Two years ago, a mysterious wind swept over the Earth without warning, taking everyone's memories with it. Not knowing their names or even how to speak, cars crashed, planes dropped from the sky, and society crumbled in an instant. One young man happens to wander into a military testing facility, where he meets Johnny, a young boy who underwent experimental memory enhancement treatment and could, therefore, still remember who he was. Johnny names the young man Wataru and teaches him everything that he can before his frail body fails him.
Wataru sets out on a journey to see if he can find other people like him, and in San Francisco, he meets a mysterious silver-haired woman named Sophia, who refuses to speak about her past. Sophia says that she is heading to New York, and decides to travel together with Wataru. As the pair make their way across America, they learn about what has happened to the rest of society, and what the essence of humanity really is.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
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Prede
This is a movie I’ve wanted to review for a very long time now. But I wanted to take my time with it and get everything down right, because I wanted to do it some justice. Anyway this movie is called "A Wind Named Amnesia" and it’s easily one of my all time favorites. I first saw this movie on Comcast’s Anime Selects on Demand Channel. CPM used to put tons of titles from their catalog up on Anime Selects, but I still think I was lucky to find this movie and watch it. I just randomly watched this movie, because the title seemed interesting,that’s all. I didn’t really read the little plot synopsis or anything. I was bored, and there was an anime movie, seemed like a good idea. And I’m lucky that I choice to watch this, because I am still impressed by this movie all these years later. I later bought it on DVD (the version in the “Kawajiri Brick Pack” collection).
The movie was created by Madhouse studios in 1990, and directed by Kazuo Yamazaki (not the wrestler), who is known for directing "Urusei Yatsura", "Please Save My Earth" and" Maison Ikkoku". Titles which seem nothing like this anime. But what’s really interesting about this movie is it was based off of a novel by Hideyuki Kikuchi. Kikuchi is famous for writing the original "Vampire Hunter D" novels, along with several other novels turned anime like "Demon City Shinjuku", and "Wicked City". Kikuchi’s novels are pretty dark, bloody and violent, as are the anime series adapted from them, but "Amnesia" is the odd one out here. It is a mature movie, but it is not as violent, bloody, or graphic as any of the other titles I’ve mentioned. And it’s a very smart film, not at all an action type movie. And what’s even more surprising still is the screenplay was written by Yoshiaki Kawajiri, who used to have quite a fan base back in the day (in the US at least). He is well known for directing titles like" Ninja Scroll", "Biohunter", "Running Man", "Cyber City Oedo 808", "Highlander: The Search for Vengeance" (the anime movie), and most of the Kikuchi anime adoptions ("Vampire Hunter D", "Wicked City", "Demon City Shinjuku"). Although he has directed titles that aren’t dark, graphic, and violent (i.e. the original "Birdy the Mighty OVA’s", a future review no doubt), we all know what he is best at. And he’s damn good at directing the violent stuff too. But again "Amnesia" is nothing like these series, which are all horror or action type shows. The tone the film takes is just so different from all these other titles it just stands out. I’ve called this film “…philosophy ridden and feels like a traditional sci-fi story. Directed and written by people who you'd never dream of being involved in those things.” And I stand by that.
