User reviews

An old anime classic. Not what many would expect from anime, there isn't heaps of guns or robot or weird mythology, it's just a simple story.

The two combating nations in the parallel world to ours, remind me of a cross between the US & USSR (although cooling, the Cold War was still alive & well when this film was made in 1987) mixed with a cross between North & South Korea.

The animation is very good, & holds up well even in 2004, though the soundtrack while very catchy, shows the age of the film with the 1980's synthesizer.

The only frustrating thing about Hiroyuki Yamaga's exhilarating sci-fi anime is that - astonishingly - it has not (yet) been released on region 2. But I would urge all UK manga fans to purchase a region-free DVD player just to watch it - it's that good. Alternatively, order the region-free Blu-ray disc.

Eschewing mecha battles and purple hair, The Wings of Honneamise is an epic poem about peace. One imagines it's the kind of thing Hayao Miyazaki would show his kids once they've grown out of Laputa and Spirited Away (as if that's possible!). Set in an alternate universe, it tells the story of an apathetic young man, Shiro Lhadatt (Leo Morimoto), who signs up to become the first man in space. As the countdown begins, the mission attracts the interest of the public, the media, and finally the military, while a sorrowful religious girl, Riquinni Nonderaiko (Mitsuki Yayoi), attracts the interest of Shiro himself.

It's a fable about the human spirit with echoes of Tom Wolfe's The Right Stuff. Indeed, the climactic message won't take you by surprise - but what fun it is getting there. Yamaga's world is fairly bustling with life, all realised with sumptuous animation and some wonderful retro-modern art direction from Hiromasa Ogura (who would go on to work on manga favourites Ninja Scroll and Ghost In The Shell). Shiro's journey to his destiny is full of incident - flying lessons, explosively malfunctioning equipment, an exciting foot chase from a deceiving assassin - but also complemented with moments of dreamy calm. These peaceful moments are not simply excuses for some pretty ethereal music and absent wandering beneath neon verandas; they speak of Shiro's new sense of reflection, of his growing introspection.

Special mention should be made of Ryuichi Sakamoto's score. Like so much of his work, it is considered, emotive and memorable.

It's the best adult Japanese animation ever made, of that I'm certain. And it really isn't for children - this region 1 release retains an attempted sexual assault scene which was cut (by Manga Video, not the BBFC) for the UK video release. Moreover, the religious and political overtones, combined with the patient pacing, may be somewhat testing upon a younger child's attention span. Teens and older should buy it, love it, and feel inspired.

Do not listen to anybody bagging this movie, they do not have the experience with anime to appreciate it. Wings of Honeamise is a pinnacle in Japanese animation, it took anime to it's popularity. It made anime known.

The planet's first space explorers just happen to be from a land engaged in a border war. This naturally lends urgency to any mission of peaceful exploration, and this is the central message of the film: that we should strive to achieve the impossible, rather than wasting our efforts and squandering our lives bickering with our neighbors. Mankind's future is among the stars.

With its grand sweeping cityscapes and pastoral vistas to tempt the eye and its exciting race against time story of hard working rocket builders struggling to finish their creation before their construction facility is overrun by an invading army, this movie is great fun, marvelous to look at, just a joy to watch.

My favourite animated film and sadly unappreciated is Royal Space Force: Wings of Honneamise. The story is set in a fictional world where space travel has not yet been achieved and based around a cadet from the Royal Space Force who wants to see that change despite his peers thinking it is a suicide mission as all previous attempts have resulted in death. Royal Space Force and Akira were the two big Anime that marked the rise of that subculture in the West during the late eighties. Unfortunately, it was Akira that received all the attention from the fan base as it catered to an adolescent audience more than Royal Space Force, which is a drama and has a slower pace… and it's a shame. Admittedly, I didn't get into Royal Space Force on the first watch – however, repeated viewings have made me realise this film is not only better than most Anime – it is one of my top ten favourite films along side 2001: A Space Odyssey. The story has a rich number of themes being explored – knowing your place in the world and then understanding how trivial we are in the context of the universe, it looks at religion, the military-industrial complex, the relationship between men and women, loyalty, self-respect and most importantly – following one's dreams. The soundtrack is perfect for this as is the wonderful animation by GAINAX, the studio behind Neon Genesis Evangelion – there's an amazing montage sequence towards the end of the film that is so ambitious it is up there with the jump cut from the bone to the space station in 2001. I love this film, it is my favourite science fiction and it is the film I would recommend first from this list. Watch it once, give it day then watch it again.

