It is only natural for one to want to watch Violet Evergarden the Movie again, right? Especially if there is a live broadcast of the cast greeting event at the end of the movie. So I thought, and so I went.
And ended up crying at all the same scenes again. Maybe even more.
Watching the movie a second time allowed me to pay attention to more details. For example, the backgrounds used in the scenes... since backgrounds are usually that, with the main action taking place in the foreground, they are usually stills. Well, not this movie. The action can be taking place in the foreground, but the waves will be moving in the ocean scene in the background. It is a detail like this that makes me love KyoAni as much as any of the works by big name directors.
Fans of the series probably know that the letters are in Tamil, written in a different script (font). So if you learn the script, you can actually read the letters in Tamil. Unfortunately, I didn't have any motivation to learn that script... until today. More on that later.
I also felt that, while this movie is best watched as a continuation of the anime series, it has been written and produced in such a way that, even without the anime series, people can still enjoy the story. Maybe not as much, but as a standalone movie, it is still a great movie.
The story itself is about how Violet has grown. Instead of taking orders, she is now able to think for herself, act on her own will. And it is about the struggles faced by Gilbert, a person who has returned from war knowing that he had a part in causing the suffering faced by others. The movie did a great job portraying the psychological struggle and deep emotions faced by the characters... a testament to the skills of the script writer, the director, the artists, the voice actors, the sound crew... everyone involved. It is this accurate portrayal that kept bringing me to tears.
After the movie, Director Ishidate Taichi, voice actors Ishikawa Yui (Violet) and Namikawa Daisuke (Gilbert) and singer TRUE came on stage to talk about the production. This was my first time watching such an event at the theatre. It was nice hearing them share their thoughts about the entire series and stories of the production. What moved me was Director Ishidate... you can see him holding back his tears as he talked about the production, since there are some people involved in the production who never saw the final work due to the arson attack. He never touched on the attack itself; I think it could be a policy within KyoAni not to talk about the attack as a sign that they will move on. Director Ishidate also talked about an easter egg in the movie. More on that at the end.
Due to COVID-19, cinemas are not able to sell all their seats. They can only fill theatres to around half capacity, leaving a seat between each person. So it is unlikely that Violet Evergarden the Movie will reap in ticket sales like Your Name. or similar movies. But... personally, I think this movie deserves a seat up there with other great works. I am looking forward to the DVD/Blu-ray, and may even catch it again in the theatre a few weeks from now. It is that good. And rewatchable.
Okay, now for the easter egg. This may be a spoiler so read on at your own risk.
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Violet's final letter to Gilbert was read out loud, voiced by Ishikawa. Director Ishidate shared that, however, the last line of the letter was not voiced. Instead, in the scene when the letter was blow out of Gilbert's hand, you can see that last line, written in that original script/font. His challenge is for viewers to decipher that final sentence. After Violet thanked Gilbert for everything. And it was this sentence that made Gilbert chase after Violet.
I didn't notice that detail, but if I were to venture a guess, it would be "I love you from my heart (心から愛しています)" which is the same phrase that Gilbert told Violet during the final battle. Of course, Gilbert spoke colloquially, but in her letter, Violet would have used the polite form (of Japanese). I mean, ending a letter with "thank you for everything, I love you from my heart" just sounds so moving.
Well, I am going to brush up my knowledge of that script/font, and find time to catch the movie again just to confirm this. If anyone knows the "answer", please feel free to share.
My overall thoughts on Violet Evergarden The Movie.
Events:
Translations of short stories:
The Tailor and the Auto-Memories Doll (unofficial translation of 仕立て屋と自動手記人形) Gilbert Bougainvillea and the Fleeting Dream (unofficial translation of "ギルベルト・ブーゲンビリアと儚い夢")
Violet Evergarden short stories: "Logbook entry" and "Diary entry" (unofficial translation)
The Starry Night and the Lonely Two (unofficial translation of 星降りの夜とさみしいふたり)
Diethard Bougainvillea's If (unofficial translation of ディートフリート・ブーゲンビリアIf) Tellsis (Nunkish) translation:
Last line of Violet's final letter to GilbertInsights on the movie:
Audio commentary notes:
All posts related to Violet Evergarden.
Update: Found this Github repo with self-made fonts adapted from the anime.
Update 23 September 2020: A summary of the cast event (in Japanese) has been released on the official movie website.
Update 2 October 2020: See this post for the answer to the easter egg.
Update 5 October 2020: Corrected the post as the Nunkish script is based on Tamil, not English.
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