Well after all my rambling, I should at least explain the basic plot. One day, seemingly out of nowhere, a wind blows all around the earth, and this wind (you guessed it) caused everyone to forget everything. And the people did not just forget who they are, and what they did last night, but they also forget that they were people. They forget how to drive cars, talk, use technology, etc. Basically this wind set mankind back to the Stone Age. The film follows two people, Wataru and Sophia, who for their own reasons (which I won’t spoil) are normal, as they travel all around the United States looking at was has become of it. They can talk, they can think, they can use the tools of mankind. In essence they are regular people. And as they travel through the wasteland that was once the US, many different themes keep popping up. The film constantly asks us what is mankind without all this technology? Other themes the film deals with heavily are religion, society, the use of power, and the government (watch out for slight nods to Plato's Republic). All in all the things this film has to say about these topics are, while opened ended, are still very clever. In fact this is more of a “thinker’s anime” then anything else. If you want endless robot fights, don’t bother with this movie. As it’s a very slow movie, where fight scenes are sparse, the dialogue is heavy, and there are moments where seemingly nothing important happens on screen. There are however some action scenes thrown in at the perfect time, but best not to think of it as a fast paced anime. Think Oshii’s newest film "The Sky Crawlers," for pacing and timing of fight scenes if you need an example. And just like "The Sky Crawlers", this movie is much, much more then throw away entertainment. It is a very deep, well thought out film. With great direction and brilliant writing. The only problem with this film is a completely ludicrous and unneeded sex scene at the very end of the movie. On my first viewing of this movie (on Anime Selects VOD) this was cut out, and I am firm in my belief that it is a better film without this. But the ending is still very good, when you look past this terrible, terrible scene. I’ll just pretend it didn’t happen, as I think it was thrown in there to get some more money from the producers or something. It’s so out of place this has to have some sort of rational explanation for it’s odd placement at the end.
Anyway…the general concept is brilliant in and of it’s self. It’s so simple one would think it was already a staple in western science fiction, but I can’t find anything similar in books, movies, or TV shows (although if you know of something similar please make a comment and tell me about it). Although some titles in the sci-fi genre may touch on these ideas very lightly, nothing else really seems to be out quite like this. In fact this movie plays out like a very traditional sci-fi live action movie. And the philosophy in the film is really something else. None of it feels tacked on, or out of place. It’s well worked into the plot, although ultimately it’s so powerful and profound the plot doesn’t really matter anymore. Like Justin Sevakis points out about "The Sky Crawlers", “what's happening on the surface has little to do with what the film is actually about.” And that works for this film as well. What I mean here is that what happens in the movie in regards to the characters and progression of the plot, has very little to do with the main point of it all. Although the plot isn’t terrible or anything, and one could easily enjoy the film without picking up on any of the philosophy in it, it should not be the main focus of the viewers. We must look deeper then the surface plot to really get everything out of this film. And the brilliance of the movie is that every time you watch it, you may pick up some more things you missed last time, and change your mind on what certain things mean. All in all the movie is very original, very smart, and very enjoyable to watch. And it’s not at all hard to follow or grasp. Which is a sign of great writing.
As far as animation and artwork goes, this film was some high budget stuff back in the day. Backgrounds are highly detailed, and look like beautiful watercolor paintings. Feel free to pause the DVD to take a look at the works of art Madhouse used for the backgrounds. From the Rocky Mountains, to some valleys, and lakes and streams all of it looks amazing. Character designs are also not disappointing. They are very detailed for their time, and flow very well. The characters’ hair seems to be drawn with less detail then the rest of their bodies, but it still looks great when everything is all together. This movie is a treat for the eyes. Even almost 20 years later, everything looks great. And one little tidbit that I can’t help but throw out there. I really think this anime looks a lot like the music video for Pearl Jam’s “Do the Evolution”. Some scenes in that video even seem to be drawn to reflect certain scenes in the movie (Cavemen around the fire, skeleton in a cockpit, city in the middle of a field, girl running in field as wind blows, etc). It’s even drawn in the same style, with the same color palette. It helps that that song and music video also deals with many similar themes as the film. It’s very possible that the animators or the band were inspired by this anime, since that song came out years after this was originally released on VHS (song in 1998, VHS in 1995/1996). But it’s just such a random title I think the odds are really against that being what happened. Still it’s a great coincidence, well worth looking into.
