Review -- Summer Wars

Merry Christmas! Here's a family movie I meant to review a year and a half ago.
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Summer Wars is probably not the best movie you've ever seen. It probably won't change your life. But it's definitely worth watching. 

Those familiar with Hosoda's work will recognize the plot of Summer Wars from Digimon: Our War Game. It's still got jagged edges from where he ripped out the Digimon script and pasted new character names on top. I'm a fan of that Digimon movie (American fans might be more familiar with it as the middle of the Digimon "movie" released in the States. Said movie was actually three movies badly cut-and-pasted together.) and of the one episode of the Digimon anime he penned. I don't recall the name of the episode, but it's that really sad one where Tai goes back to the real world and hangs out with Kari, but then he realizes he has to go back to the digital world. Man, I miss that show. Too bad it's not getting re-released on DVD or anything.

Digimon tangents aside, Summer Wars does not suffer from the borrowed storyline. It actually improves upon it, and makes you feel pretty good about yourself in the process. Hosada has an energetic, distinct, and likable bunch of characters, which always impresses me.

The film opens introducing Oz, a social media of global-domination proportions. It's like every internet service you ever use bundled into one website. Protagonist Kenji is the anime-typical timid high-school boy. He and friend have summer jobs being code monkeys for Oz. Kenji gets roped into (read: eagerly volunteers) going with crush Natsuki to her family's country estate for her great-grandmother's 90th birthday. What Kenji doesn't know is that Natsuki intends to introduce him as her betrothed. Old-fashioned family indeed. The charade is only a little subplot in the grand scheme of a shadowy AI-villain taking over Oz and plunging the world into chaos, eventually culminating in a nuclear missile threat and some kind of Japanese card game.

Even this villain isn't at the core of the film, though. Summer Wars is a true family film, both in its target demographic and subject matter. This movie is about the members of the Jinnouchi family - quiet Kazuma, smooth-talking Wabisuke, matriarch Sakae, boisterious Mansuke, policeman Shota, the computer guy, the -hiko brothers who all work for emergency services, and about twenty other family members. Every character is distinct, realistic, and as three-dimensional as they can get in their two or three lines of dialogue. They will charm you. The whole film and its many lessons on the importance of family could easily devolve into the sort of annoying wal-mart bargin bin animated movie fare, but everything is sincere, genuine, and crafted with care. Do not think less of Hosada for expanded on a previously used plot. It is by far the better for having been in this movie.

Shout out to the solid dub cast! Not a bad one in the bunch. Special shout-outs to Mike Sinterniklaas, Brina Palencia, and Maxey Whitehead. With such a large cast, most of the FUNimation regulars are in this somewhere.

If that doesn't convince you, check out the trailer. Granted, it's a bit misleading. It uses most of the best footage, all of the important plot devices, and catchy music that's not actually in the film.

Rating: A-
+ gorgeous animation; huge, unique, and likable cast; a little something for everyone, from fighting to romance - even a transformation sequence. solid, if cliched writing.
- whole is not greater than sum of parts. for all the good things it has going, it still lacks a punch. perhaps too cliched. only one really good bit of music in the whole thing, and it's not a big enough payoff.