brakes on calling it a masterpiece. Yeah, the animation is almost unrealistically great, and Shino’s character arc does offer a compelling character study, but aside from the few things that I do agree are noteworthy about it, I just don’t think it’s a very good movie. The pacing is garbage, the scenes feel like they could have been shuffled out of order without losing very much impact, and there’s almost no attempt at foreshadowing a lot of what should have been important events. I do respect Gainax for it’s ambition and creativity... Well, back then, at least... But as writers, this movie carries a lot of the issues that have always plagued them. Their work may be important, it may be influential, but it benefits heavily from peoples’ nostalgia. Case in point, this movie may have looked beautiful, but it was so full of pulp and badly focused that I could barely manage to stay awake. I give Royal Space Force; Wings of Honneamise a 4/10.
DasuArosu
In order to actually explain why "Wings of Honneamise" is an absolute cinematic masterpiece I shall have to delve into the main features which it does outstandingly-and those would be the worldbuilding,characterization and themes. To begin with the worldbuilding,I have to say that the way the setting of this movie is presented and shown makes it look normal and casually everyday,regardless of the fact that it's outlandish and alien in how it looks and cannot be reliably related to any contemporary culture on Earth(except in its' purely human aspects,and its' human goals),thus displaying originality without attempt. Every single little detail is tailored and customized towards showinga place that is both different and similar to the one we currently inhabit,and it is all done in a manner that does not vaingloriously attempt to draw the eye,but rather allows it to freely wander about and see what there is to see-and there's a lot to see. In both mechanical,architectural and character design the artists behind this production excel.
The characterization in this movie is done in a similarly careful,subtle and artful manner,letting you realize things about the characters not by their dialogue or even their actions,but by the implications behind said actions and words,that can be seen in many ways and at many angles,all of which equally valid,thus allowing the viewer to again savour the movie at his own pace and discretion,while also making the motion picture incredibly rewatchable due to it.
And the themes...oh boy...Maybe I like the themes so much because they speak to me personally,but in this movie some of the most under-represented struggles of mankind come to light-that of the disillusioned post-modern young man-tormented by expectations he himself has set upon him and never truly able to break out of his own pre-conceived notions of what is success,what is happiness and what is prosperity-all things he seeks to accomplish,but never truly reaches towards,because he is never sure what he is even trying to come to hold-this terrible cycle repeating over and over leaving the person more and more tired and unwilling to go on each time. Shirotsugh Lhadatt is the subtly characterized,plain-looking incarnation of this struggle as his once reasonable ambitions to become a military pilot get turned into soot as he realizes he's not good enough,then realizes he has nothing else to aspire to(and all this before the movie even starts) and yet he has to do something with his life-and so joins the Space Force. The supposed "ascent to greatness" of Shiro is followed throughout the movie,but the absolute genius of Yamaga's writing is that Shiro never recovers from his horrible self-destructive depression at the beginning of the movie,but just tries to push through,despite and in spite of it,just because he knows-not in his heart,but in his mind(for his heart keeps weighing him down) that he has to go on and do his duty to his homeland-that he is finally needed. Yet through this journey he is pursued by the vestiges of his sorrow-in the face of Riquinni Nonderaiko who he knows he should fall in love with and treasure,yet is ultimately bored,repulsed and disgusted by. Who he tries to rape,simply because it's expected of him to advance things romantically with the girl he's met,and that he should like her. Yet inside he's too tired to fall in love. Life has broken him,so he,acting on autopilot tries to force himself onto Riquinni,yet realizes that what he's doing is a pointless motion in a series of pointless motions that his meeting and befriending the girl had been. It would be good to mention Riquinni's religion just simply because it plays to some of the auxiliary themes of the movie-the depersonalization of human beings in post-modern society. Riquinni is shown over and over to preach to people that their disregard for God and their selfishness is what is making society such a miserable place,and while it can clearly be seen that she's fanaticized and not perfectly in her right mind,the selfishness and lack of reverence for higher powers of Honneamise' humanity can be seen over and over in what they do,and can be confirmed by various other characters' actions and words in later and earlier parts of the movie. Shiro in turn is faced with either becoming a part of this humanity or choosing his own path-yet he's incapable of choosing either,and ultimately in the end of the movie fakes a motivational speech,just so he doesn't embarrass himself in front of all mankind.