The dub for this was produced at Manga UK, with an all-British cast (at least to my knowledge). Dubs from this era range in quality greatly, but this is possibly the best dub from that studio. Michael Bakewell directed the dub, and he does a wonderful job. I liked what he and Manga UK did for the dub on Dominion Tank Police as well. He seemed to have some skill and it’s a shame they weren’t used more back in the day. Since this is a film with very few people in it who can talk (most just grunt like caveman), it would need actors who could sound believable with little else to compare them to. It’s a bit different and a little difficult (in my opinion) for a film to have a very small cast of talking roles, and many other grunting roles to contrast them. And the actors are up to that challenge. This was very well cast, and overall the acting is of great quality. Adam Henderson plays Wataru, and he gives everyline a very innocent and naïve feeling to it. And do to certain events that occurred in the past and are revealed early on in the film, this is very appropriate. But I always felt he made Wataru sound a little too naïve, and a bit too spaced out. But he has a great voice quality, and he is very capable of acting. Sophia is played by Denica Fairman, who gives the character a warm, yet still very mysterious vibe, which is very necessary to make that character work. The way she says things like “Well to start with I’m called Sophia…but I don’t want to say anymore about myself. Tell me your story” (while dodging the question to why she is still normal) really help display this. Lee Tyler plays Johnny, a character from Wataru’s past whose shown in flashbacks. While I feel his overall acting quality is decent, some lines from him seem a little off. But he’s usually quite good. The other speaking characters are played by Peter Marinker and Susie Baker, who do a very good job of establishing their characters for the short amount of time they are on screen. You really feel for both of their characters, and that is, in part, an accomplishment of the actors. The other people in the film are basically caveman, who do nothing more then grunt, moan, cry, or make other caveman-like noises. And all the actors playing these characters do a good job. No eye rolling grunts in this one guys. And as far as other sound goes, the background music is all very low key, but very well done. Certain themes enhance the action sequences, or quiet moments, but the one theme that stood out to me the most usually plays with Sophia around. It’s a very simple piano piece, but it adds to the mystery of not only who she is, but of what happened to the planet. It’s just a little sad, but not at all depressing. It’s quite amazing how something so simple, can display so much, but it does.
Raphael See of THEM anime reviews called the film “ a sleeper classic”. And it truly is. He also stated “A Wind Named Amnesia is probably one of the best titles I've never heard of.” and there really is no better way of describing it. This is easily one of the best movies out there that no one ever heard of. I highly recommend this. There’s very little information about the movie out there, and there seems to be no one who saw the film either. It’s almost never talked about on anime forums too. But it should be more well known, as it’s an all around great anime. This is only for mature viewers however, who want to watch something that's much deeper then some throwaway entertainment. The movie touches on things like religion, love, society, and many other themes, and the philosophy is great. It's very much like Kino's Journey although less preachy. Many different places separated by great distances, traveler observing the land, and studying the human condition. Both are dark, slow, mature, and refined. But both are excellent.
(Sorry the review is so long, but I wanted to do this movie some justice)
- Review copied from my personal blog
- Original review posted at: http://predeanimereview.blogspot.com/2009/09/dvd-look-wind-named-amnesia.html
Sippeatea
The title caught my attention, but sadly the story did not. I did quite enjoy Wataru and Sophia’s short travels together through the wastelands of the American West and the characters they meet along the way in the first half the movie, but there’s not much else here. A Wind Named Amnesia portrays the outcome of humanity losing their memories with society reverting towards a primitive and barbaric state. It’s a pretty jumbled mess in the latter half, and I all I came away with is that humanity got screwed. Don’t bother watching this one.
Scallion
While watching this movie, I could easily see it being adapted into a TV series on Sci-Fi or CBS. The premise is so good that you'd wonder why nobody thought of it: the whole world is overtaken by a wind that gives them amnesia so severe, that they have forgotten everything that makes them human. Language, science, art, all of it, gone. Mankind in its entirety is no more advanced than a neanderthal. At one point, the main character describes how he was frightened by his own reflection, because he had forgotten the very concept. It has the makings of something like Jericho or Lost,without the polar bears.
