ANIME REVIEW: “Sound! Euphonium: The Movie – Our Promise: A Brand New Day”

ANIME REVIEW: “Sound! Euphonium: The Movie – Our Promise: A Brand New Day”

July 10th, 2019

W.R. Miller

Imagine an animated feature with no explosions. No fart gags. No giant robots pummeling each other. No wacky talking animals. Instead, we have a movie anchored in the real world, a slice-of-life story of high school students practicing their musical instruments, all the while wrestling with issues of self esteem. The biggest threat? Losing a band competition.

This is the world of Sound! Euphonium: The Movie – Our Promise: A Brand New Day. It relies on themes common in Japanese animation: the pursuit of excellence, never giving up, and engaging in teamwork—just as we see in Princess Nine, Pokémon, the Dragon Ball franchise and many others.

The film continues the story from two seasons of the TV series, Sound! Euphonium, based on the novels by Ayano Takeda. For the uninitiated, the distributor, Eleven Arts, wisely includes a recap of the show’s first two seasons.

Another option would be to visit Crunchyroll and view the seasons there. Hit the “Oldest” tab for the first season. This provides a more gradual introduction of the characters, rather than assuming you automatically know who they are when you see the movie.

You can also visit Hibike! Euphonium Wiki to identify the characters. Click the image for their bio.

Our lead heroine is Kumiko Oumae—that’s the girl with boyfriend Shuichi in the beginning—their names unspoken until later. It’s her second year at Kitauji High School. She plays the Euphonium, a brass instrument related to the trombone. Kumiko and her friends in the concert band club gear up for the National Championship. And that’s the plot.

Director Tatsuya Ishihara does a fine job depicting life at a Japanese high school, where the students dress in sailor-type uniforms, work in disciplined routines, and “do their best” for their school. With an assist from CG, the backgrounds are strikingly detailed, and blend nicely with the characters. Kyoto Animation is to be applauded for their work, keeping the characters “on model” throughout, though the movements are not as nuanced as they are in Mamoru Hosada’s Mirai. The angst-level is not as great as in Princess Nine, but perhaps the filmmakers wanted the audience to have a more pleasant experience.

The film climaxes with the high school band performing their concert which, in reality, is played by Senzoku Gakuen College of Music’s Freshman Wind Ensemble. Do they win the competition? Let’s just say the film leaves the door open for more adventures (which they have in sequel novels).

Fathom Events will screen Sound! Euphonium: The Movie on Thursday, July 11th, in Japanese with English subtitles, and an English-dubbed version on Monday, July 15th, both days at 7:00 p.m. local time. Visit FathomEvents.com for a complete list of theater locations.

The film’s American debut on DVD and Blu Ray has yet to be announced.

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W.R. Miller

W.R. Miller - known informally as “Bob” – has written for Starlog, Comics Scene, Animation Magazine and Animation World Magazine. Bob has been involved in animation for two decades, as a writer, character animator, special effects animator, and storyboard artist - For more information about Bob, check his website: http://wrmilleronline.com/.

He has just completed Batman: The Animated Interviews, a five-volume work featuring the executives, producers, directors, writers, actors, designers, storyboard artists and composers involved with the making of Batman: The Animated Series and its spinoffs. BearManor Media is the publisher.