Urusei Yatsura 2: Byûtifuru dorîmâ

I went into this film knowing almost nothing about "Urusei Yatsura" - literally just recognized Lum and Ataru from pop culture. For some reason, I decided to jump straight into the second movie without any background. I had seen people on Twitter calling it "a film that flopped on release but later became a cult classic," and that intrigued me enough to check it out.

The verdict? It was absolutely fantastic! I think my lack of familiarity with the source material actually helped me enjoy it more, allowing me to experience Mamoru Oshii's vision without any preconceptions. In fact, I'd argue newcomers might appreciate this film more than hardcore fans of the series.

What surprised me most was how horror-influenced it felt. The scene with the carnival performers wandering through the empty town was genuinely creepy, and the hibernation pod awakening sequence gave me serious chills. The blurring between dreams and reality reminded me a lot of "A Nightmare on Elm Street," with a similar unsettling atmosphere I wasn't expecting.

It's mind-blowing that this came out in 1984 - nine years before "Groundhog Day" popularized the time loop concept in Western cinema! The ending sequence where dreams keep repeating also reminded me of the "Infinity Train" arc in "Demon Slayer." This film's influence on later works must be enormous.

The visuals are absolutely stunning. The empty night school, Lum floating before the massive water tank - the film creates this dreamlike, ethereal beauty that completely captivated me. I loved Oshii's philosophical questioning throughout (the nature of dreams vs. Reality). The concept that an "unchanging daily life" seems appealing but actually prevents growth is pretty profound.

One line that really struck me was when Ataru says: "To keep loving someone, I need to remain free from them." That resonated far beyond just romance - it speaks to all relationships. The idea that maintaining some independence is crucial to truly loving someone... I found that incredibly relatable.

Seeing Lum in a school uniform instead of her usual tiger bikini was also a refreshing change (even with my limited knowledge, I knew about her iconic outfit, lol). She looked cute in the uniform too!

I can totally understand why hardcore fans might have been upset - "This isn't Urusei Yatsura!" - but as a newcomer, I appreciated Oshii using these characters to express his unique artistic vision. It felt like watching an experimental arthouse film that happened to feature familiar characters.

After it ended, I felt this lingering sense of "Wait, is the reality I'm in right now actually real?" It's incredible that an anime from 40+ years ago doesn't feel dated at all - if anything, it feels fresh and thought-provoking even by today's standards.

For my Twitter follow-up, I'm planning to write: "I get why it flopped initially, but I totally understand why it later became considered a masterpiece." I'd recommend this to anyone, even without knowledge of the original series. A genuine classic of animation that deserves more attention in the West!

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.

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.

its a prelude through the whole thing. this movie contains the core characters of urusei yatsura, involving an old japanese legend of dreams. when you dream, the demon, mujacki, visits you. he makes you ride a turtle to dragon palace. there, you play in your dream till you wake up. this has the updated animation, as well, which is, better. the dubbed and subtitled is so different from one another in dialogue. one problem i can see most people having is that this particular title might confuse people throughout the movie. in the end, it kind of makes sense. to those who have seen this, but didn't understand that race with lum, that was from the first episode.

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.