Sadly, the cool premise isn't really brought out to its full potential because of time constraints. But the writers deserve some credit for putting in some interesting scenarios. it's the kind of "What if?" science fiction that makes for great short stories. Wataru and Sophia's little journey to New York could have been stretched into a 26 episode-long season, and very well should have. That's the only real gripe I have. Nothing about it is too memorable. The animation is good, traditional 80s fare- but not amazing. There aren't any outstanding songs, or anything like that. The English localization is really good, by the way, and worth a listen. The script writers did a good job, and managed to make a lot of the dialog sound meaty and substantial, where it could have easily fallen flat. Oh well. It's worth a downl-er, rental.
ggultra2764
Think about the best way I can describe A Wind Named Amnesia is wasted potential. While I don't find it to be as bad as some folks are making it out to be, the movie does carry some pretty significant flaws that I will get to in a bit. It looked like Wind Named Amnesia was trying to explore the depths of human morality when a mysterious wind causes all of humanity to forget all their memories from basic skills of living to even communicating through speech. Wataru, a young man able to regain the capacity to think and speak rationally, and a mysterious womannamed Sophia travel together through the post-apocalyptic United States where they get into several encounters with human civilizations a la Kino's Journey that lead them to question elements of religion and science. The movie does explore enough of Wataru's character where you come to learn of how he regained the ability to talk and think for himself and went on his journey to understand humanity. It also sports a solid visual presentation with detailed scenic shots and character designs, subdued color tones that do well to compliment the dramatic mood of the movie and fluid movement in many instances that does well to complement the movie's tense moments such as Wataru's random encounters with the enemy mech that actively chases him throughout much of the movie.
The biggest gripes I have with A Wind Named Amnesia come from its pacing, philosophizing and elements to the believability of its plot. The pacing for this movie goes by at a fairly quick pace, which leaves little time for the audience to take in events and themes that the movie is trying to explore. With the movie seemingly taking an approach to its storyline like Kino's Journey, A Wind Named Amnesia would have better benefited with being either an OVA series or short TV anime so it gave viewers more time to take in plot developments.
The philosophizing for Wind Named Amnesia is also nothing too thought-provoking. It pretty much milks plot formulas related to religion and science that are used in one form or another in anime and other fictional titles.
The anime also suffers in having some pretty big holes in logic regarding our two lead characters. Wataru's too naive and dense to even comprehend the most basic of concepts, which kills much of the intrigue over his quest of trying to understand humanity. The fool even outright states at a point in the film that "it's too complicated for me", which kills the whole point of the film being its comprehension of human morality outside a civilized setting. He's also rather trusting of unfamiliar people like Sophie too easily, which is especially insulting when we come to learn who she is and her reasons for tagging along with Wataru are (the latter also not making much sense).
Pretty much, the background to Wataru's character and the persistence of the mech going after our male lead were what saved this baby from tempting me to give it a lower rating. Beyond that, the movie is enough of a mess in its pacing, storytelling and themes to be worth any praise that others would give it.
PierceAllAlone
First and foremost I'll list the positive aspects before ripping this movie to shreds. I honestly love the cheesy 80s character designs in this and the animation was pretty alright. It looks interesting and will lure you in with the promise of a good plot and a meaningful story. Then it unveils itself as the over inflated pretentious bullshit it is. This anime wants to be deep so so bad and it shows, but really it's just flowery story telling that doesn't go much further than the surface. Anyway, if the main character had to relearn literally everything who tf taught him how to havesex 👀
stenchlord
To be fair I saw this a really really really long time ago and only added it since recently a friend returned my VHS copy of the movie. From what I remember I enjoyed it quite a bit but back then I hadn't watched much anime and compared to today's standards I'd assume it is pretty low. Taking into consideration when it was made it's a decent little flick. Story is rather weak, animation isn't bad sound I can't really remember but I gave it a 6 since if it was bad I'd probably remember it. Overall I'd say worth a look but nothing to strain yourselfgetting. As I said I just added it to MAL since I have it and wanted it listed.
Shaja
The story is beyond interesting, it follows a apocalypse that isn't cliche made from war,nuclear fall out and etc. This is a more quiet apocalypse where everyone's just become cave men again. It follows one semi intelligent human beings quest to understand what happened to the world and of course survive all the things left behind. There is a fair amount of action and philosophy thrown in to make you think and relate to this world which you can enjoy a fair bit. It touches on the natural evolution of barbarianism and religious worship of primitive people as well. The mystery involved with Sophia isalso alluring threw the entire plot of the movie and leaves you stunned as it develops.
