KONSHUU | Volume 56, Issue X
THE APPEAL OF KARA NO KYOUKAI TONY T.
Editor-In-Chief
3rd Year, Economics and Data Science
The music is also superb.
The Kara no Kyoukai films are an interesting bunch. Adapted from Nasu Kinoko’s independently released novel series of the same name, they hold a somewhat interesting role in history given the time of their original release in the late 1990s. Given the relatively recent emergence of light novels and visual novels as dominant mediums of otaku consumption in the past twenty or thirty years, the Kara no Kyoukai novels released at a point where less industry-reliant and more independent works became more prominent. The release of Nasu’s seminal Fate/Stay Night visual novel is perhaps a more obvious example, though the ties between that behemoth and Kara no Kyoukai afford the latter a role almost as a sort of herald for times to come. The main Kara no Kyoukai animated adaptation, released in the form of seven films between 2007 and 2009, holds a similar role, albeit in a different context. Today, ufotable is one of the most well known studios in the industry, with series like Kimetsu no Yaiba and Fate/Zero standing out. Yet, their work prior to Kara no Kyoukai could charitably be described as non-hits – it’s not often you hear the mainstream audience discuss, say, Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight! or Futakoi Alternative. It seems obvious to draw a corollary line between the studio’s superb adaptation of Nasu’s work and their true breakout hit in the Fate/Zero anime, a light novel strongly tied to Nasu’s wider meta universe. While nothing in the previous paragraph indicates my perception of these series’ quality (in fact, I quite dislike Kimetsu no Yaiba and most Fate properties aside from Zero), I think it’s useful context to illustrate why the main seven Kara no Kyoukai films are so resoundingly interesting. Given the novels and films’ roles in terms of widening the audience for otaku media to a more mainstream demographic, it’s surprising how the series’ strengths, particularly in the fifth film, lie in far more understated aspects. Frankly speaking, the series’ narrative isn’t that interesting to me. To an extent, it’s rather typical for what one might expect from a light novel as it places a large focus on teenage character dynamics and the overall concept of finding oneself. Granted, Kara no Kyoukai is a bit edgier than more modern releases in its medium, tackling somewhat sensitive subject material than what one might expect. One could also reasonably argue that the formulaic elements are mostly not the fault of Kara no Kyoukai, but rather the result of later imitators. Still, the actual storyline of the films is almost entirely superfluous to their quality. The majority of light novel adaptations are somewhat hard for
me to get through. I owe this to a plethora of aspects, but chief among them is a general overemphasis on verbal explanations as opposed to clever visual directing, likely the fault of studios directly adapting from source material. After all, within the literary medium, everything is, by necessity, described using words. Monologues seem especially popular amongst light novel authors. This can have a rather negative effect when transitioning to an audiovisual medium like an anime series or film. Simple monologues get transformed into agonizingly protracted voiceover segments where things the audience is supposed to feel are instead described to them while the visuals stay static. There’s obvious exceptions like the Monogatari series which emphasized interesting directing while still keeping the series’ overblown monologues, but the manner in which Kara no Kyoukai handles it is perhaps more impressive. Since the actual quality of direction varies wildly through each of the main films, I’ll discuss them in separate parts, starting with the first one. Overlooking View highlights many of the series' strengths, particularly in atmospheric storytelling. Dialogue isn’t nearly as dense compared to most light novel adaptations, as the film follows the incessantly repeated (though still valid) assertion that films ought to show, not tell. Though viewers are probably incredibly confused in this film, as the films’ non-chronological release order actually render this film the fifth in a more direct narrative viewing sense, I would argue that is itself the main intention. Rather than being caught up in the storyline, the film focuses on getting the audience invested in other elements, namely the characters’ strange interactions and the cinematography. Many shots in the film instead draw attention to the rather beautiful and almost hypnotizing backgrounds. ufotable’s use of digital techniques such as light gradients became far more pronounced during the 2010s, though this film series is a first indication of what came after, as the techniques are particularly suited for the sort of urban fantasy that Kara no Kyoukai strives towards. The second film, A Study in Murder – Part 1, is perhaps my least favorite out of the main seven. Focusing far less on ambience and interesting direction and placing emphasis on the most uninteresting aspect of the series, its narrative, the second film does little to show why Kara no Kyoukai is an interesting series worth discussing. The production values are still fairly interesting, with ufotable showing off glimpses of their future as a studio renowned for digital effects mastery. My assertion of A Study in Murder – Part 1 as the worst in the main series still renders it a decent 6/10 in my scale as it still features certain trademark strengths of the series as a whole. But other than that, the film’s overwhelming emphasis on the generic teenage angst character dynamics is its biggest weakness. Movie 2 is almost the direct inverse of the third film, Remaining Sense of