La rivoluzione di Utena

to put it in the most simple terms i can, Shoujo Kakumei Utena is among the best anime to ever come along. Whilst I'll admit many people could never understand it, let alone like it, any fan of anime in general has to give this series a chance. From the overall surrealism to the bits of sexual innuendo, this series delivers an intriguing world of roses, swords, roses, stopwatches, roses, princes, and did i mention roses? Images of death and hope fill the series. The characters are a wide range of personalities, all linked to these duels(and thus the End(s) of the World) in some way or another. The imagery is ongoing, and sometimes even takes me a second, third, even fourth watching to get it all(well, to get most of it, some of the series I believe is meant to never FULLY be understood.), and I dont usually need to see anything more than twice to catch it all. While not for everyone, fans of deeper, even more provocative series' will find Shoujo Kakumei Utena a very entertaining anime series.

This show has my heart honestly. It's a deep, dark and intrinsically layered show that really requires your full attention. From the gothic influenced soundtrack to the bright colour palate and the uniquely hand-drawn style, this show is just sonic and visual candy. The plot is painfully ambiguous in my opinion but still intriguing nonetheless. And of course there are the feminist and queer themes that has bestowed upon this show its iconic legacy. To think that such revolutionary (all pun intended) ideals and themes and subject matters were depicted in this show nearly 2 decades ago and has served as the inspiration to many other queer and feminist story is truly a testament to this show's legacy. I am quite honestly dying to know what happened after the end but I'm glad it was not a tragic one. The bond between Utena and Anthy was truly something that warmed my heart, the sanctity of their bond seemed to transcend just friendship and even romance. It was, in essence, just two girls who wanted to save each other no matter what. Though I was sad we never got to see them kiss, i think their attraction to one another was blatantly obvious in the subtext.

One of my few only complaint really is just the repetitive nature of the sword fights. Though it does add a great deal of spice and action into the story, I feel most of the drama is nullified knowing that Utena will always prevail in the end. And the sequence of her climbing up the endlessly spiralling staircase, whilst it is a great visual delight at first, does get old quite fast. I felt the black rose saga was quite pointless and characters got introduced at times only to not appear or serve any relevance to the plot later on.

Overall, Utena is an amazing show; far ahead of its time, that blends mind numbingly surrealist imagery with complex layered characters, an amazing artstyle and a killer soundtrack

I love this series! Not only is it visually pleasing and funny (in its own way sometimes, I must admit), it makes the viewer THINK in order to get the story behind the characters and their odd behavior, something most anime fans today are forgetting to do. One thing needs to be clear for those whose interest has been piqued... this is NOT Sailormoon, despite the fact that it is directed by the same (talented) man and despite the fact that it is a shoujo anime. Don't get me wrong, I love Sailormoon. But, Shoujo Kakumei Utena does have weirder (eerie) twists and mysterious (eerie) characters. So if you want something different, something not one-dimensional,like Dragonball, let's say, take a look at Shoujo Kakumei Utena. It's one of the best shoujo series around; after all, the girls in it all rule in some way or another.

Utena is one of the most remarkable anime there is. It has beautiful animation, wonderful storyline, character development, humor, and one of the chief reasons that this show doesn't have as big a following as it deserves, it's extremely surrealistic. There can be a lot read into this show and metaphors run rampant. If you don't like such an odd show, definitely do not watch the movie. Now THAT is weird. ^^;;

Some folks may find this show "bizaar", but I found this a deeply moving, thought-provoking, and at times absurdly hilarious show worthy of a watch by anyone who desires something a little bit more cerebral and twisted.

Set in a school covered in a rose motif, Utena is the tomboy protagonist, beloved by all, who finds herself suddenly enmeshed in the secretive dealings of the student council, and finds herself suddenly "engaged", to a girl, no less! And there's an upside-down floating castle, swords that pop out of chests--Freud would have a field day with this show--and surfing elephants. And explosive curry! So, um, suspend your disbelief for this show, because it truly is worth it.

The characterization of this show is what really sells it. You have kids playing at adulthood, and if you see Utena as a coming of age show, you can see between the lines of how all the characters are not trying to achieve a "revolution of the world" in that they're gonna start a civil war, but that they are actually just trying to reach adulthood, pressing beyond the threshold to the other side, which all but the heroine are unable to do.

Sound cerebral? It is. And it's very enjoyable, tugging at your heartstrings and then making you unexpectedly laugh at something that, when you think about it or try to explain to someone else, makes no sense. The music is overall wonderful, especially the background music--The Sunlit Garden is perhaps one of the best instrumental pieces I have ever heard on a Tv show, and is worth a DL any day--and the voice acting is done well, even on the English dub, which I generally think are foul, cursed things, but Software Sculptors, the American distributor, did an okay job.

This is a worthy series. Watch it! It's coming out on DVD! Rewatch it! You'll find something new every time, and it'll still be enjoyable even on third and fourth watches.

Oh, and though the box might say it's rated PG or PG-13, and that it's from the director of Sailor Moon, don't think that this is for kids. Though the first 13 episodes are all right, beyond that the show gets a little too hard to understand--though when you're a kid all that stuff makes sense--and also has some undertones that some of the more conservative might not like their children getting hints of(i.E. homosexuality and incest). In my opinion, if they're old enough to even understand what's going on--because these undertones are indeed only subtly hinted at--then they're old enough to deal with it.