Characters actually get developed quite a bit in the short run time of this movie. It mostly shows the connections between the three main characters but there is some secondary characters that add to the plot quite a bit. The three main characters are all very unique and rather unique. Even wataru who is supposed to be fairly average is made unique in this world cause of his ability to speak and function on basic human levels.
The sound was fairly standard as was the audio involved, not particularly moving score or soundtrack but it felt right with the theme and setting of the world. This is another older animated show with a lot less sharp and defined images but like any classic it more than makes up for it with the underlying feeling and uniqueness of every frame of animation. I honestly feel that the older animation really adds to this particular anime cause if it was made today it most likely take a really dark and unnecessary tone to it, this movie isn't as intense as most post apocalypse movies are.
I honestly just have to say i found this movie enjoyable, i love watching wateru explore this world and i enjoyed seeing primal mans natural evolution in a modern world left for them to play in. The ending shocked me quite a bit and left me thinking just a bit about some of the subject matter in the film. The plot holds together well and doesn't drag on very much, keeps pretty fresh and has enough excitement to keep me happy for a good 90 minutes.
I recommend this movie, if you got the time and think the concept is interesting it most likely will not disappoint you.
RisingSan
This film has an interesting concept, which it also materializes quite well. With animation and sound still clearly in the 80s style, the film presents a non-linear sci-fi theme, but does it in a rather earthly, non "over the top" fashion. It does not put the emphasis one might expect on its sci-fi aspects, but rather it stays closer to the realistic portrayal of mankind and humanity. Indeed the main character is a rather mundane one, which fits the above premise. It is well executed, throughout three distinct subplots along which the story develops, as the main character travels through the US. Some details about thecharacters and their past are revealed.
But more than the plot details themselves, there is a pending question: what does really define us as species? Indirectly, it seems this is what the film really is concerned about.
All in all, the film manages to always keep the interest with new subplots, new scenes, new background, new insights, some food for thought, several action scenes, and a major surprise in the end.
It does particularly well in never letting the viewer get bored, and this is one of the reasons why I recommend this film to either sci-fi fans, casual anime viewers, or basically any other profile. A film that will suit most tastes, not hyper-ultra-awesome but rather enjoyable.
TheCompletionist
We are going back to an old school U.S. Manga Corps release. **Minor Spoilers** A Wind Named Amnesia is a post apocalyptic film that takes place in the United States where an unforeseen event causes all of humanity to lose their memory and literally lose any and all of their abilities that they have learned through their evolutionary process. Humanity is literally reduced to a primeval Neanderthal state in which the basic need to survive is the only thing that is keeping any human being alive even though humanity has been reduced to wild beasts struggling to survive in a world that has no rules or morality. Thestory focuses on a young man that even though he was a victim of this cataclysmic event he was lucky enough to meet a person that was not affected by this event. This person spent a considerable amount of time putting humanity back into this person. Teaching him how to speak, how to learn, and how to try to survive this post apocalyptic world. He encourages him to travel to as many places a possible in order to learn how to survive this post apocalytpic world and try to put some humanity back in a savage human population. In the very beginning he meets a young woman that has not lost her memory as well and this film focuses on their adventures as they travel across the united states in order to get this woman to New York City from the West Coast.
The strongest aspect of this anime is its plot. This is an interesting concept to base a post apocalyptic world on. It actually asks some really tough questions throughout this anime film about humanity and its relevance. Are we a species that is deemed necessary in order to ensure our planet's survival or are we simply a nuisance that is a detriment to our planet's survival. At the end of the day as human beings we are an animal at the very core, and if you take morality and rules away from us than we can simply act as savage and wild as any other animal in the animal kingdom.