With that out of the way the movie does have a few minor issues-the first is that the soundtrack is ultimately unmemorable and while well-performed not so well placed and not interesting enough to coin and define parts of the movie with its' presence(which leaves the actual scenes to speak for themselves instead,so it's a fair tradeoff). The other issue this movie has,that ultimately also plays more to its' benefit is that the narrative is not conclusive,not concise and ultimately disjointed-but this plays to make the movie appear more like a real thing that could have happened in a real place,instead of an artifice of pretentious stagecraft. But due to it,one does not enjoy the movie overmuch while watching it-always confused and unsettled by the brisk shifts in tone and theme that alternate wildly and violently,often without immediately noticeable logic,which makes this movie's first watch feel a bit alienating. But then again once the movie is finished one can see all the threads and plot points come together to weave a truly unique picture and show things seldom shown properly and realistically in cinema.
Bishounen_Hunter
Main This is a real treat for people who are into vintage anime! Wings of Honneamise [WoH] is very much like a Miyazawa anime [Nausicaa, Princess Mononoke, Howl's Castle] except instead of dealing with fantasy WoH is sci-fi. Art-Style I love the art style, the animation and the character designs. I have the lower-grade fansub version and I know that WoH was just released in Hi-Def and Blu-Ray so I can only imagine how awesome it looks now! But in all honesty, as with Akira, I don't think you would have been able to tell this show was from the 80's wereit not for the music score or some of the tell-tale character designs but animation-wise you would not be able to tell. The animation was not jumpy and there was no looping or any of those tricks. I think the best moment in art and animation culminates at the final launch scene, which was a very beautiful scene! This being a sci-fi anime.
you will see a lot of machines and technology but it's no Robotech, Transformers or Gundam, there is no transforming into humanoid looking mecha or any of that and that's why I really liked this show. I love Robotech and Gundam Seed but after a while everyone tries to be like those shows and originality goes though the door, everyone tries to deliver the sleekest, newest, "fantabulously" awe-inspiring mecha......boring! Honneamise pays homage to old-school technology by looking backwards and gives you realistic machines with all the metal, smoke and cabling that goes along with it not to mention the bulky flight suits....a little less glamorous but awe-inspiring art nonetheless.
Sound
If you are as old as I am, I think you will say that the ending is probably the most memorable thing when it comes to the music....which sounded like Nu Shooz's “I can't wait” And that is why I say the music gives it away as an older anime. The opening theme was actually not that bad it was a dramatic piano composition, which didn't sound too dated at all.
I watched this show in English and it was very good voice acting on the English side, this was probably supposed to have been for theatrical release or something.
Story
The story is a very subtle one. In the beginning there may not even seem to be a point to it all......and maybe there still isn't! But the moral of the story from what I've gathered is probably about self-awareness. Honneamise starts out small about an introspective and possibly lonely young man who thinks about the insignificant mediocrity of his life and from there it slowly progresses into something of a much grander scale: the science of man. The progression of a country, the conscience of mankind, mankind's place in the world and then our world's place in the universe. So it's about awareness but not only awareness it's also about perspective, personal drives and ambitions.
There is also a lot of God-talk, which at first made me apprehensive because it started with the female lead and that little kid always praying and stuff and then it seemed to be contagious because now the main guy was praying all the time.....and I thought “oh gawd, what have I gotten myself into?” But it's all good and it does seem to serve to add another layer to the story and further accentuates the perspectives between the characters and even the main guy's perspective in this cosmos.
Cast/Characters
As I said before, I loved the character designs they looked very unique. A lot if not most of them are drawn with a high forehead and more realistic chins and jaw lines. Some were more pronounced and squarish and others were softer and rounded. There were also a lot of variations of realistic looking noses instead of just the hint of a line and some shadow.
