ANI-MOVIES, *Cosmic Princess Kaguya!

No, you are not mistaken! There was a movie titled The Tale Of Princess Kaguya released by Ghibli Films in 2013, but that and this new film, Cosmic Princess Kaguya! are both based on the monogatari about a bamboo cutter who becomes the adopted father of a child from the moon. Unlike in Over The Moon which is inspired by Chinese folklore, this one also follows the Japanese legends of the moon being a heavenly domain ruled over by divine beings. Studio Colorido finished out the third of a 3-picture deal with Netflix after Drifting Home and My Oni Girl which would all premiere on the streaming service with this movie, and the level of reality-bending they implemented in Penguin Highway is on full display in this tilt-a-whirl which is constantly switching between the real world and the online world. Similar to Belle and Summer Wars, this takes place in the soon-to-be future with slightly more advanced technology where VR is a commonplace, however like Belle this movie is also a musical at least in the slightest sense with the occasional number that is intended as a performance and not a plot-halting song that gives way to a miniature music video. The soundtrack was scored by some of the Vocaloid producers of numerous J-Pop bands, so the songs are more like an impromptu concert than a musical scene that adds to the storyline. After being in production for 3 years, Studio Colorido drove a lot of online culture into this movie, even though this can drag on with the runtime of 142 minutes, not to mention the multiple endings that were tacked on like you're playing a visual novel instead of watching a movie. A good thing is that this is one of the most sapphic anime movies ever made.

Happening in 2030, struggling high school student Iroha is barely making ends meet as she lives on her own as she desperately tries to achieve a college scholarship. On her way home from her part-time job, Iroha comes across a glowing telephone pole when a baby inside comes out. Now, Iroha has to be the caretaker of this child who rapidly ages into her teens, and it's determined that she is the reincarnation of Princess Kaguya from the old story, so she decides to give the moon child the same name as her progenitor. While getting used to having a needy alien girl declaring her love to her, Iroha also has an active life in the digital community of Tsukuyomi where everyone has online cosplay personas in a cyberspace modeled after feudal Japan where the virtual idol of Yachiyo is the apple of Iroha's eye. Kaguya decides that she's not going to let her story end the same way as her namesake where she is taken back to the moon by celestial spirits, so she nudges Iroha into using her hidden songwriting talent to help her be the newest online sensation. After gaining enough support and finances from their efforts, Iroha and Kagura move into a high-rise pad with the two of them growing together as a couple. Of course, just like in the fairy tale, the moon folks come to collect Kaguya, but not after she and all her allies put on a banging concert even if Kaguya does reluctantly give in and goes back home. Now, you would think that this is where the story ends, in fact there's a faux pas ending that any Netflix subscriber will recognize which turns out to be totally fake. There is an additional 20 minutes left where a great deal of secrets are revealed involving time travel, alternate history, retro-cyberpunk cliches, and a love story spanning thousands of years.

Cosmic Princess Kaguya! is a total recommendation for anyone deep into online culture and its future possibilities, although it might not completely appeal to non-otaku who have as yet to pop their anime cherry. Studio Colorido along with Studio Chromato did a spectacular job producing this with spontaneous battle sequences when the characters abruptly go into Fortnite mode along with the dreamy asthetics of the virtual world. The music gives off the appearance that it was extemporized instead of planned in advance and make for a banging soundtrack, despite that the Japanese language version of the songs are leagues better than the Americanized lyrics even though the dub actors do have singing potential. Netflix ran across this same hiccup last year with their release of The Rose Of Versailles where the English versions of the song don't fit all that well into a musical not originally written for western audiences, so this film will probably not gain the same fanbase that K-Pop Demon Hunters made bank on. Fans of shoujo-ai will appreciate the yuri representation on display here as its left up to the viewer to interpret whether Iroha and Valkyrie have a genuine girls love anime.