The thing is the first half of this anime starts off really strong giving some really excellent back story to the main character's origins when the catastrophe first happens and one of the first interactions that the main character and the young woman have with other human beings that have lost their memory really builds upon the concept of human beings catering to their basic instinct. Unfortunately by the second half of the anime film the story starts to lose steam because it isn't really focusing on helping the people they meet, but then its more focused on escaping a robot that is hunting them down throughout the entire film.
I understand why they wanted to go that route because they wanted to add a little more action into this anime but it wasn't really needed and I think it literally took away from some of the strongest points this anime film had to offer. During the time that this catastrophe happened human beings had created robots known as guardians that would protect them if bad things happened. However as society lost their memory and every human being became a savage beast, the robots deemed all human beings as evil because they were doing evil things due to their basic survival instinct and these robots started killing any humans that caused any amount of civil unrest. This robot literally waged war against the main character of this anime tracking him from one side of the country to the other because he was interrupting the robot's mission.
Ultimately it is explained why the catastrophe happened in the first place, and you can kind of understand the message that this anime wants to portray but I was really hoping they would of done more with the world building. The artwork that was used to show a post apocalyptic america was really beautiful and the music had a very ambient feel to it but it picked up when certain action scenes deemed it necessary. Although the voice cast was incredibly small with this film, they all did a very good job with their individual roles. I didn't find any of the characters annoying or useless.
They found a way to bring the story full circle by the end of the film but it felt like a really cheap way of getting everything to fall into place. It gets a little on the silly side by the very end. The ending is very open ended and can be left to interpretation with no real conclusion but more than anything it shows the main character's resolve to try to bring a little bit of humanity back into a savage world.
To be honest, I think a story like this was better suited to a 13 episode or 26 episode series instead of it being condensed into a 90 minute film. It would of been really interesting to see the main character go to different cities and areas to see the type of environment he had to endure in. The older anime artwork may be off-putting to some but I really got my enjoyment out of it. The action scenes are solid but not really needed and overall it was very interesting to see these people travelling to different parts of america despite knowing what they may find will be bleak. This anime has its very depressing moments, and some of the scenes can be a little hard to watch because there are some scenes that get a little violent especially when it comes to the strong dominating over the weak, human sacrifice, savage people fighting over food in order to satisfy their hunger in order to survive and knowing that so many people died out of neglect because they lost the ability to take care of themselves regardless if its a child, adult, or senior citizen.
If you like your anime a little on the older side and you want to watch something a little obscure, then by all means give it a try.
7/10 (I recommend it.)
versace_miyazaki
SPOILERS AHEAD: Everything was going good in the movie until they didn't expand on what should've been Wataru's contempt for the ones responsible for the amnesia. Not only is there not enough mixed feelings from his character, he goes on to have an unnecessary sex scene with said person of the responsible party. Absolute bogus. And then at the end, Sophia the alien extends a handshake out to him before she leaves. He apparently rejects it. (It might not have been a handshake but an invitation for Wataru to join the aliens) Like, dude, you just sucked on some alien nipple and now you're showing some kind ofmixed emotions about her? What a joke. If the aliens were testing mankind to see whether or not Wataru would indulge himself and resort to carnality, then he miserably failed. Wataru should be trying to prove why mankind doesn't deserve to have a carnal life and deserves their knowledge and memories back. Wataru should be arguing that what the aliens did was immoral and lacked empathy - that the lives of others shouldn't be tampered and destroyed in some kind of social experiment with amnesia. But instead, he has sex with an alien in a church. LOL
Sidewinder51
Rate a 5 English Dubbed Story Man kind in my opinion has evolved in wide spread areas from how to make it easier to get around to curing illnesses. Although, one of the many different areas we have improved on is ourselves. Creating things around us to simplify matters does just that and no more. But with simplifications we lose a bit of ourselves. To better understand consider the present vs the past. If you are like me and you believe in evolution to some extend one could say we were the animals that some of us shoot and hang as trophies. Whether it be a deer ora fox. Although sad as that may be that is only a fraction of us as a society. To some extend we all started that way as travelers either gathering or hunting. I bet those who are reading this review in general couldn't do what your ancestors did; by telling me what plants are okay to eat or how to properly hunt and live off the land. Which begs the question this anime presents is there more harm to knowing or not?