This is just my opinion, but I think that sometimes it's important to have characters look like us so that we can have that human connection with the character, sometimes when the characters are too stylized or glamorized we lose that bond and are no longer able to empathize with them. These characters looked human both in face and body styles. I also think a lot of work was done with wardrobe and set design and you did get the feel of being in another world, place and time. I especially liked the official military dress clothes which was very colorful and unique it did not look like it was borrowed from any other actual culture, I'm always impressed by these types of originality.
Worth it or NOT?
Again I think this would be a real treat for anyone who's into vintage anime or perhaps an anime sci-fi aficionado. Or maybe even if you are looking for something that not super fantastic or filled with mecha or you have watched all of Hayao Miyazawa's anime and you want to see more stuff like that. There are many reasons to watch this show, either way I don't think you'll be unhappy with this choice.....especially if you have the HD/BluRay version.
Ciaran_Zagami
This is without a shadow of a doubt the single most beautiful looking movie I've ever seen. It cost nearly 1 billion Yen (In 2021 money) to produce and it REALLY shows. Unfortunately I can't say quite as much nice stuff about the rest of the movie. The characters are bland, the music is so awkward its actually painful to listen to. The story is very cliche, boy meets girl. Girl changes his world view and he undergoes some kind of deep seated change. Very standard stuff, just with a heaping tablespoon of religion and moralizing. Honestly though, the art is so outstanding. It more than makes upfor the above shortcomings.
There is only one scene that I can say nearly broke me, near the final act of the movie the main character. He outright sexually assaults the female lead in a scarily accurate sequence that turned my stomach.
This isn't some James Bond guy kiss girl, girl slap guy, guy kisses her again and then they're into it.
This was full on, push girl naked to ground and pin her limbs so she can't escape.
It was frankly disgusting and ruined the entire tone the movie was going for, even during the climax of the movie I couldn't get it out of my head.
I guess I'd say watch this movie but that scene alone was such a dozy I don't know what to think.
Apparently a sequel has been in some level of development for the last 20 years, though I can't say I'm interested in exploring this setting again.
MrHawky
Personally, I would like to fly some more into space. I like flying. My biggest wish is to fly toward Venus, toward Mars, which is really flying. - Yuri Gagarin the first man to go into orbit around the earth On my quest to watch every available Gainax work I first stumbled upon Ouritsu Uchuugun or Royal Space Force. A social commentary on various things but most of all our role in the universe, and what our role has been until this very moment, quite surprised that unlike other works like gunbuster or EVA not much is known about this little gem. Story The story isn't hard tofollow we're lead to believe that we're in some alternate world of the present where Japan is working on a space program, the only one in the world and their plights in raising the staff of the force, the public's less than favorable attitude towards the program itself and foreign interest in the technology. The film does a good job of emulating a cold war esque atmosphere, but frankly tries too hard to drive the point home with some pretty unnecessary action scenes that could be used to flesh out the side characters. But surprisingly the show deludes you into thinking that the movie is about the RSF, when it's really about something much deeper and much more interesting, and with each of the scenes we see the MC change and attain some new state of being allowing for a very character driven and interesting exploration of the human condition. The conflict explored is simple and yet hard to answer: Should we favor progress and move forward no matter what the costs, or should we halt progress and work on our current and immediate happiness that is already far out of reach?
Art
The art is very good for its time, the animation is slick and the various backgrounds fit the current on goings extremely well having an almost akira like feel to it whether it be a bustling city, a frantic carnival, a country side home or a chase scene through downtown. Gainax is already my favorite but I am pretty amazed at the quality of the animation. Though with that said it still is extremely dated so you might be put off by the retro feel of it which to be perfectly honest makes the show to me more enjoyable.
