'Children Of The Sea' Review: Trippy symbolism and a psychedelic finale makes the anime worth a watch
Somewhere, we're all Ruka--- the 14 year-old protagonist of the anime 'Children Of The Sea', or perhaps, we've all been her at some point in our lives. Ruka is a lonely teenager, whose strongest connection is with the sea. Her parents are always busy with their own woes or work and she doesn't have friends. At the outset, it seems like a common story, one that we've all heard before. And that's where we're wrong. It's the world of the sea, that holds a strange sense of fascination for Ruka. There's the thrill of mystery and suspense mixed with this secret joy. Yet, the story isn't as straightforward as it sounds and takes a couple of viewings to comprehend the dense symbolism and imagery. So watch at your own risk, if you have the patience for it.
Based on Daisuke Igarashi's award-winning manga, Ayumu Watanabe's film follows the life of the adolescent Ruka, who is alienated by her peers. In the first few scenes it's clear that Ruka doesn't take insults lying down, and hits back during a game in school, almost landing her in detention. She doesn't understand the human beings around her and neither can they understand her. And so, she finds it odd when she clicks with Umi and Sora, two boys from the sea, who have been raised by dugongs. They do not understand life on land, and this forms the basis of a very rich and unusual friendship. From then on, she's taken on a journey into the sea and her perspective slowly changes. The ocean is wild and perhaps we can never fathom the height of the power, and neither are we expected to. But there's one thing we can do----respect it.
The scenes are so gorgeously animated and the music is so soothing, that it draws the viewer in, for this psychedelic trip. In the first half of the film, the magic engulfs you. The characters nuances are pronounced and the color palette is rich. You feel what Ruka can. However, things change by the second half as some unsightly truths are revealed about the boys and their lifespan. Unfortunately, the plot goes rather haywire after that and you literally are at sea.
Dwelling on the stunning animation can only take you so far by the end of the film.The visuals stumble as well, and become rather unsteady along with the plot. The film's attempts at deep symbolism become soggy, and that's a downright shame. The idea behind of the premise of the film is to capture the infinite expanse of space and water, but like said before, it takes a couple of viewings before we can actually process that. It's a trippy film that does mess with your head at points and the music adds to it.
But do give it a watch. It's out on VOD.