The Curious Case of Hello World (One of the most hyped Anime movies of 2019)

‘Hello World’ was one of the most hyped anime films heading into 2019, for a good reason.

It didn’t take long for people to draw comparisons to Your Name, and with the fantastic premise, some even thought that this film would overshadow Makoto Shinkai’s (Director of Your Name) 2019 film “Weathering with You.”

While I didn’t think it would outdo Shinkai’s features, I did think that it could become what A Silent Voice became in 2016, not as successful commercially as Shinkai’s work but more critically acclaimed.

That didn’t turn out to be the case, but it is still a good film to watch. However, it didn’t meet my (and many other people’s) expectations.

So, what went wrong with Hello World? Why didn’t it reach the greatness we all thought it would reach?

I think these are some of the reasons why. Come, let’s dive into them!

Below Average Animation

The thing that sticks out the most in the wrong way is Animation.

Now, I’m not one of those guys who likes to bring an anime down just cause the Animation isn’t UFOtable level, but when the film is being hyped up in such a prominent manner, you would expect better Animation.

The trailer looked acceptable to me, albeit it still looked a bit clunky, but I expected the final product to be much better.

But Oh boy! A few minutes into the film, you can already see the generic-looking character designs and super awkward movement animation.

The backgrounds are done exceptionally well to give credit where it’s due. Still, I would rather have better movement animation, and unique-looking characters as that can directly influence the credibility of the film rather than the backgrounds.

This makes me come to my 2nd point, which is Direction.

Technically Sound But Stylistically Off?

First and foremost, I need to say that someone like me has no right to criticize a Director of the caliber of Mr. Tomohiko Ito. The legend has worked on some of the most well-known animes of all time (SAO and Death Note) and worked under some of the best directors in the anime industry (he was Mamoru Hosoda’s assistant for Summer Wars), the only knowledge I have of filmmaking stems from observing various movies and reading books.

So, I’m not qualified enough, and taking my opinions with a grain of salt would be for the best.

Technical Aspect

This is also somewhat of a hot take. Considering Ito was mostly praised for his Direction of the film and why shouldn’t he be praised?

I mean, he used the fundamentals very well. His composition was truly good. He used the “Rule of Thirds” to create attractive-looking shots (unfortunately, the animation quality let down the effort). Another thing that caught my eye in a good way was how Ito placed Naomi, the main character, in a deeper position, making him look smaller compared to others in a group setting.

This was brilliant from him as it symbolized the character’s lack of confidence, which is an important character trait at first.

The only thing that was off for me regarding the technical aspect of his Direction was his radical shot selection. The animators weren’t in the best of form anyway, but his decision to use long and, sometimes, extremely long and even bird-view shots didn’t help the animators.

The other thing that must’ve been hard on the animators were the “Around the world” shots which require CGI animation and, we all know that not many studios can produce top-tier CGI animation in Japan, so it looked somewhat foolish to me that he constantly decided to use shots that required such Animation.

Except for that, the movie is primarily shot in Medium long shot view, which is fine if not a bit boring. I also feel that maybe he could’ve used more medium close-up shots to concentrate more on the facials of the characters, which would help us connect with them and hide the clunky body movements.

Another slight nitpick would be the usage of “Behind the back” and “Over the shoulder” shots, which seemed a bit repetitive to me and not the director’s fault, but I feel the voice acting wasn’t as impactful as it should’ve been

Anyway, those are just slight nitpicks and don’t change the fact that he is very well versed in the technical side of the spectrum.

However, I feel the bigger problem with his Direction was his style.

Stylistic Aspect

Style is also a very subjective matter, but it is also a vital aspect of a film. A film can be technically well shot, but if the style doesn’t connect with the viewers, the film will seem mundane no matter what.

And his style certainly didn’t connect with me. Now, I know that nothing is totally “Original” in this world and that even the best take inspiration from other greats to make their craft even better.

But, I would like to see at least some personal style peaking out from the said craft. I’m not accusing Ito of copying anyone. He is a very credible director, but whether it was the studio involved or the story demanded him to direct it in such a manner, it seemed like more of a Makoto Shinkai film and not in a good way.

I feel that Shinkai is a flawed director, and to his credit, he knows how to cover up those said flaws, making him good. One of the significant flaws in his Direction is his pacing. He is a very slow storyteller. Often enough, even his short films feel like they’re stuck in one place for too long, and he overcomes that by using fast-paced but soothing montages, which speed up the story to the next exciting part, making you forget about the flawed part about his Direction.

Something like this can also be seen in Hello World. The first half is kind of slow, and a few montages were used to speed things up, but, I have to say while being pretty fun, I don’t think it serves its purpose of speeding up the story much as the first half feels pretty slow regardless of the montages.

This is mainly because the film’s writing structure is a bit unstable (I’ll come to this later), but the Shinkai influence can be felt through its aesthetic.

All in all, I don’t think this was a suitable film for Tomohiko Ito.

Exciting In Theory, Poor In Execution?

I feel the way the story was structured was kind of messy. It was a story of two halves, one being slow and methodical and the other being Balls to the Walls.

This sounds exciting in theory, but the lack of buildup leading to the much faster 2nd half really confuses you, and as I said so many times before, NOT IN A GOOD WAY.

You’ll feel as if though you’ve missed something important when honestly, you didn’t, and this puts pressure on the direction aspect, as you’ll need to keep the pacing of the film in check while making the transition from part 1 to part 2 seem organic and structured when it is not.

As for the characters, I just can’t buy the romance between Young Naomi and Ichigyou in a severe way. Much of it is due to the context leading up to their romance, but I just don’t see the affair being powerful enough for Young Naomi to put himself and so many other things at colossal risk for Ichigyou. Except for that, I’d say the characters are likable.

The film’s main point, The Swerve(s), is/are good, and I liked it, but by the end of the story, it confuses me. A swerve/plot twist can get your interest back into something you find dull, but you would want a proper explanation, right?

While we get an explanation, it is very subtle and inconclusive enough for my liking. You need to pay attention to details to get it, but you can’t cause the story moves too damn fast in the 2nd half.

Conclusion

This might seem like a slander piece on why I was not too fond of something that came out three years ago, but it’s not.

I don’t think it’s a bad film. I enjoyed it, but when it was first announced, and trailers were trending all over the anime community, I was genuinely hyped for the movie and wanted to watch it as soon as possible, but for some reason, I never did.

I ended up seeing people online talking about how the film was, but I didn’t give the negativity much thought as people were also pessimistic about Shikioriori. I like that film and feel it is underrated when everything is considered.

So, when I finally decided to watch it, I couldn’t help but feel a bit disappointed. Not because the film was terrible, it was good, but because it wasn’t the revolutionary or an underrated gem I hoped it would be. It was just good, and even now, I think that with a better animation studio, a slightly different approach in Direction, and with some structure to the plot, it could’ve been something special.

Ratings

Story- 2/5

Characters- 3/5

Animation-1.5/5

Voice Acting- 2/5

Direction- 2.5/5

Overall- 2.2/5

Thanks for reading til the end. If you haven’t watched the film yet, I highly recommend you do so and come up with your view of the film as this was only my opinion. It is very much possible for you to see it in a very different light than how I saw it, and stay tuned for more exciting blogs to @Quriverse | 1st ever interactive Anime community for fans and creators. Sign up and stand an opportunity to get your hands on cool anime merchandise, Netflix premium, Amazon gift vouchers, and more!