Lamu: Un rêve sans fin

It's hard to describe the effect that first seeing this movie had on me the first time I saw it five years ago, but it's something that's stuck with me at the very least.

This was the first bit of UY I ever saw, and I quickly became addicted to the series because of it. The animation is wonderful, the characters are all nifty, and the mysteries that abound in the story are all intriguing. I sometimes find myself just randomly whistling the music from this movie as it's so... so simply wonderful. The film is just beautiful in every chord, like a concerto or a painting. It's art.

This is one of my favorite movies ever. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Rating: 10/10 - Perfect.

I have tried writing much for it, but it is difficult to find a way to properly describe the charm of this film. There is the discordant atmosphere that feels almost unsettling, a surprisingly thoughtful handling of a more difficult material, a fantastic score that gives life to energetic and wonderfully animated sequences, and a powerful ending that acknowledges the fourth wall in a clever, unique way. As to not ruin one's enjoyment of this film, I will give simple guidelines that a viewer may find useful as opposed to an extensive review.

For those who have watched/read and loved Urusei Yatsura, Beautiful Dreamer is a film first and Urusei Yatsura second. While it has very much the same characters and they aren't understood particularly badly, the plot distances itself from the general atmosphere of the series quite a lot. If you enjoyed the more quirky story arcs with time travel and alternate universes, this is a film version of such arcs with improved depth and exploration of the themes.

For the fans of Oshii Mamoru and those who've watched Ghost in the Shell, the fact that they've been directed by the same director really shows. While a very early work in his career, many of the posthumanist themes discussed in his later films are apparent in Beautiful Dreamer. In contrast, it lacks the political tone of his future works, as well as missing the more esoteric and avantgarde style that he would adapt later. If you found his films difficult to watch but was interested in some of the ideas he developed, it's a good film to start with.

For those who are just looking for a good movie to watch, give it a go. While not a film for everyone, it by no means is difficult or esoteric. That could perhaps be the largest difference between this film and others that explore similar themes, and often to more depth; at the end of the day, Beautiful Dreamer is a bit of unserious entertainment that has a powerful spark of creativity. It's a little inexperienced, inconsistent and experimental, and that's maybe why we like it so much.

The TV series was relatively funny and watchable but did not let any great memory. This movie however is playing the dream and let you a long and delightful taste. Simply put, with 15 years in retrospect it appears to me being one of the best anime movie I have seen. The atmosphere of the film is light and joyful, using the characters we all knew from the series, but it adds a layer of complexity and philosophy (movie level...), of deep down narration based on old legends allied with humour that makes it a thoroughly enjoyable experience. This is one of Mamoru Oshii's finest production in a career that counts among the richest and more creative. Definitely to be recommended.

This is widely held to be one of the finest of the Urusei Yatsura movies, although rumor has it that creator Takahashi Rumiko was not overly fond of how it turned out. Along with the slapstick romantic comedy that is the UY hallmark, "Beautiful Dreamer" features a deeper, more philosophical note. Those who have seen some of television episodes and rejected it as being too simple or childish owe it to themselves to reserve final judgement until they have seen this movie.

In a nutshell, the story begins much like any other UY storyline. It's the day before the school cultural fair, with all of the craziness which that entails, and the usual gang of idiots is getting their cafe ready. But some strange things are going on - a tank which was destroyed yesterday is whole again this morning. And wasn't YESTERDAY the day before the fair? And why do all roads return to Tomobiki High School? The only two people who seem to be aware of the problem, moreover, are school nurse Sakura and every student's nemesis Onsen-Mark.

This sets up an exploration into the meaning of reality and dream, and the place of love within each. With lots of Takahashi's visual references and sight-gags, this is a film that NEEDS to be watched more than once - it's just not possible to catch everything the first time!

Urusei Yatsura 2: Beautiful Dreamer features a few mild curses and comic-book violence, but has nothing that would be offensive to most people. The storyline, however, because of its frequent blurring of fantasy and reality might prove a bit hard to understand to some younger viewers.

There are apparently other movies in this series as this is the second. However, I never saw the one that came before this one or any of those that may have come after. So I have to say right off the bat a lot of the story was kind of left off when I watched this one on the syfy channel when it did not have the stupid name. In spite of the fact I did miss a few things by not seeing the first one I still rather enjoyed this one. The main things I was missing was most likely an introduction to the characters, but this did not deter from this movie all that much. I mean it would have been nice to see how the characters got to know each other and it would have been nice to see the strange girl's origin story, but I rolled with it and enjoyed the film. It reminded me a bit of Tenchi Muyo, only it was less strange than that show in some areas and actually more strange in other areas. The story has these kids at a high school getting ready for some sort of school festival in which they decorate a room in some sort of theme. The main group that is followed in this one has a room that is sort of a café with a twist in that a tank is in the room. No one seems to know how the tank got there though and that is your first clue that all is not as it appears. Like I said one of the girls is an alien who is infatuated with this boy and she refers to him as Darling. She has bizarre powers, but they are not really all that important to this particular story. I am guessing she played more of an important role in the first movie in the series. Well it is not to long before stuff gets stranger and stranger and you soon find out why things are a bit strange. Along the way you get a lot of humor as the film is mostly a comedy with some mystery thrown in to keep you guessing. The characters were fun and colorful and I liked the school setting, I am a bit surprised by how old this one is as when I first saw it I would have guessed it was most likely a 1992 or later released film. The film though is not perfect, part of it is that one is a tad lost if you had not seen the previous movie, which they for some reason never showed on syfy, and the ending is a bit anti-climatic, I was expecting something more for the ending. Still, overall it was really enjoyable and funny thanks mainly to the colorful characters.