For all the flaws in this movie (actual or perceived), I have to admit that ending has stuck with me since I first saw the dubbed version five years ago. All that fighting, all that posturing--for what? No one end up caring, no one listens to their pleas for the end of violence. It is very easy to understand how these moviemakers were able to later make Neon Genesis Evangelion, which has many of the same issues (religion, an examination of the belief that some people have that "the way justifies the means," technology and the use and misuse of it by humans, etc.).

The biggest problem I have with the movie is the attempted rape scene and the victim's subsequent forgiveness of the perpetrator (the hero of the movie). I couldn't tell whether the filmmakers were being sarcastic of her religion or if they really felt it was a good thing for her to forgive him--or if they needed that scene at all. I bought the DVD, hoping that the director's commentary would shed more light on the subject--they spend more time discussing how the cels (of the girl naked) were stolen before they could give them to friends than they did explaining the purpose of the scene in the movie.

Another thing is that Wings doesn't completely break out of the anime mold to become a mainstream film--it occasionally slips into anime-style slapstick and there's a few too much insider talk (both in technological aspects and inside jokes).

Beyond that, it is a daring, engrossing but deliberately-paced animated film.

Training to become an astronaut, a young man struggles to realise his dream as his country's space program comes under public scrutiny in this deliberately paced animated drama from Japan. 'Wings of Honneamise' is an unexpectedly philosophical film with intelligent ideas thrown about such as space being "a place where all mankind can find new freedom" and the protagonist asked by a reporter to define "a space hero's purpose" and defend the government's decision to "waste our money" by funding space travel. Other curious quips include the notion that "history is just an ongoing game" while the astronaut even questions "do you ever feel like you're a character in a story?". Fascinating as the film may sound with all these elements, it does not flow particularly well as a narrative. There is far more talk than action and a large amount of time is dedicated to an improperly developed romance between the astronaut and a religious fanatic that culminates in a bizarre near rape scene that even more bizarrely is soon forgotten. The film ends a bit abruptly too. There is so much to like in the intelligent dialogue throughout 'Wings of Honneamise' that it remains a difficult film to dislike, but for all its daring to be different as far as space travel films go, it does not spin the smoothest of narratives. An interesting movie, but one to approach with caution.

"Honneamise no tsubasa" is clearly the masterpiece of Japanese anime. I was lucky enough to see this film for the first time at the cinema, and I feel for those of you who have only been able to see it on video. What you miss is the immaculate artistry of the animation: the detail, the complexity, the invention and most of all the beauty. The opening credits are up there amongst my favourites (Vertigo, Delicatessen) not because of any originality - the use of pictures in credits have been done before (Days of Heaven) - but more because of the use of Japanese water painting of these images. It is also the blending of these images with the right music which makes the credits so exquisite. But also the great thing about this movie for all of us, is the wonderful story that is told. The use of a parallel earth in which the events occur is ingenius, it allows the story to remain in a sense inherently Japanese but also universal. See this film it is a gem

Honneamise no tsubasa is one of the most experimental animated features I have ever seen. It had some amazingly detailed and beautiful visual designs, deep concept and storyline, unique scenes that had never been done before, and so much more. Gainax had done a tremendous amount of research for this title, as a result they succeeded in virtually creating a new world, complete with its own culture, costumes, architecture, tradition, religion, rituals, etc. The character animation may lag at certain points and the film's pacing may feel a little bit too slow from time to time, but they are just minor gripes if you consider the overall greatness of the film. The Anime also contains some wonderful scenes that are practically some of animation's most glorious moments. It has the best ending I have ever seen in an animated feature, in fact, the last 20 minutes of the film are amazing beyond words. You have to see this film yourself , and definitely see it more than once. This is the anime not just for animation fans, but everyone who likes great and grandiose space opera in line of 2001: Space Odyssey

All the other comments are swooning about how artistic and masterful the story telling is. For me its impossible to get past how slow, dull, and ultimately pointless this movie is.

