Your Lie in April
Oct. 10th, 2018 10:04 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
fredrikegermanLooking for Yuri Anime on NetFlix before a recent LARP failed to turn anything up. After an abortive viewing of the made-for-Netflix Anime about a high-stakes gambling high school (Lots of apparent lesbian sex in the credits, approximately 0 emotional depth) desireearmfeldt and I instead started watching Your Lie In April. This may be the best series Anime I've seen to date for emotional depth. Our hero Kousei is in the last year of middle school and used to win piano competitions before his mother died. But his playing lacked emotional depth, and he was known as the human metronome. Since then he hasn't been able to play. Kaori, a girl at school, asks to double date with his best friend on the soccer team, and turns out to be a competitive violinist. Next thing we know she's got him accompanying her in the contest finals and she's pushing him to return to playing while developing a mature style.
But really this is an anime about loss. Mom (herself a pianist) was abusive in her piano lessons, increasingly so as her illness progressed and Kousei wins more and more. Mom's college piano buddy Hiroko feels guilty having seen this unfold. Meanwhile as the plot unfolds we learn by degrees that Kaori is unwell – in fact, as we learn, terminally ill. As our group of friends looks ahead to high school and high stakes tests and auditions, Kaori is entering the ICU and electing risky surgery in the hopes of being strong enough to pick up her violin.
We are also introduced to the cast of characters who Kousei has influenced over his life, from his guardian angel Tsubaki (the girl next door), to his arch-rivals in piano who look to him as the person to beat, to Nagi, the young girl he works with as a student at Hiroko's behest.
I also loved the cinematographic detail. It's worth noting that the plot-relevant piano playing (and, as far as I can tell, the violin playing as well) is actually accurately rendered. When you see their hands, they're actually playing what you're hearing. Shots of the interior of the piano are done with similar care – the pedal technique and movement of the dampers is evident and accurate. Somebody really loved what they were doing here and cared a lot. Even the introductory scene of Kaori playing a melodica for a couple of kids is correctly rendered.
And there's a lot of subtle detail. The rail line on the way to school places this in a particular urban-Japan setting that feels real. When we see inside Kaori's house there are rails on all the walls – we never see her using them, but it's clear why they are there. And some of the shots are amazingly done – I was struck by a scene of Kousei backstage, slumped against the wall, viewed from behind a fire extinguisher.
Of course the piano pieces give plenty of chance for obligatory showers of cherry blossoms and flashback voice-overs. But even those seem haiku-esque with seasonal references capturing an emotional state.
That said, I'll never grok the appeal of the whole chibi thing. Ah well, can't win them all.
Still fantastic and highly recommended.
desireearmfeldt and I instead started watching Your Lie In April. This may be the best series Anime I've seen to date for emotional depth. Our hero Kousei is in the last year of middle school and used to win piano competitions before his mother died. But his playing lacked emotional depth, and he was known as the human metronome. Since then he hasn't been able to play. Kaori, a girl at school, asks to double date with his best friend on the soccer team, and turns out to be a competitive violinist. Next thing we know she's got him accompanying her in the contest finals and she's pushing him to return to playing while developing a mature style.But really this is an anime about loss. Mom (herself a pianist) was abusive in her piano lessons, increasingly so as her illness progressed and Kousei wins more and more. Mom's college piano buddy Hiroko feels guilty having seen this unfold. Meanwhile as the plot unfolds we learn by degrees that Kaori is unwell – in fact, as we learn, terminally ill. As our group of friends looks ahead to high school and high stakes tests and auditions, Kaori is entering the ICU and electing risky surgery in the hopes of being strong enough to pick up her violin.
We are also introduced to the cast of characters who Kousei has influenced over his life, from his guardian angel Tsubaki (the girl next door), to his arch-rivals in piano who look to him as the person to beat, to Nagi, the young girl he works with as a student at Hiroko's behest.
I also loved the cinematographic detail. It's worth noting that the plot-relevant piano playing (and, as far as I can tell, the violin playing as well) is actually accurately rendered. When you see their hands, they're actually playing what you're hearing. Shots of the interior of the piano are done with similar care – the pedal technique and movement of the dampers is evident and accurate. Somebody really loved what they were doing here and cared a lot. Even the introductory scene of Kaori playing a melodica for a couple of kids is correctly rendered.
And there's a lot of subtle detail. The rail line on the way to school places this in a particular urban-Japan setting that feels real. When we see inside Kaori's house there are rails on all the walls – we never see her using them, but it's clear why they are there. And some of the shots are amazingly done – I was struck by a scene of Kousei backstage, slumped against the wall, viewed from behind a fire extinguisher.
Of course the piano pieces give plenty of chance for obligatory showers of cherry blossoms and flashback voice-overs. But even those seem haiku-esque with seasonal references capturing an emotional state.
That said, I'll never grok the appeal of the whole chibi thing. Ah well, can't win them all.
Still fantastic and highly recommended.
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