Echoes Season Review

A Silent Voice Review

Found this wonderful japanese movie. Another movie which deals with complex emotions like the effects of bullying in elementary school. A very insightful perspective from a little bully to an introverted person and his eventual realization of his psychological struggles
A Silent voice by Reiko Yoshida

This review by IGN

Finding redemption in friendship. By Alex Osborn

At first glance, A Silent Voice may appear to be an elaborate warning about the destructive effects of bullying, but labeling it as such simply wouldn't do the film justice. In unearthing the serious and ugly consequences of persecution among peers, K-On! director Naoko Yamada's beautifully animated film—based on Yoshitoki Ōima's manga—delivers an emotional and redemptive journey through the depths of depression to uncover the meaning of friendship.

Upon transferring to a new elementary school, a hearing-impaired girl named Shoko Nishimiya (Saori Hayami) is preyed upon by her unrelenting peers, including the mischievous Shoya Ishida (Miyu Irino). The way in which his "harmless" teasing, which is initially written off by their teacher, quickly spirals out of control, is portrayed in a disturbingly believable fashion, underscored by the subtle peer pressure that propels Ishida's actions. All the while, the bullying has left Nishimiya guilt-ridden, as she blames herself for a disability she can't control. This is beautifully evidenced in her evocative facial expressions, which go a long way in communicating the pain and frustration of someone who can't express themselves verbally.

Nishimiya timidly introduces herself to the class

Instead of demonizing Ishida and making him out to be a one-dimensional jerk, A Silent Voice flips the script, making Ishida not only someone you sympathize with, but someone you can't help but root for. When Ishida's bullying reaches a breaking point, he finds himself ostracized by his peers, which exposes an even greater view on the cruelty of youth and how quickly one's so-called friends can turn on them to protect their own skin.

Filled with loneliness and self-resentment, Ishida slips into a severe state of depression that is expertly teased in the flash forward that opens the film. In an effort to escape the pit of despair that traps him, a high school-aged Ishida sets out make amends, which serves as the narrative springboard for this story of redemption.

Exit Theatre Mode

What follows is an emotional coming-of-age journey about opening up to others and learning to forgive oneself. While a romantic element is present, it serves to complement, rather than overshadow, Ishida's pursuit of the true meaning of friendship, which, according to Ishida's bushy-haired classmate Tomohiro Nagatsuka (Kenshō Ono), "lies somewhere beyond things like words and logic."

Likewise, the expanded view into Ishida's home life, as well as that of Nishimiya's, provides additional context for understanding the mental states of both Ishida and Nishimiya, thereby heightening the emotional impact of their actions (both past and present) and the ripple effect it has on those closest to them. One particular scene during which Ishida's mom confronts him about his dire physiological state is extremely effective in hammering home the wide-reaching impact of depression, however insular it may seem to the person crippled by its effects.

Ishida's stark 180-degree turn from being an ignorant, self-absorbed bully to an emotionally bankrupt teenager, humbled by a desperate desire to atone for the sins of his elementary school days, is entirely believable, thanks to the brilliant pacing and expertly woven narrative threads that create an emotional coherency to the progression of his character. As someone whose childhood friendships were built in service of self-gratification, Ishida's road to establishing genuine friendships is a cathartic journey that nearly everyone will be able to relate to in some capacity.

Ishida awkwardly attempts to establish a friendship with Nishimiya

Kyoto Animation is widely regarded as one of Japan's most talented animation studios, and A Silent Voice certainly lives up to the studio's pedigree. The dynamic camera offers multiple perspectives of any given scene, providing a real sense of place and preventing the film from ever feeling visually stagnant. Likewise, the camera's varying focus goes a long way in not only adding to the film's visual appeal, but outwardly reflecting Ishida's internal state. Shots of the ground provide a first-person perspective of Ishida's downcast disposition, and accompanying shots of the bustling crowd around Ishida, with only his face in focus, reinforce his detachment from those around him. The film goes so far as to superimpose purple X's on the faces of those to whom he's estranged, and while this visual cue initially appears a bit unnecessary and distracting, the way in which it's handled over the course of the film, right up to its emotionally rousing end, ultimately justifies its inclusion.

The gorgeous backgrounds must also be praised for their lovingly-crafted, painterly aesthetic, which marry beautifully with the varied, yet coherent character designs. From the sunshine-soaked, lush outdoor locales to the dark and rainy streets that reflect the headlights from passing nighttime traffic, each and every setting is incredibly detailed and a sight to behold.

