Secret Santa: Escaflowne (film)

“I dreamt that I too was twenty-six, which was a long time ago, and that I took train to a place called my home, whose whereabouts I see not in my waking hours, and when I alighted at the station a dear lost love was waiting for me, and we went away together.” – from The Little White Bird

Escaflowne: The Movie is an alternative telling of The Vision of Escaflowne anime, in theatrical format. I had heard there were large differences, and perhaps some may wish to compare and contrast the work to it’s original, but I feel it was not intended for comparison. Ten minutes into this 90-minute feature, the story assumes a particularly raw focus on situation and characters. Van is not portrayed in heroic light from the beginning. Instead he is a violent, naive aggressor, and though skilled, it is difficult to place him as a leader or hero. Yet the opening sequence is captivating due to his wild nature.

Hitomi is quite cynical about life, and we immediately learn of her negative and lightly suicidal reflections on the world. Her introductory scene is far from action-packed, but the stylistic and psychological montage woven with her inner dialog feels akin to a work by Satoshi Kon. This is the most distinct sequence in the film as it explores the character through a strongly visual technique, but it sadly has no compliment anywhere else in the story. During this scene, I had a realization on the use of background music. A heavenly song calls Hitomi to the world in the sky, but the background music became difficult to ignore as the choir shifted into a furious melody. At this point, Hitomi was knee-deep in water and being teleported to Gaea, but I fear the musical intensity may have been excessively dramatic and inconsistent with the narrative.

Counter to “too much” music, there were also noticeable deficits, such as the scene where Hitomi wakes to find Millerna in her room. The room was filled with near aural emptiness aside from the dialog, and it seemed a prime opportunity to highlight sentiment about Hitomi’s role as the Wing Goddess, yet we are left with lonesome words. Needless to say, similar inconsistencies in the atmosphere provided weak structure at key points throughout the story. I believe the most faulty of these occurs just after Hitomi’s kidnapper was tracked down by Van, and a skirmish with Dilandau follows.

The heightened action of the hand-to-hand combat with Dilandau was thrilling, especially Van’s initial attack, yet the energy driving a crucial tension, the chemistry between Van and Hitomi, completely vanished as winged Van was able to save Hitomi from falling into oblivion. They had a “moment,” but the abrupt shift in characterization is terribly unconvincing; Hitomi and Van feel misplaced.

“Sorrow never ceases until death sweeps it away.”

We realize Hitomi’s outlook has changed in the rainy scene where she clutches Van’s injured body. A poetic presence graces the air in the dialog between her and Jajuka, her self-destructive disposition has vanished, and suddenly she seems much more positive about living and the need to stay beside Van. Likewise, when Van recovers in the Adom village, we acknowledge he possesses a renewed outlook about his place in the world. Even Merle notices how his eyes have grown more “gentle,” but what exactly happened? The remainder of the story runs on this “kindred” bond between Van and Hitomi, though it is arguable whether or not continued tension would have changed the watery conclusion of the primary conflict between Van and his rebellious brother, Dune.

My assessment of the story was primarily focused on the authenticity of sentimental values in which Escaflowne: The Movie falls short of grandeur, yet some aspects do warrant merit. The production values are above average, even a decade later. And the background art and character detailing are both pleasing. Van is obviously well-decorated, but other characters, such as Millerna and the oracle, are visually stimulating due to both sexy design and ornamental attire. The fantasy realm does feel fairly standard, but there is no lack of appealing aesthetics.

Additionally, the action sequences and animation are worthy of mention. The viewer is given numerous large explosions, drifting clouds and puffs of dust, sweeping scenery in the distance, and brutal man-on-man fighting [1]. Had I focused more on the action and avoided searching for a soulful plot, I would have found more enjoyment in the overall experience. But it’s not likely that technique would work for each viewer. Perhaps, this film is not able to balance solid action with well-rounded drama or romance, but as a fantasy-themed animated action-film, it did well to entertain.

75/100

[1] – The Guymelef battle was underwhelming, coinciding with the lack of exposition surrounding the myth of Escaflowne, but the screentime was negligible.