Very little happens in this film. What you read in the synopsis, that is it. There is no tension. There is no suspense. there is no action. The romantic elements are boring too. It really is hard to say anything good about this movie. The animation itself is dated and the colors are washed out. Some people can look past that, but it certainly is a flaw. Its not a painless thing to sit through either. The movie feels VERY VERY long. It seems to go on forever while you writhe in your seat and bare it as to not offend your weird friend who thinks its a masterpiece.

If you don't like slow boring movies, this is not something you should spend your time on.

The only way I can describe how this film makes me feel is to compare it to a child watching My Neighbor Totoro. It is animation but not quite what you see everyday. It has a plot but it has subtle and even hidden depth.

To me this film is so good that it ceases to be "just anime" to become film art in the truest sense: it conjures up an imaginary world and makes it real, people have troubles and tribulations and we identify with them, everything comes to conclusion and we are changed by it and for the better.

For people think this is just sunday network cartoons two hours long I recommend watching this alongside Apollo 13 and/or Forrest Gump and try to find the analogies, you'll be surprised.

i saw this film for the first time quite a while ago yet i still watch it regularly, mainly because of the intricate and amazing animation, (the architecture deserves special mention) and the fact that it has a story line worthy of the visuals, something which is not common amongst manga films in my opinion. it is not without its faults however, for example the slightly confusing religious aspect of the film, and some might complain that it does not have enough action in it but apart from this i found it to be a complex and involving film with brilliant music and well rounded deep characters, if anyone knows of any further work from the people who made this film i would be grateful for any info.

Wings of Honneamise is what you'd call a work of "higher" science fiction; just like the fantasy genre is divided into swords-and-sorcery books (such as the Dragonlance series or the crap David Eddings writes - sorry, couldn't help myself) and more mature writings, such as A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula Le-Guin and the works of Lord Dunsany and J.R.R. Tolkien, so the SF genre can be divided into "higher" and "lower" SF. Lower SF consists of large ships, big lasers, mechas, and is epitomized in the works of Edward "Doc" Smith, George Lucas's Star Wars trilogy and most animes out there. Higher science fiction, in my eyes, ,means Philip K. Dick, Stanislaw Ulam, and Wings of Honneamise, or WOH for short.

WOH focuses on man's first attempt to launch a manned satellite into orbit around the earth; only it's not our earth, but rather a similar parallel world. The space program is ridiculed by almost everybody, including the main hero, until he meets a religious young woman who changes his mind. We follow the hero's training for the program and watch as he slowly matures from the apathetic dropout he begins out as.

This movie is about a lot of things: war, religion, politics, courage, friendship and more. It's much more than a "man goes to space" sort of film, like "Apollo 13" (starring Tom Hanks) is.

The depth and realism of this movie is astounding. During one scene where there's an explosion and water flies everyway, you can notice a rainbow in the background, which fades as the water scatters. The world is highly detailed and even the physics is correct (I always suspend belief when watching SF movies, but this one does a good job of getting the science right, as opposed to almost every other movie).

The weakest part of this movie is the music. It's well written but poorly executed in parts - it's always embarrassing to hear 1987 synthesizers attempt to mimic orchestral instruments. Ugh.

Regarding the rape scene, which seems to upset so many people: this can be understood based on her faith. Blaming Shirotsugh would on the part of Requinni (I hope the name is spelled that way) be admitting that even as he goes to the stars man is imperfect, an admission she is not willing to make. So instead she decides to take the blame on herself. The scene is unrealistic perhaps in today's PC America, but Requinni is anything but today's PC America. Whether or not it suits the tastes of the viewer - that's another question.

A definite love letter to space-race! Sadly, I didn't "like it".

I certainly appreciate the beyond-impressive visuals and animations, and world-building (how people live, made-up alphabet and numeric system) made for this alternate-world Earth! A project made to show a studio's ridiculous talent! ..not to make a marketable product. A beautiful movie that is worth watching for that alone. But the story is seemingly unstructured movie (although it has a very defined objective to which it develops).. with undefined characters and rushed development out of nowhere (and some questionable actions). Dead space and slowness.

