Day Twenty-Nine: Kara no Kyoukai 6: Boukyaku Rokuon (MotM 2017)

kara no kyoukai 6

This won’t be long.

Everything I’ve criticized the first film of doing is multiplied here in Part 6, except without the veil of ignorance set upon the audience. Here, they manage to make the plot and the characters even more simplistic than they already were in movies past. Better yet, Part 6 stars the male lead’s younger “sister,” who is in love with him. Because anime. But she’s adopted, so it doesn’t matter. Because anime. Her characterization includes being in love with her brother, and getting embarrassed when someone blurts out that they know that she’s in love with her brother. Aside from this, she exudes a sort of naivety that suits her age well. She is also in love with her brother. Getting tired of me saying that? Film wouldn’t shut the fuck up about it, either.

Plot structure is the exact same as Parts 1 and 3; introduce characters, introduce conflict, let it fester as they try to figure shit out, and final, flashy fight to end with either a sappy resolution or bleak foreshadowing. What makes it even better is the antagonist of this film is so… uninteresting and unimportant that she may as well not even exist. And the reasoning behind her antagonizing is… well, just as uninteresting and unimportant. The entirety of this film felt like a cast-off OVA, as nothing truly felt important to the bigger spectrum and characters only occupied the screen for the sake of doing so. Barely any development (of characters one would care about), hardly any stakes, and missing a lot of that intrigue that, even if the film was somewhat off-kilter, managed to reside in the backdrop to some extent.

The only saving point for the film is animation and sound implementation. It still looks great, with a lot of imaginative spectacles that make the magic feel as though it means anything. It boosts entertainment as well as a keen eye for aestheticism, something that the series in a whole knows how to manipulate. Still, it doesn’t hold a candle to Part 5. I also enjoyed listening to the film, as the choice of music helped make the mood of pseudo-seriousness feel splendid to pay attention to. The fight scene between the male lead’s sister and the antagonist is a high point, being the best part of the film, both from a dedication to spirited choreography and animation and because it has little competition.

It’s the worst of the films thus far, though that doesn’t surprise me based on user ratings on MAL. I didn’t think it would be that bad, and to some extent, it isn’t. However, when adding into account that the film is almost a carbon copy of two other movies prior to it with less likable characters (or more likable characters taking a backseat) and a less serious plot, it’s almost a spit in the face. Production value saves it from being a nearly worthless endeavor—thank God it had at least that.

Final Score: 3.5/10

The rating for this title and all others can be found on MyAnimeList.

For more, check out the March of the Movies Archive!

One thought on “Day Twenty-Nine: Kara no Kyoukai 6: Boukyaku Rokuon (MotM 2017)

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