You NEED To Watch This Anime Movie! - Look Back Movie Review

This new anime from the creator of Chainsaw Man might just be the most heartfelt movie I've watched all year, and you really, really need to watch this thing. Look Back follows Fujino on their journey of becoming a manga creator, in what is essentially a semi-autobiographical story of Fujimoto, the creator of Chainsaw Man. Fujino creates manga for the school newspaper, but one day learns of an even more talented artist than herself. So she dedicates an incredible amount of time to improving her craft, as she refuses to get outshined. However, one day the two meet in what might just go down as one of my favorite anime scenes of the year. And without getting into spoilers here, their fates are forever changed in some truly heartfelt and unexpected ways. Not only does the movie capture the struggles and sacrifices of what it's like to be creative and the internalized pressure that comes alongside with it, but also the success and the beautiful relationships that are built once we open ourselves up to them. The story that this anime dives into is actually an incredibly deep one. As the movie goes along, we not only get to see Fujino grow as an artist, but as a person as well. As the story does an excellent job at exploring what it would be like to be regarded by your Only to be shot down immediately when someone else comes along who is better than you at the thing that you love. This might just be one of the most relatable parts of the movie, as this feels like a moment that is universal in everyone's lives at some point. And I like how the movie explored just how this can affect creatives in both a positive and a negative way. As Fujino is able to turn around that energy into something that is positive, but there is always some negative side effects that come along with that. And the movie shows rather than tells the audience in such artistic ways through some But one of my favorite themes explored here is just how we're able to handle grief and find ways to keep on going in the face of tragic events. Some of which are actually based on some true events that happened in the anime industry not too long ago. As this story in many ways reflects the events that happened in 2019 at Kyoto Animation that unfortunately took the lives of many people. The movie also takes place in Nikaho where the author Fujimoto grew up as there are many scenes that directly depict the rural setting and the buildings that he grew up around. But one of the things that I'm most impressed by is just how perfect of an adaptation this movie is. The animation here so elegantly adapts the manga as it balances that perfect line of mirroring the source material, while also finding spots to enhance it through the medium of animation. It really does feel like the manga is put into motion in such a careful and respectful way that anyone can appreciate. There's a particular scene with a character walking in the rain that was just so full of life and done in a way that only animation really can. It's also able to capture the essence of these characters as their awkward nature is at the forefront of bringing these characters to life. The term character acting has been thrown around a lot in the anime sphere lately, and yet there may be no better representation of that phrase than in this movie right here. Every emotion, thought, and carefully planned movement is animated in a way that I actually felt what our characters on screen were feeling. This movie is so impactful that it moved me in ways that other movies or other forms of animation really haven't so far this year, and is the perfect display of the power that animation has when it brings such personal stories to life. The voice acting performances also add to this movie in some very impactful ways. As first time voice actor Yumi Kawai is able to take an already emotionally charged script to another level, yet still have such a grounded performance. And at the end of all of this, I don't really have any complaints for this movie, other than the fact that I just wish we got more of it. But what we did get was so perfectly wrapped up that I feel like this will go down as a classic and one of the best anime of the year. Which is why I'm going to give Look Back a 9 out of 10. It was truly incredible. If you get a chance to watch this anime, I would definitely recommend it, as I wouldn't be surprised to see it at the top of many people's lists by the end of the year. So if you enjoyed this video and want to see more anime reviews, don't forget to subscribe, and I'll see you next time.