Sound
Sadly enough the soundtrack is only okay, there is nothing that stands out except maybe the ending theme, the music sometimes feels out of place and does not really fit with the atmosphere at all, however sound just like art is pretty subjective so you might like it. Objectively it's not of bad quality itself, however, I felt as though it really didn't fit the movie
Character
Now this is this shows double edged sword, the main character is extremely well explored while the side characters felt lacking in something which is to be somewhat expected in a movie, but I don't like them being just one of the RSF guys. We learn a little bit about each but never everything, we know why our MC is in the RSF but have no idea why any of the others have joined, although when you focus so much on the MC it's not really easy to focus on the other characters, which leads me to my next point. Sometimes I felt as though show assumed I knew what was going on and just went on with it. At points I found myself thinking why is he doing this? And shouldn't he react more to this? Fortunately that was it, I found myself rooting for the MC because how far he had come from the start of the film, you could say he had made a complete 180 and become someone worth respecting, save for some questionable scenes that I'll leave you to Judge.
Enjoyment
Well being a Gainax fan I was hyped from start to finish, and since space exploration is something I hold dear to my heart I found the show extremely enjoyable subjectively. I say subjectively because that's how I felt at the end of the show, not what the show actually is. Treat the overall score as a middle ground that's probably closer to the average and my score as someone said. ''RSF IS REALLY COOOL!''
Bonus info. Apparently gainax is planning a sequel, get hyped for that!
Overall
If you enjoyed EVA, or if you like scifi or even if you've just ran out of ''muh symbolism anime'' to watch. Definitely give this a try it is more than worth your time.
barcaman101
Shiro Lhadatt is an average guy who wasnt able to fullfil his dream of being a pilot .Instead the road of life placed him in the the Royal Space Force (RSF),an organization that very existance is a enigma and is a source of much ridicule and scorn and is seen as a huge waste of funds in a country with so much social problems.Shiro Lhadatt live day to day with no real expectation or hope for the future,as he see's nothing that can change his state of mediocrity. His life changes when he meets a young god-fearing woman who encourages him to look beyondand think higher than his current surroundings.And so to everyone surprise he volunteer to become the first person to undertake a journey to outer space.His choice takes everyone by surprise since out the of all of his colleague's he was the the one with the least interested in the the Royal Space Force (RSF).
While everyone associated with the RSF thinks this mission is just in scientific interest,the state has their own insidious agenda for wanting the test to go underway.
The first thing that stand out about this anime is the brilliant animation,it is incredible.The texture and shade of the colours and the detail of the drawing looks so vivid and real.Whether its a scene of the city at night time,a house or the forest it is done in great detail.Most will say the animation is dated,but the drawing far surpass most of the computer generated animes that use mainly bright colours and special affects to mask drawing impefection.
A scene that stood out in my mind especially was when the launch was about to take place in the latter part of the anime and image of the rocket was shown,you just down get that realism with todays anime.
There wasnt a great deal of music in the anime,but the little that was in it was quite appropriate and fitted the mood and feel of the anime.
It did get a little bland at time since the pacing can get rather slow ,but it still manage to keep my attention.There is also a touch of humour in the diologue as well.There is definately a' slice of life' feel to this movie and the characters portray this message confidently without being strange or pretentious unlike so many of todays anime.Overall a very good watch.
blizar
Ouritsu Uchuugun: Honneamise no Tsubasa, also known Royal Space Force, is a slow-paced slice-of-life centered around the main character, Shiro, as he trains to become the first man in space. The plot is mostly simple and straight-forward, while there are some anti-war messaging and discussions about the value of human civilization, the movie never fully explores those themes beyond the surface level. The world-building is one of the highlights of this film, which shines through in its portrayal of how different factions within the country, as well as a neighboring enemy nation, perceive the importance of the space program in vastly different ways. Small details,such as the people from the other country wearing different clothes and speaking another language help add to the immersive world-building.
The biggest issue with this film is the bland and forgettable cast of characters, which makes it hard to be invested in their journey. Shiro has a very dull personality and doesn't change much throughout the film. He takes a very passive position throughout most of the film with the most memorable thing he does occurring in a completely unnecessary scene where he attempts to rape his girlfriend and faces no consequences for doing so.
