On a hot summer day, Kenji Koizo is accosted by the
cutest girl in his class, Natsuki, and tricked into being her boyfriend for a
weekend. The Jinnouchi Family has
gathered to celebrate the 90th birthday of their oldest matriarch,
Natsuki’s Great Grandmother Sakae. But
trying to impress this large and highly energetic family is about to become the
least of Kenji’s worries. When a
mysterious computer virus invades OZ, the largest online social community hub
on the planet, all hell breaks loose throughout Japan and soon, the race is on
to prevent Armageddon. Kenji may not
feel like he fits in anywhere, especially amongst the Jinnouchi’s. But if the world is to have a chance at tomorrow,
the blood of a math nerd will have to blend together with this family of old
warriors to create the perfect defense the world has ever known.
It’s kind of funny that I knew next to nothing about
Summer Wars outside of the title before I first saw it. Who would’ve thought that I would end up
watching what I consider now to be my all time favorite Anime film? Yes, I’ll say and defend it, Summer Wars is
an amazing and near perfect Anime fun fest.
It’s all parts so many genres: action, science fiction, drama, romantic
comedy, disaster and family life all rolled into one feature and balanced very
well in that regard. I don’t know where
to begin with this review to be honest.
Nor do I really know how to write it without sounding like a broken
record. But I’ll try my best.
The world of Summer Wars, both in OZ and the Jinnouchi
mansion, is grand and welcoming…well not so much in the case of OZ once it
comes under attack but still. OZ is
essentially what would happen if Facebook, Amazon, World of Warcraft, Myspace,
Twitter, Tumblr and others had an epic fusion dance and merged into one
entity. This is a nice prediction of the
social network of the future, where everything beyond wall posts and pokes are
done via internet connections. Shopping,
Gaming, Stocks, Event Planning, it’s all done through OZ. It’s even mentioned that even big businesses
and government agencies also use OZ because of its advanced protection
systems. In other words, this is a whole
new world and it’s summed up and explored quite well in the movies opening
prologue. The Jinnouchi mansion may not
be as big a planet as OZ but the scope and size make it a wonder to travel
through. Like the family itself, there’s
lots of history to be seen, from the architecture to the various suits of
samurai armor on display. It would make
one helluva nice summer home.
The cast is excellent, a rarity for such a large
one. The Jinnouchi clan is filled with
people so caring and fun loving it’s impossible to find one you wouldn’t
like. At first you feel like Kenji, a
bit overwhelmed by what would look like family chaos but gradually, you warm to
them and feel like you could get along just fine. They may not always get along
but when it all comes down to the wire, this family stands together as one
indomitable force. As numerous as they
are, you never forget for a second that this is a family, always has been
before this movie and always will be well afterward. The stand out of this cast is Grandmommy
Sakae herself. The Great Grandmother of
Natsuki is the right blend of wisdom, heart, humor and command, she is a
natural leader whose words can get anyone fired up to do anything. Her scenes with outsider Kenji are the best,
the kind old woman accepting Kenji even after she discovers Natsuki’s playful
ruse. If such a woman existed in real
life it would be an honor to meet her as she does feel in many ways the core at
the heart of this amazing family.
When it comes to action, Summer Wars soars. Most of it could be seen as Matrix inspired
but it’s also got a great deal of Superhero level fighting going on as
well. Like Dragon Ball Z, they can
escalate quickly and leave a lot of collateral damage. But probably the best showdown of the film
comes from not a fist fight but a card game.
Not since Casino Royale have I seen a card game played with this much
intensity as Natsuki risks her family’s avatars to stop the dreaded AI Love
Machine. It also gives way to one of the
most cheer worthy and tear producing climaxes I’ve ever seen. Seriously every time it reaches a particular
moment that I will not spoil and the music kicks in, I cant help but tear up
with joy.
And honestly, I feel that way about Summer Wars as a
whole. It’s a film that embraces you
like a long lost relative and welcomes you to join in the fun, adventure, some
sorrow but overall uplifting feel good get together time. There’s something for everyone to be found in
Summer Wars: comedy, action, romance, drama, science fiction, amazing
characters, well animated sequences, a stellar score…it’s a lot and I could go
on and on. But I think I should stop
wasting time and just say it now: Summer Wars is the greatest Anime film I have
ever seen and a film I think everyone can get behind. Once you cross the threshold of the Jinnouchi
Mansion or enter the world of OZ…you never want to leave.
10/10
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