With knowing one becomes aware of all harm all around us. By not knowing one is in a state of ignorance bliss. If you are one to be know as a habitable Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. follower. You can see the harm that knowing has. Such in the case of germs and them being everywhere. Some might say what about the harm to those under ignorance bliss? Fair, but by not knowing they live in constant fear. Eat the wrong thing equals death. Drink the wrong thing equals death. Say the wrong thing equals death. Death and more death. The only death that would likely not occur for that group would be of old age.
Art
works for story
sound
no complaints
Enjoyment
If you are looking for action you might find this mild in taste. If you are more knowledge based than a one night stander, due to your higher determination you should find this anime informative. I am not saying this anime doesn't have its moments. There are a couple visuals that will cause some emotional response. Although, if your looking for a movie that Tom Cruise might star in don't look here.
lethargilistic
Very much a road trip movie, and I'm tempted to say that it feels like it should have been a road trip miniseries instead. However, it was already rather slow and I'm not sure it would have had enough meat on its bones to sustain anything longer than this. The premise is cool. I liked the vignettes that explore a primitive culture ruled by manipulated superstition and an advance culture ruled by manipulated design. The only big problem that drives through the movie is that Wataru and Sophia themselves are not that compelling as protagonists. They don't really learn anything. They just go place toplace. And since the fate of humanity essentially rests on them by the end, it would have been nice to see them change a bit. That's especially the case for Sophia, who is clearly involved with the amnesia wave, and who never really has any "aha!" moment where her perception of humanity changes for a good reason. She just likes Wataru as a person by the end, which is the most by-the-numbers way they could have handled that.
Mar33p
It now being 2018 and seeing this anime for the first time, it gives me nostalgia to see the anime in the older form and all its glory. The story concept is good for the time it was created. The sound affects are old as expected, but I don't mind at all considering how old this movie is. The story development is alright and of course the main character is a total hottie. I'm happy I got to cross this off of my anime list, it was totally worth the watch. I'd define this anime as Mecha and Action. If I had the choice, I'dpossibly watch this again, though there isn't much more too it if you get to watch it a second time. The animation isn't up to par as it is now so that would get in the way of me watching it again. Either way, it was a good anime overall.
Elmi_Luchent
This movie had so much potential. The premise behind it was so simple, yet captivating. A wind swept over all of Earth, wiping the memories of everyone there, leaving behind post-apocalyptic ruins and humanity's intelligence levels reduced to that of a pillbug. How and why did this happen? (Beware there will be spoilers) This overarching concept is what initially captivated me from the first few minutes of the film, thinking that the rest of the movie would build upon that concept and provide a broader meaning and more depth. (Oh how wrong I was.) The world that Wataru is traversing is both modern and primitive atthe same time, which makes for a very interesting dynamic. We can see fragments and pockets of people who have created their own, unique primitive societies, like how Sue and Little John have their own tribe. Similarly, the film creates a barren, stark mood that clearly brings out the utter destruction and desolate landscape of a country that is now a wasteland.
The filmmakers clearly put a lot into envisioning what Earth would be like after such a catastrophe took place. The problem is, we see very few examples of this, despite Sue and Little John's community and Eternal Town, which is controlled by a super computer. Over the course of the film, Wataru and Sophia travel across the entire United States by car, apparently observing places as they go by. It would have been great to see what other communities and primitive societies had been developed in addition to the aforementioned examples. The time skips where they are driving across the country don't really provide any meaning-yes, Guardian is chasing them and all, but do they really need to drive all the way across the country, ending in New York (I think that's where they ended up but I'm not sure) where Wataru finally puts and end to Guardian? And why is this Guardian targeting Wataru in particular?