The best part of Royal Space Force is undoubtedly the high quality 2D animation from Gainax's early years. A lot of attention was given to making the backgrounds feel alive and integrating the high-tech machinery seamlessly into the setting, all of which greatly enhances the film's immersion. However, the film lacked a solid soundtrack, as 90% of the film features no background music.
Royal Space Force is by no means a bad movie, but it's far from a good one. A more interesting, fleshed out and well-developed cast of characters paired with a deeper exploration of the themes the film attempts to present could result in a far better film. If you're looking for some great 80s anime aesthetic backgrounds and war machinery illustrations, I would wholeheartedly recommend this. However, anyone expecting to find the same level of innovation and experimentation found in Gainax’s later works won't find it here.
Final Scorings:
Animation: 8/10 (Very good)
Sound: 6/10 (Barely noticeable OST)
Story: 5/10 (Good setting, average plot)
Characters: 4/10 (Generic, boring)
Value: 3/10 (First Gainax movie, mostly forgotten)
Enjoyment: 4/10 (Started off strong but dragged)
Overall: 5/10 (Average)
ComfyRainyDay
“Ideas grow; sometimes bigger than life.” - Marty Tohn Story Development ★★★☆☆☆ Okay Royal Space Force is very clearly the first major work of a group of people who are monstrously talented, but have not quite gotten their artistic footing. It was clear that this was a story they truly cared about, sending a message they believed would broaden peoples' view of the world. Yamaga and Okada refused to compromise on it in the face of corporate pressures, acknowledging that even if paring down the movie would increase the profits by millions of yen, it would not be worth destroying what they were trying to accomplish. Theresult is a movie that doesn’t quite hit its mark, but which inevitably charms you with its limitless passion.
Its greatest strength is its worldbuilding. It takes the opposite tact from many modern anime, which place themselves in the most generic fantasy or sci-fi world possible and yet still finds ways to dump constant exposition. The kingdom of Honneamise is aesthetically dense and lived-in and unlike anything I’ve ever seen before, all delightfully oddball and anachronistic, near modern in some ways and near medieval in other ways. And characters never take the time to explain things to each other which they would find obvious. Instead, it’s up to the audience to intuit much about the world from what little information we’re given.
Art Style and Composition ★★★★★★ Outstanding
This movie has to come pretty close to the absolute limit of how good a work of art can possibly look. You have some of the most talented animators of all time pouring their hearts out before your eyes, and every frame is filled with so much detail and color and beauty. Even simple, humble scenes of machines operating, or character buying fruits at a street market, can steal your breath away with its aesthetic splendor. If you find animations of complex machinery at work as satisfying as I do, you will love the look of this film. Why can’t anything this beautiful be made nowadays?
Character Development ★★☆☆☆☆ Bad
Lhadatt experiences the majority of the character development in the movie, and his arc fails to impress. He instantly goes from a lazy, unmotivated wash-out, to being utterly determined to succeed even at the cost of his own life, seemingly just to impress a girl at first. The film threatens to be interesting when he struggles with the question of “is it ethical to create wondrous technology, knowing that it will inevitably be used in war?” But this question is basically forgotten about. Worse is an infamous scene past the halfway point, which throws a massive wrench in his development out of nowhere and will make many viewers utterly hate him.
Character Design ★★★★☆☆ Good
The characters are impressively detailed, semi-realistic, and perfectly match the aesthetic of the world they inhabit, nearly as rough and gruff and humble as the machines they operate. There is no glamorization of the characters, except for perhaps Riquinni, who is the movie’s obligatory cute girl.
Voice Acting (Sub) ★★★☆☆☆ Okay
There were no true stand-out moments in either direction. The performances always succeeded in delivering their intended tone, but never drew any emotion out of me.