The only minor gripe I have with A Silent Voice is the inclusion of one particular song amongst an otherwise subdued and moving score. The somber and introspective tones that accompany the harrowing flashforward that opens the film come to an abrupt halt when The Who's "My Generation" blares as we're transported back in time to see a young Ishida playing with his friends. While the song may suit the mood of that sequence when taken in isolation, it feels out of place in the greater context of the story and tonally incongruous with the rest of the film. Conversely, the rest of the soundtrack is appropriately subtle and sparse, given the film's subject matter, and comes to an emotionally satisfying climax at the very end.

A Silent Voice Shoya seeks redemption years after the way he led his class in bullying a young, deaf girl named Shoko. This link directs to a retail affiliate. IGN may receive a commission from your purchase. The Verdict

A Silent Voice realistically portrays the horrible consequences of bullying and uses it as the foundation for an emotional coming-of-age story about a teenager's battle with depression and his quest for redemption. The film's brilliant pacing and expertly woven narrative deliver an empowering story that will stick with you long after the credits roll. The beautiful backgrounds, well realized characters and stunning animation go a long way in elevating the film's emotional impact, making for one of the most touching and powerful movies I have seen all year

veyyil movie review

i recently got the dvd version of this movie and decided to watch it,i knew that this movie was a hit but i wasn't impressed by the trailer and didn't go by its box office records cause even dhanush starrer "thiruvilaiyadal arambam" was a hit and that was the worst crap i have ever seen. but i regret my decisiosn now cause veyyil is an amazing movie and it completely blew me away atlast a nice village movie with "bharathiraja style" looks like back to the 80s.This is extremely well made and hats off to the director Vasantha balan ,he has made the best tamil ovie in recent times noe lets go to the review
Where can i start everything about this movie is excellent it starts with Murugesan- Pasupathy (virumandi fame)killing a group of people and threatening them to give him the location of the villain and after that he cuts his throat.at this moment i thought this was going to be another bloodfest like virumandi but i was pleasantly surprised. ,from there pasupathy tells his flashback from his childhood days.
The picturisation of the life of a village kid was wonderful with the song "veyilodu vilayadi" a tune to our ears.We follow the life of murugesan along with his brother and how he flees from his village after the public beating he suffers at the hands of his father.He is a film addict so he basically spends his day by watching movies in theatres with the money he stole from home.He basically loses that money also and starts working in the theatre itself.The scene then moves after 20 years where he is an operator in the theatre and falls in love with the girl living opposite to the theatre ,her parents don't agree to this and her father tries to hang murugesh but she tries to stop him by commiting suicide,murugesh survives.now his life has turned to the worse with his lover dead and the theatre owner planning to close it down as it is no longer financially viable.this forces murugesh to return back to his village but he is hesitant as he stole before he ran away.Left with no other choice he returns to his village,there he finds that his brother(bharat) is doing well with an advertising company and is the bread winner in his family.His father doesnt accept him but his brother accepts him whole heartedly.the rest of the film is about murugesh's mental turmoil of his brother's love for him and his guilt of not being a responsible son or elder brother.there is a parallel love story between bharat and bhavana which provides some comedic scenes not to mention the story of pandi(played by shreya reddy of ss music fame) .then it results in the climax where the fight between his brother and his rival agencies goons resulting in bharat getting injured and murugesh taking revenge at the cost of his own life.finally it ends with the scene where the father is making posters of his sons death anniversary stating that he is atlast proud of his son who he has rejected when he was alive.
i would like to mention certain scenes which moved me like the one when murugesh talks to pandi about that his house will be quite when he is around but lightens up once when his brother returns from work.Also the scene where murugesh tells his fatherthat he wouldnt have run away if he hadnt made to suffer the public humiliation dealt to him by his father. this is probably a lesson to all the parents and how they should try to understand a child's psyche when dealing with them.this is a classic movie for the ages i would strongly recommend it to all and even non tamil viewers to watch this movie cause this is a must see. hope you liked my review.

green street hooligans movie review

When i saw this movie i wasn't expecting much from it cause i've never heard of it.the movie stars Elijah wood(lord of the rings star).He is studying journalism in harvard but gets expelled from it after accused of possessing drugs which was actually done by his wealthy roommate.He travels to england to meet his sister cause he doesn't want to face his father.there ,he meets his brother in law and gets acquainted with his brother Pete.Pete was the leader of the football hooligan club for west ham united which calls themselves the GSE.He gets fascinated by the firm and joins them in their world of violence and brotherhood.This movie gives a perspective on the hooligan culture in england and the "firms" involved.This movie illustrates the rivalry between two rival firms and the bloody violence involved.The fight ensues and culminates into being Elijah's brother in law mortally wounded and him realising the futility of such a "firm" and its purpose and he decides to leave the firm.This is a decent and short movie probably could have made a better documentary than a movie.