Where A Wind Named Amnesia, despite its simple yet complex themes, falls short of potential masterpiece is, most glaringly, its length. This movie and all its characters could have been much more developed had they been given the time to experience more action not as a movie, but as a full anime series or manga. There could have been so many more interesting conversations that Wataru and Sophia could have had in the car while they were driving. As a "road-trip" anime, there were so many great opportunities for us as viewers to get to know Wataru and Sophia better (especially Sophia) and explore the sense of freedom and adventure that was present in the movie. We don't really see all that much into Sophia's thoughts, so more screen time could definitely have made Sophia's ultimate decision seem more believable.
Overall, the film raised a thought-provoking question and idea when it provided a hypothetical look at would Earth would be like when everything innate and learned by humans was completely forgotten. But, when all was said and done, it failed to provide a conclusive ending. The ending is very vague, muddled, and forced. So they destroyed Guardian. But the problem doesn't end there, as Earth is still in ruins and Wataru is the only being with his memories. But the filmmakers seemed to think so. (Either that or they were just on a budget and had to end the thing early.) We as viewers get left with a very cloudy idea of what will happen to humanity in the future.
Sophia said that she had seen enough and was going to return to her alien race and tell them that she thought humans deserved their memory back. But whether or not humanity gets their memories back never gets answered. And what will even happen once people remember everything and they see Earth in ruins? The lack of definite resolution gave me a feeling that this movie was very unfinished, and it could have had so much more to say and comment on.
And that sex scene did absolutely nothing to help the plot, storyline, character development, or contribute to the broader message of the movie in any way. It gave off the impression of trying to be profound without having anything to say. While Wataru and Sophia traveled along the road and spent much time together, much of that was in time skips showing how far they had traveled on a map across the country. There is no feeling of any chemistry or romantic connection between Wataru and Sophia. I'm not against their romance in any way, it just wasn't believable enough and didn't contribute to the plot at all. The scene was fine and all, but it wasn't necessary in the broader scheme.
This film was promising, but ultimately a major let down for something that had so much potential to be a nineties' classic. I won't tell you to not watch it, as I think it does raises some complex and thought-provoking premises for further discussion, but as a whole, the movie failed to deliver in multiple facets.
paullen
Very cool concept, underdelivered. This is an excellent nostalgic anime with great animation and a promising story. The problem is that it kind of just asks questions without really answering them properly also the 3 "arcs" in the movie seem very random and unconnected and there isn't enough time to flesh them out making me think this should instead have been a short series or longer movie. The ending is anticlimactic and leaves me wanting more (not in a good way). All in all, I feel mixed about this anime. I'm happy that I watched it, some parts are really good and some are not. I would recommendwatching it if you're into 80s animation.
SharpAsShamsher
Plot/Story: 7/10 "A Wind Named Amnesia" captivates viewers with its intriguing plot. The concept of a mysterious wind erasing humanity's memories, reducing them to a primal state, is reminiscent of other successful films like Bird Box, A Quiet Place, and The Happening. However, the second half of the film introduces more context that derails the plot somewhat and leads to confusion regarding certain events. Animation/Design: 7/10 The animation in this movie is tight, edgy, and evokes a classic feel. Considering its release in 1983, it may have rough edges at times. There are moments when the visuals become messy, especially in the final scenes. Despite this, the overallexperience of the film makes up for any minor flaws.
Characters: 5/10
While the characters in the film are not its strongest aspect, they serve their purpose in supporting the story. Wataru and Sophia, the main characters, are likable and the audience spends significant time with them. However, as the plot takes unexpected turns in the second half, it may impact the viewers' attachment to these characters, possibly leaving them confused.
Audio/Soundtrack: 5/10
The audio and soundtrack are satisfactory without standing out. It doesn't have notable tracks, but it serves its purpose adequately. The dub performance is good, and viewers can enjoy the film in either dub or sub.
Honorable Mentions:
The film takes place in the USA.
It showcases classic animation.
Pays homage to various science fiction films.
The dub features commendable voice acting.
Review Conclusion:
I recommend giving "A Wind Named Amnesia" a watch. It offers entertainment and invites viewers to explore a fantasy that could potentially affect our world. Despite its flaws, the film provides an engaging experience.
