Tekkonkinkreet (review)
Posted: 2012/01/08 Filed under: Art, Cinema | Tags: action, adventure, animation, black and white, fantasy, japanese anime, michael arias, tekkonkinkreet 3 Comments »
A while ago I watched an animation movie with an intriguing title: Tekkonkinkreet (originally Tekkonkinkurito), a childish deformation of the Japanese word “tekkin konkurito“, or “reinforced concrete”. I might as well say right now that I am not a fan of most Japanese animation; not even big names like Miazaki have been able to find favour in my eyes. Some random, more unusual works have, though, and Tekkonkinkreet is one of them.
The story, though convoluted and confusing in some ways, contains a lot of inventiveness (something which I’ll grant even my least favourite animes), and seems to convey a certain diffuse meaning. What the story is about, what we are expected to understand from it, isn’t straightforward, but instead lends itself to a sort of vague, limitless speculation. Black and White are two young orphans who live in a secluded dump. As their names suggest, the former is older and embittered by a life of isolation and violence, while the latter is an overly innocent and dreamy child. However, together they rule a whole neighbourhood called Treasure Town thanks to their supernatural ability to jump as high up as rooftops.
But Treasure Town also hosts a number of gangs, up to a traditional yakuza clan. The fragile, if violent balance of the neighbourhood is shattered when a new type of villains set about to transform the place into an amusement park. The police is helpless but in snatching White off the streets, leaving Black even more determined in his suicidal mission against the project’s vicious planner and his bionic killers. Sounds strange, right? And maybe it is. Yet in all its strangeness, Tekkonkinkreet remains beautiful. It is, truly, stupendously drawn and realized. The attention to detail which makes the fantastical reality of Treasure Town leaves one speechless.
This movie is a real curiosity, especially from an artistic perspective, but possibly also from a narrative one. It isn’t necessarily a story that will change your life or favourite movie material; only the creativity it exudes is infectious, exciting, and stimulating. Watch it if you care about that side of art. Since I am not at all convinced by the feel of the trailer, I give you the intro:
Is the art important for you when you watch animation movies? Which other Japanese cartoons or movies do you like, and why?
Reblogged this on timruane and commented:
great stuff from the east.
I saw this DVD at Hastings, I was skeptical to pick it up because of the art. I prefer Miazaki films. He seems to have a softer more fluid approach.
Fair enough! Of course it’s a matter of taste.
Personally I can’t stand the more classical-looking Japanese cartoon/manga drawing… (Though if the story’s really compelling, I may overlook my initial distaste.)