Mistreatment Of Essential Anime: WINGS OF HONNEAMISE DVD

El Cosmico here, with a review of a disc I've been wanting for SO long, finally got, and, well, it's a shame what they've done to it.

This disc has been pre-orderable since the spring of 1999, if memory serves me, and anime fans have been frustrated time and time again, as the release date has been pushed back an incredible number of times.

I don't know what the problem was, but I thought, at the very least, the reason would be that more time was needed to ensure the proper treatment of what is an undeniable classic of anime. Well, now I really have to wonder what was going on, because I've just watched this disc, and it is a serious mistreatment.

WINGS OF HONNEAMISE is one of my very favorite anime films. Originally released in 1987, it is, in my opinion, probably the best film of the middle period of anime...that being the period just before digital effects began their influence. There are some quotes on the DVD case, all of them are right on. The first is from Roger Ebert: "...one of the most ambitious of all anime productions, a visually sensational two-hour extravaganza...". Next, Animerica weighs in: "No film has better demonstrated the extraordinary artistic potential of anime than THE WINGS OF HONNEAMISE. It is a triumph of the medium...".

TWOH also won some notable awards upon its release, including Best Picture at the Japan Anime Awards, Best Picture at the Seiun Awards, and Animage's Best Picture award. So, what's it about?

"An epic tale of a civilization's first faltering steps into space, set in an alien world that is strangely familiar to our own. When cadet Shiro Lhadatt signs up with the Royal Space Force, he encounters ridicule and apathy from manipulative leaders and a cynical public. A chance encounter with a devout young woman spurs Shiro on towards his destiny - to become the first man in space. While military leaders conspire to use the space program to spark an all-out war, Shiro and a team of aging scientists race against time to complete the first launch."

I really love this film. In fact, owning this film is one of the main reasons I got a LaserDisc player. Of course, the DVD offers a few more features than the LaserDisc. Chief among them are the inclusion of a deleted scene, the original conceptual short film for TWOH, which is exceptionally cool, and a TON of conceptual art and music from the film, which, while also very cool, is all lumped together on one track, making navigation non-existent. Still, these extra features are notable, and I'm glad I was able to see them. Finally, there is a director's commentary. Some people don't care for director commentary, but I happen to love them, and I found the commentary on this disc truly wonderful. These extra features, however, are the only reason I'm glad to have this DVD. Sadly, the video and audio transfers of a truly beautiful film are seriously sub-standard.

To be sure, I kept my hand on the trigger of my A-V switcher, going back and forth during identical scenes, between the DVD and Laserdisc. The LaserDisc video is more clear and has much better color saturation. By comparison, the DVD looked muddy. It looked like an aged VHS tape. The DVD case says the film is presented in 16x9 anamorphic widescreen, but anamorphic or not, the video transfer is a serious mistreatment of this classic film. The audio isn't significantly different in my opinion, the audio transfer on both recordings wasn't spectacularly crystal-clear, but I think I still prefer the LaserDisc audio as well. Just a gut feeling. As for the English dub, on both discs, well, I don't care for it at all, and recommend viewing in Japanese only.

So, if i think the presentation of this piece of essential anime is so bad, why am I mentioning it to you? Well, because I realize that most of you don't and never will have LaserDisc players, and that the only way most of you will ever see this film is on DVD. So, my advice is as follows: If you own a LD player, you're probably a serious cinephile, in which case you'll want to own both versions. The LD to watch the feature, and the DVD for the extras. If you just have a DVD player, though, I still think you should pick up this disc, because it's such a great film, and it's definitely essential in any serious anime collection. You should be aware, though, that what you're watching isn't as beautiful as it should be. It's not representative of the total strength of the film.

I'm sure you understand the problem in reviewing something like this. On the one hand, I CAN'T tell you not to get this, one of the greatest anime films ever, but on the other, I think the treatment of this classic is so shameful that those who did it should pay penance by being put in a hentai-producing gulag for at least ten years. With all the time they had to put this disc together, well, I can't imagine what their excuse is. Maybe it's a good one, but right now, I can't imagine what it is.