Music & SFX ★☆☆☆☆☆ Terrible
As a converse to the art, this soundtrack is about as bad as a soundtrack can possibly be, in my opinion. It sounds just like the ‘songs’ I used to make as a small child, by randomly ordering notes in a synthesizer until I found something slightly bearable, and then repeating that progression over and over with slight alterations. The music actively worsened every scene it was in; thankfully, it was sparsely used.
r4ytrace
Everything about this just oozes art and creativity - the slightly alternate world to our own is so intricate it is utterly believable - little details like how the strips in the middle of the road are painted differently show the attention Gainax threw at this masterpiece. The costumes, backgrounds and even the car design are all 'believable' alternative entities to our own. In my opinion, this film is worth watching even if only for those elements, but on top of that it has a great plot, and utterly believable characters. Absolutely perfect.
gwern
Rewatched _Wings of Honneamise_, which was as excellent as I remembered. I noticed a number of things this time around that I hadn't the first time, like the protagonist employing his sword training in dealing with an assassin - echoing the general theme of him drawing on the training & space program he had previously considered useless. I also think I understand his attempted rape better: throughout the movie appear dichotomies between peace & war, good and bad - the space program is peaceful but used to spark war, technology is what lifts up man but also used to hurt and kill, etc. The protagonistbefriends the woman and orphan, but the motivation to love can also be the motivation to desire.
urgentmeow
Royal Space Force is one of the most unique animes I've ever seen. It's certainly flawed, and narratively it didn't really come together for me, but it has this outstanding quality as a pure creative endeavor that allowed me to enjoy it regardless. The art is just spectacular. The level of detail, vividness, and imagination is something rare and special. The strongest part of this movie, for me, was probably its visual design. How often do you get to see a unique and thoroughly imagined alternate world portrayed so faithfully? I wish the story had told us more about that world. Unfortunately, most things are leftfairly vague and unexplored. There's a lot of untapped potential here. Longform storytelling is hard, and I think this film would have been much more effective as a short, rather than a feature-length.
The relationship between the two main characters has some interesting subtlety, but is never really explored, like pretty much all the characters themselves. I was disappointed by how distant all the people in this film felt. I had a hard time relating to anyone, and never felt like I really knew or understood anyone's motivations. For a film going for more of a serious and philosophical tone, this seemed like a big oversight. The philosophy itself was presented in a fairly ham-fisted way, as well. It would have been more compelling if they could have illustrated their points more, instead of having characters yak about them. Oh well.
One other lacking aspect was the music. Loud, clunky synthesizers drag down otherwise perfectly fine moments, or create a confusing tone. One thing that puzzled me about this film is the tone itself -- I wasn't ever sure how I was supposed to be feeling at a given point in the story. Some scenes seem to be a weird mashup of screwball comedy and serious drama. A strong feeling of ennui pervades Royal Space Force, dampening the enthusiasm and fighting spirit that might otherwise shine through in a film about an underdog space program. Perhaps I'm missing the point of what they were going for, but I just had a hard time figuring out what exactly that point was, aside from the obvious: war is bad, humans have the capacity for evil, human priorities are often inverted. These are fair points to explore, but this film just stays on the surface, and never really explores them, simply presents them over and over again.
I had a hard time figuring out how to rate this. I loved the visuals and the worldbuilding, and didn't like much else. But there's a certain je ne sais quoi to Royal Space Force -- you can feel the creative energy behind it, and the world is rendered so compellingly that it's a pleasure to exist in it, even if the story taking place there isn't that great. It's impressive as a feat of imagination, and it's also impressive considering the inexperience of GAINAX at the time. I don't think it really holds together as a story, but as a creative work, it's certainly something worth experiencing.
intextimo
I was staring at the new season TV simoucasts trying to decide what to watch with my brunch when a spontaneous "archealogical dig" led me to royal space force. finished to two hr movie in one sitting in awe, can only say that they dont make'em like this anymore. the art is of superb quality, the kind that appear in but a few cuts in todays commercial productions, and sustained throughout the work. the presentation of the story have room for improvement but i shallent complain. Also it is important to know that GAINAX may have been disbanded should RSF was a commercial success, andmaybe iconical works such as EVA and Guren Laggan would not have existed. Ironical.
