Name: Revolutionary Girl Utena (少女革命ウテナ)
Genre: Shoujo, Yuri, Magical Girls, Drama, Psychological
Dub/Sub: Dub
My Rating: 10/10
Revolutionary Girl Utena is about a princess whose parents passed away when she was very young. She was stricken by grief until one day a prince came to wipe her tears and gave her a ring bearing a rose crest, telling her they will one day meet again. This deeply moves the young princess, so much so that she decides to become a prince herself. But was that really such a good idea?
Name: Adolescence of Utena (少女革命ウテナ アドゥレセンス黙示録)
Genre: Shoujo, Romance, Fantasy, Yuri, Psychological
Dub/Sub: Dub
My Rating: 10/10
I see the Utena movie more as a retelling of the anime than a direct sequel, but some fans theorize that Ohtori is a time-loop and the movie is a continuation of that after the main series. I have to disagree with this because Utena and Anthy being stuck in a time-loop at Ohtori would make the ending of both the anime and the movie entirely pointless. This will be discussed more on my Utena page, but for now I wanted to preface this entry with that.
As a shorter, alternative retelling of Revolutionary Girl Utena, this movie does an excellent job of capturing the overall narrative of the story, without making the viewer feel like something is missing or there's still loose ends to be tied up. I thought the straight-forward portrayal of Ohtori Academy as an eerie and other-worldly place removed from reality was an interesting choice compared to the anime only revealing this at the end. The endlessly winding steps, Anthy's sprawling rose garden, and Shiori's dreamlike room all covered with bedsheets creates an uneasy atmosphere, something's not right and you need to leave. Of course, getting to see Utena and Anthy break free and escape Ohtori together was so fulfulling compared to the ambiguous end of the main series. Adolescence of Utena is one of the few cases where the movie is just as good, if not better, than the series it was originally adapted from.
Name: Hunter x Hunter (ハンター×ハンター) (1999 & 2011)
Genre: Adventure, Shounen
Dub/Sub: Dub
My Rating: 10/10
Hunter x Hunter is the first anime I ever watched (I'm not counting watching Pokemon and Sailor Moon as a child because I had no idea what anime was then), and I absolutely loved it. I think the reason I love it so much has quite a bit to do with the time in in my life that I watched it, though of course the anime itself is incredible. I started it the summer after my freshman year of high school while sitting on the air mattress in my mom's office that had become my bed for most of the summer due to black mold in my room(─‿‿─). I would stay up late into the night curled up with my laptop watching Hunter x Hunter and listening to the crickets chirp outside. Looking back on it, I'm not sure why that's such a fond memory, but I feel peaceful and cozy whenever I think about it. Naturally, I had to tell my friends all about it and force ask them to watch it as well. They also loved it and we all sat together that summer watching it on my friends couch until half of us fell asleep. Those days were the happiest of my life so far, though I didn't realize it at the time, and Hunter x Hunter reminds me of those cherished memories with my friends. And thus concludes the world's sappiest anime "review" (this is not a review at all).
Name: A Silent Voice (聲の形)
Genre: Drama, Romance
Dub/Sub: Dub
My Rating: 8/10
It's been a while since I watched this movie, but the story follows a deaf girl named Shouko Nishimiya who is bullied relentlessly by her classmates, namely Shouya Ishida. When their school finally takes action against Shouko's tormentors, Shouya is blamed entirely for the bullying, despite his classmates gladly joining in previously, and becomes ostricized by his peers. After experiencing the isolation and ostricization that Shouko experienced at his hand, Shouya seeks to make amends by returning the notebook Shouko used to communicate.
Name: Neon Genesis Evangelion (新世紀エヴァンゲリオン)
Genre: Drama, Psychological
Dub/Sub: Dub
My Rating: 6.5/10
Baby's first "deep" anime.
Honestly, I don't think I have anything to say about this anime that hasn't already been said a thousand times before. I also watched this in high school and don't remember most of it ^_^. Though, I do remember thinking the imagery started to just feel like imagery for the sake of being "deep" and didn't add much to story, so it just felt kind of pretentious and pointless. Not a bad anime by any means, I just don't think it's the earth-shattering brain-bender it's often painted as by devoted fanboys.
Name: Howl's Moving Castle (ハウルの動く城)
Genre: Romance, Fantasy
Dub/Sub: Dub
I read the book soon after finishing this movie because I wanted more of these two, they're just too cute! This was my first Ghibli movie and I definitely need to watch more. Howl has got to be one of my favorite male leads in any romance film/anime ever, he's so pitiful and charming at the same time. In particular, his habit of carrying a guitar around to woo women while not actually being able to play it, and covering his house in slime during a state of deep depression because he accidentally dyed his hair the wrong color are some of my favorite Howl Moments. I saw a post a long time ago that said the book is the story from Sophie's perspective, while the movie is from Howl's, and I love this interpretation!
Name: Death Note (デスノート)
Genre: Shounen, Drama
Dub/Sub: Dub
My Rating: 7/10
I think Death Note was one of the first few animes I watched after Hunter x Hunter. It's fun to watch if you don't take it seriously, like at all.