Customer Reviews

Spring & Chaos

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Actually, I bought this anime completely unaware that I was buying it. I bought a different DVD entitled "Toology." It is an unauthorized biography of the (extremely musical) heavy metal band Tool. When I got home and put the disk in my player, I was quite suprised to find that I was suddenly looking at the menu for an extremely obscure anime named "Spring & Chaos." After the shock wore off, I decided I'd take it back, but I was attracted by the music and strange images. I decided I'd take it back the next morning, but in the meantime I'd make use of my purchase. First (and I recommend doing this), I watched the trailer and the included interviews and biography of Kenji Miyazawa. Those gave me a pretty good idea about what I should expect. Then I watched the movie itself. I was completely blown away. To address the encoding problems, I'll say this: it's not that big of a deal. Sure, the visuals get a little gummed up, and at times I found myself willing the subtitles to appear on time, but those little imperfections are VERY easy to overlook when you compare then to the film itself. I expect it will take a few more spins to really get the whole experience, but from watching it once, I was thuroughly impressed. The images are dazzling, the characters are full and very lifelike, dispite the fact that they're kitty-cats, and the screenplay was just EXCELENTLY written, as are most of the "good" animes. I recommend this DVD to anyone who enjoys a good film -- as oppose to a movie or flick. If you like to have to think about your films, this is definately a gold mine for you. The poetry ain't half bad, either.

The unwritten rule in animation is that you should only animate what can't be put to film with actors. On the surface, Spring and Chaos seems to defy that rule, presenting the biographical story of Japan's most celebrated poet, Kenji Miyazawa. However, to take us out of the harsh reality of Miyazawa's life, director Shoji Kawamori uses animation to bring us into his soul. Trees sparkle and shudder when inspiration strikes. Mountains glisten by night. The dead swim through wintry fields, hoping to take Miyazawa back down with them. It's a film filled with metaphoric beauty - definitely one of the most unique animated films I've ever seen. Highly recommended!

I bought Spring and Chaos on a whim, enticed by the promise of experimental animation and some insight into the Japanese culture. Before I watched the movie, I read the reviews that there were "awful" encoding problems. So I started the movie, and expected the worst. If there were problems (oustide of the 2 second pixelation) then I didn't see them. After the first minute I was hooked, and watched with enjoyment til the end.

It is a bit short, and while being short and recalled, the pixel problem shouldn't have been. Some parts are confusing in a metaphor sense (the train hallucination) but they're fairly easy to get.

A fantastic biographic look at a foreign poet. If you are in any way interested in Japanese culture, foreign authors, or a well made story, buy this movie.

This is a beautiful anime about one of Japan's greatest poets. The animation is spectacular, and I really don't think this could've been done better. The only problem with this DVD is the fact that the subtitles aren't in sync with the Japanese dialogue. But the movie itself and all of the other extras make up for the subtitling issue.

Spring and Chaos (Shoji Kawamori, 1996)

Just as the first definitive edition of Kenji Miyazawa's poetry appears in the United States (from University of California Press), Spring and Chaos hits the bargain bins at movie stores and Targets all across the nation. This could actually be a good thing; Miyazawa is a name pretty much unknown to anyone outside the poetry fanatic, and who better than Shoji Kawamori, the mind behind the mega-popular Macross, to bring his message to the masses?

This short, impressionist Miyazawa biopic (with all the characters anthropomorphized as cats, in case you're into that sort of thing) can in no way be said to be unbiased, complete, or anything other than Shoji Kawamori's vision. We get small pieces of Miyazawa (voice of Shiro Sano, recently of Godzilla 2000)'s life, all framed by his time as a schoolteacher, a position he resigns in order to go to the fields and be a farmer (whether this is something he finds inspirational, or whether it's because he empathizes more with the poverty-stricken farmers of his province--or both--is left to debate). There are frequent flashbacks to earlier times in his life, and hallucinatory sequences meant to illustrate the creative process, but the main story centers on Miyazawa's relationship with one of his students/former students, Tekichi (voice of Jonathan Funk in the English dubbing; the Japanese voice actor is uncredited on my DVD), a petty criminal whom Miyazawa attempts to redeem.

Obviously, not the comprehensive work (or illusion of same) we've come to expect from the biopic, so Spring and Chaos is perhaps better considered as simply an interesting experiment in animation; from this angle, I believe it succeeds quite nicely. Kawamori lives up to his lofty reputation, never letting the viewer get comfortable within the subject matter; he's always going to throw some sort of visual curve ball your way (just as Miyazawa is constantly doing to his students; it might be productive for the American contemplating picking this up to think of it as Goodbye, Mr. Chips with talking cats set in the dust bowl during the Depression) to keep you interested. Still, I do wish there had been a stronger link to Miyazawa's life. ***

I had a while back posted a reveiw that told people to stay away from this DVD due to problems associated with awful pixelation and inconsistent subtitles. They have remastered the DVD and the version you are likely to find in stores should work/look fine. For more information regarding this version, consult this

don't let other reviews scare u away. this is a brilliant anime. i have the dvd and on my own copy there is one two second part where a section of the screen pixelizes, but it is only in that area. that alone didn't distract me from enjoying this wonderful piece. this is a must own for anime lovers looking for something different with a lot of heart. i highly recommend this to everyone.

I'm like 14 minutes into this visual masterpiece when the video pixelizes! I'm Very disappointed because this movie seems awsome and has (or is supposed to have) incredible visuals! I would have shied away from this if I had known of the horrible treatment this was given by Tokyopop. Be warned! Only get this if you are a huge fan and can put up with it. I'm keeping mine, but I am quite upset.

One take on the bizarre worlds dreamed up by Japan's beloved folklore author, Miazawa Kenji, brought to life with stunning traditional and computer animation techniques. Not your traditional Japanese anime fare. Highly recommended. A chance to peer into the consciousness of a country's culture that the Westerner rarely experiences.

I agree with the other reviewers about the rich imagination and well written script - something rarely seen in anime. What bothered me with this movie was the excessive use of computer graphics. The CG were completely out of place and unnatural, which almost completely ruined this movie for me. The hand-drawn parts are fine, though. This movie is supposed to be an animated movie, and it doesn't deliver the animation part in a believable way - hence the three stars. You have been warned.