Revue Starlight: The Movie

Tomohiro Furukawa's 2021 animated film continues the series of the same name and follows students at a music academy approaching graduation. This is not a realistic school story: the abstract confrontations called stage duels bring out through sword and song what the characters cannot say to each other. Its interest is the question of who a performer is without a stage: graduation here is not a celebration but the removal of what identity rests on. The visual construction is extremely bold; railway tracks, stage machinery and scenery obey no rule of reality. For anyone who has not watched the series the story stays largely closed, and the symbolism is dense. Who it's for: viewers who like experimental forms in anime and stories about the performing arts. Who it's not for: anyone unfamiliar with the series, or wanting a direct narrative.