young_kappa
Best known as Gainax's first commercial work, Wings of Honneamise is a peculiar movie that acts as something of a commentary and retelling of one of mankind's boldest undertakings - sending our own into the great void of space. The method of storytelling is quite unique and makes you consider the perspecitve of someone living far into the past where the idea of going into space is considered unnecessary and foreign. The film has its own surreal little world set in a time that's something like the economic expansion following the WWII era. In this world the "Royal Space Force" are a group of peoplewho aim to put a man among the stars. They're treated like some kind of joke, as a matter of fact even their own people are lethargic about the idea of going to space, but that's only until one of their men volunteers to do it. Shirotsugh Lhadatt's feelings towards space travel are changed when he meets a young religious woman following the death of a comrade, and she becomes the first person to express a genuine interest in his work. The bond between them sparks some kind of motivation in Shiro to take his job more seriously, and seemingly everything goes uphill from there.
The art and animation is spectacular. For those who know them well, studio Gainax's animators had a thing for working quite effectively even when they were on a budget in their early years (e.g. the Daicon opening animations). Their skill shines mostly for the first time here - beautiful carefully crafted backgrounds along with fluid and detailed motions and an expressive art style make this one of the most visually appealing films around.
The soundtrack is its biggest flaw. Some may like it and some may not, but it's jarringly louder than the rest of the film and it's almost reminiscent of banging on trash cans at times, and that killed some of the enjoyment for me since a soundtrack is such an important part of a film, especially one full of excited emotions like Honneamise.
I can't say I liked any of the characters in particular, but they're good. Just about every role carries a sense of some importance that contributes to the integrity of the whole thing.
Overall, Wings of Honneamise is a spectacular, enchanting watch and you won't regret taking two hours of your time to see it.
DanTheMan2150AD
"When I was a kid, I wanted to be a navy pilot. For me, there could be nothing better than flying." Royal Space Force is the debut film of the legendary studio Gainax. Probably best known for their later success (and massively overrated mess) Evangelion. Originally a box office flop it later went on to become regarded as a cult classic due to the success and reappraisal it had on home video. Taking place on an alternate world where a disengaged young man, Shirotsugh, inspired by an idealistic woman named Riquinni, volunteers to become the first astronaut, which becomes a decision that draws them into bothpublic and personal conflict.
Royal Space Force's collective approach to filmmaking, its deliberate rejection of established anime motifs, its visual complexity, and the general lack of professional experience among its staff were all factors in its chaotic production while increasing uncertainty about the project led to what has been described as an attempt by its investors and producers to "fix" the film before release, imposing a late name change to The Wings of Honnêamise, and a lavish but deceptive publicity campaign that included misleading advertising and a staged Hollywood premiere. Although receiving a generally good reception among domestic anime fans and the industry upon its original 1987 Japanese release, including praise from Hayao Miyazaki.
The retrospective failure of this film means that Gainax would later thrive in other projects but looking back on this film is a treat to see, just how different they started out, and it has thankfully stood the test of time. Brought to life by a team of relative unknowns at the time, including a pre-depressed Hideki Anno, Royal Space Force is a slow burn but a treat from start to finish.
Originally starting out in life as a 10 minute OVA, the film developed from the original pilot into what we see today, it remains a gorgeously animated piece with the major highlights being in the hyper-detailed background work, with almost every frame a painting. However, what truly sold this film for me was the amazingly crafted musical score by Ryuichi Sakamoto and crew. The development of the music throughout the film showcase a changing society from it's use of woodwind and orchestral elements at the beginning to the re-composed Main Theme with the use of synthesizers.
There is one major drawback which they thankfully cut from the original home media release but later reinstated on Blu-ray to present the film uncut. The almost 30-second long scene of attempted rape which is so massively disjointed that it baffles me as to why they turned a much more family-friendly film into an edgy teenage one with that single moment. But in the end, it's done in a better light than a lot of films nowadays.
Overall, Royal Space Force is a gorgeous slow burn with beautiful animation and music, well worth your time.
"Dear God, please give us your mercy. Mercy for we are lost. Forgive the irresponsible, the trivial men who beg you from the dark for the forgiveness of your light."
