Anime Addiction: Anthem of the Heart


Anthem of the Heart is written by Mari Odawa, directed by Tatsuyuki Nagai and produced by A-1 Pictures, is part high school drama and part musical which tells the story of a girl whose voice is taken away because of a curse and follows her as she rediscovers it through music.

While the premise of the movie seemed a bit on the eccentric side, the characters, the story, the themes and the artwork completely won me over. The main theme of the story is words. The story deals with words both said and unsaid and how it affects both the person who says them and the person whom it is said to.

The main character is a girl named Naruse and we follow her journey from being a girl who barely speaks to a girl who faces her fears and overcomes them. The character arc in itself is very beautiful and brilliantly handled. The movie plays a lot with metaphors and, although there seems to be a villain in the story, there isn’t one character that seems too fantastical.

The animation is gorgeous to look at the; and it has this aura of realism which makes sure that they manage to effectively pull at the heart strings. Just as it is expected from a movie set in high school there are romantic parts to the movie, but the way they are handled is nothing short of surprising and fresh.

This is one of the few movies which lets us know that we have only seen a small section of the characters life, and it makes them seem like they have both a past and a future, just one that we may not see. While it does seem to have a few fantastical elements, a lot of the themes and the stories are set firmly in reality and finally when the illusion is broken and the tension mounts to the climax, we see that the themes and the stories explored are done perfect justice.

Finally when the resolution occurs, you feel this sense of satisfaction that the movie has delivered on its promise and given us a story which will stay with us for a long time to come.

The movie is also part musical and the songs are both nostalgic and beautiful, suiting the feel and theme of the movie. Intermixed with both a peaceful serenity and a complex crescendo, the soundtrack has a life of its own, perfectly complementing the story in every scene.

While this movie is not as emotional as Anohana, the studio’s previous outing, you cannot help but feel for the characters seeing the situations that they experience. You cant hely but want to know them in real life, and somehow the connection you feel with them transcends all logic and rationality.

Yes the story is not perfect, yes certain plot choices came too suddenly, but in the end it was all worth it. I got to see this beautiful story, animated to near perfection on screen, brought t life by one of the most amazing voice casts I have had the privilege of hearing.

I give Anthem of the Heart a 8 out of 10

Anthem of the Heart is another huge win for A-1 Pictures and I can’t wait to see what’s next. Later folks;

Peace!!!


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