So, should this even be judged as a movie? If you know about it's production and such, no. As a general movie goer, it's kind of disappointing. It tries to convey a lot (about war, civilization, religion and mankind progress as a whole), but does so poorly. The story, as it is given to you, is disappointingly simplistic and lacking in many parts. MAYBE this is one of those movies that only a "lucky" few will come to truly understand, and only if they have access to whatever message, theme and ideas the creators wanted to impart onto it.

So, if a part of the movie was undercooked, and another was their primary focus.. Why should we be expected to care?

Honneamise no Tsubasa(1987) is impressive movie. Art in this movie is out of this world, amazing, imaginative and creative. Alternative world in which story is set, in same time avoids to be generic sci-fi world and generic overally sweet and cartoonish world. Sounds take you into story, aswell out of story when need to. Music always appears in right time and place, not too often to lose its effect. Characters are honest and realistic. I admit it can get somewhat boring, otherwise perfect movie.

Sumptuous animation and an evocative musical score take one on a journey through a world whose similarity to our own is enhanced by its subtle differences.

The space race of the twentieth century is portrayed not only as a contest between war and peace, but also between mere subsistence existence and the drive to better ourselves. Add to that a touch of spirituality, and one has a deep, philosophical drama which thrives upon the freedom and beauty provided by animation.

The plot: Two rival nations are vying for political and military dominance. The much ridiculed fledgling space program becomes a pawn in this power struggle as one nation tries to use it as a propaganda tool and bait to lure its rival into war. No one expects a real, working rocket ship to be created.

At the center of the conflict is the brave, volunteer test pilot, who is transformed overnight from an air-force reject to the symbol of the new era. His physical ordeal of surviving the rigors of flight training, not to mention the assassination attempts, becomes secondary to his attempts to justify the vast resources expended on the project while people are living in poverty just outside the training center.

Finally, all worldly issues are transcended as the rocket actually lifts off (with stunning animation), much to the amazement of the troops fighting over its possession.

Wings of Honneamise must have been an incredibly personal experience for the headstrong young animators who willed it into existence in the mid-eighties. How deeply they must have related with Shiro and his friends, since both the animators and the Royal Space Force are inexperienced but talented groups of people, extremely lucky to have the funding that they do, who manage to achieve something truly breathtaking. Any great animated film is a celebration of mankind's artistry, technology, and creative vision, and so is the rocket that the characters in the film finally build after so much hard work and so many lost lives. I've never been brought to tears by a movie, but this film brought me pretty close.

The film is, however, flawed. I simply cannot fathom why the girl reacts to the rape attempt the way she does. I mean, SHE APOLOGIZES for fending the guy off. Either the topic should have been dealt with more realistically or those scenes should have been left out of the movie.

But the movie is good enough to make up for it. Really, I think it's still deserving of a ten out of ten. Even great movies can make mistakes (Psycho, for example, has that worthless scene at the end where the psychiatrist over-simplifies everything). But you can make up your own mind. As usual for an anime, all positive comments are made in reference to the subtitled version only.

This is an excellent science fiction story taking place on an alternate earth. It tells of the ambitions of a young man to become the first person in space. There are many subtle and beautiful details adding to the realism. The voice acting is excellent (even the dubbed version is bearable) and the plot and characterizations are remarkably unique and original in comparison to standard anime.

Even the music is perfect giving an otherworldly feel to the film. This is my favorite anime film of all time because it succeeds in presenting a believable world which is both wonderful in its ingenuity and comforting in its familiarity. I recommend this film to anyone twelve and up who enjoys fantasy and/or science fiction. It bears no comparison to any other movie in existence.

For adults and kids, this story is set in an alternate world that resembles the 1900's. The main character is a disillusioned non remarquable man enrolled in the unremarquable space force of a country at war.

He meets a girl and her faith drives him to believe he can accomplish something with his life and drives for it, though as a young adult he's not clear on why or what to accomplish.

The DVD quality (NTSC) is pretty poor as the encoding is done wrong. Therefore you may see interlacing artifacts. With appropriate tools, the DVD can be copied and fixed by setting the interlace bit on the video, but it's complex to do. The DVD seems to be a transfer from a VCR tape anyway. It would be great if it was re-released properly.

I recommend this anime to those who like cartoons and scifi, and look for a well developed story line. I like the original universe created that suits the anti-hero. It's a good movie, far from kungfu fighting or robot-toting mainstream japanese animation. This is a sensible, funny movie about peace.