Movies
Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. Solid State Society
Star Wars: Visions
I'm always in the mood for a good anthology, certainly when some of my favorite anime people are involved. Disney released this Star Wars-influenced project as a series, but with 9 shorts and total runtime of 150 minutes I don't see how this differs from any other anthologies that have been released, so I'm just treating it as a regular film. The first film is by far the best, it's also the only one that doesn't look like a typical anime. Imaishi's entry is cool, but a bit tame compared to his normal work, the Tezuka-inspired film is cute, and the two final shorts do make a real attempt to offer something slightly different, but overall the quality level isn't up to par with something Studio 4 °C would release. They're also the studio that is oddly absent from the line-up. Visions is no doubt one of my favorite Star Wars things, but with the wealth and support of Disney, I expected something more eye-popping.Read all
Napping Princess
A cute but relatively complex story about fantasy, dream and reality blending together. The film seems geared at younger viewers, but the narrative may be a bit too complex for them. It's a strange mix of oldskool and modern, cute and complex, resulting in a somewhat confusing but nonetheless agreeable experience.