The movie is based on the novel Colorful (2007) by Eto Mori and was directed by a veteran animator Keiichi Hara. After five years in making, the film premiered before the public and received an enthusiastic response. It won Excellent Animation of the Year at the Japan Academy Prize and the Animation Film Award at the 65th Mainichi Film Awards. The film was also highly regarded worldwide, winning the Audience Award and Special Distinction prize at the 2011 Annecy International Animated Film Festival.

 

The plot begins with a recently deceased soul arriving in the world of the dead. Here, it meets a young spirit named “PuraPura,” who claims that it has been given another chance to live. The soul is thus placed in the body of Makoto Kobayashi, a 16-year-old boy who has just committed suicide. Nevertheless, in order to remain as Makoto, the soul must first pass the test to find out the sin it had committed in a former life before the time limit set by PuraPura runs out.

 

One of the most notable features is the fact that the movie overcomes the limitation of 2D digital animation through the usage of rotoscope, which is tracing over the frames of live action in order to be used in animated films. Even though 2D animation lacks a sense of reality, the rotoscoped portrayal of the surrounding environment from Makoto’s neighborhood to his school makes the audience feel as if they are inside the story, which consequently helps them to get fully immersed in the plot and easily sympathize with the main protagonist. While the animation itself cogently succeeds in capturing the fantastical atmosphere regarding the worlds of life and death, the rotoscoping technique further prevents the movie from becoming too surreal and abstract, thus enabling the viewers to relate to the story on their own.

 

Furthermore, the plot itself holds original aspects which directly contrast with the West, namely its Christian belief of resurrection. While the Western concept of revival is closely related to the salvation of one’s soul, the movie attacks and overturns this conventional idea by granting a new life filled with pain and sorrow. As the story proceeds, the soul realizes that Makoto was being bullied in school, that his mother was having an affair with another man, and that his crush was involved in statutory rape. Amidst the painful recognition, the movie expresses doubt as to the value of life, tauntingly questioning whether it is worth living even when a newly given life is plunged into a pit of agony.

 

Nevertheless, the film is not an advocate of nihilism. Indeed, amongst the shattered pieces of life, the movie opens another door through Makoto’s relationships. After the soul finds out about Makoto’s grim past, his sadness and anger become an infection that diffuses to his family and friends. Here the movie explicitly shows how humans are emotional reactants that sensitively respond to the slightest changes of others’ feelings and actions. People are like numerous knots that form a single net. Although they might not be aware of it every second in life, they influence or become influenced by others, just as Makoto was bullied in school, yet at the same time encouraged another outcast to overcome her self-consciousness and endure hardships.

 

This culminates to the most memorable scene in the movie when Makoto and his friend Saotome locate a railroad of Tamaden, a trolley between Shibuya and Nikotama, which ceased operations in 1969. Saotome’s hobby of tracking down abandoned railways shows how anything regarded as worthless can be reg arded as an invaluable asset to another. This imagery of railroads that traverse each other consequently defines human existence, of how people are defined and valued through intricate strings of relationships. No one is unwanted and obsolete. Every single person is a priceless member, loving and beloved by others, which ultimately holds society together.

 

“Life is colorful,” quoted Purapura. Just as the harmony of colors creates an artistic masterpiece, the diverse layers of relationships mold human identity and form the basis of their existence. Only when people realize and embrace their position in the vast net of life, only when they take responsibility for their actions, will they realize the preciousness, the beauty of their existence amongst the social bonds.

 

Of course, there were a few drawbacks to the movie as well. The changes in Makoto’s character were too drastic and the last part of the film became monotonous, which mostly relied on the narrative of the soul who gave a lengthy explanation of what sin it had committed. Nonetheless, to those who feel hollow echoes of isolation, to those who have lost their purpose for life in the overwhelming burden of one’s occupation, Colorful will become a startling admonition that provides a meaningful chance for the audience to self-examine their lives and to rediscover values through their interrelationships with others.

 

 

Title: Colorful

Director: Keiichi Hara

Running Time: 129 minutes

Release Date: 2012.05.10 (Seoul)