On March 8, Evangelion (EVA) released its latest and most likely final film, New Theater Edition, in Japan.
Although only Japanese theaters currently broadcast this film, the "EVA" series has accumulated a huge number of fans over the years, and "Finale" has also been quickly discussed by fans from all over the world who watched the film in Japan in their own languages, and quickly set off a heated discussion in major forums.
At present, the audience mainly presents a "mixed" attitude towards this film, but no one denies it, this is a series that can be called "great" in the history of world animation.
Today we will not directly criticize "The End", but talk to you about the past and present lives of this series; if "The End" is also released in China one day, we can better understand why Hideaki Anno gave such an ending in "The End".
(The original poster, with the "First Machine", the NERV logo and the iconic industrial punk font, which you have more or less seen somewhere)
In 1980, several science fiction enthusiasts in Osaka formed a creative group called "Daicon Film", which later registered as a company and officially debuted as a short film at the 20th Japan Science Fiction Convention in 1981. Those enthusiasts are called Okada Doshio, Hideaki Anno, Yoshiyuki Sadamoto, Takami Akai, and Makoto Higuchi —each of which is a thunderous name in today's industry.
Daicon Film has produced several sci-fi short films, showing great creative potential and being favored by investors. Subsequently, Daicon Film changed its name to "GAINAX", which is what domestic animation fans call "Otaku".
That period was the last glory of Japan's bubble economy era, and investors' money seemed to be impossible to spend; that time was also the peak of the Japanese animation industry, and everyone wanted to make a "fantastic work"; GAINAX was a model for hard-core enthusiasts to enter the industry, and naturally it was no exception.
In this way, GAINAX and investors hit it off. In 1985, GAINAX began producing its first feature-length science fiction animated film, The Wang Li Cosmic Army.
"Wang Li Cosmic Army" regardless of cost, well-made, on today's Douban rating once approached 9 points of good results; but in that year, it was too advanced and the box office died.
But "Wang Li Cosmic Army" is of great significance to the GANAX and "EVA" series that will be talked about today:
1. GAINAX had to transform into a profitable commercial production company in order to repay the debts of investors;
2. It is also through the production of "Wang Li Cosmic Army" that GAINAX has officially formed its own aesthetic style.
(In the rocket lift-off scene in "Wang Li Cosmic Army", each piece of broken ice is hand-painted by the painter - that painter is Hideaki Anno, the father of the "EVA" series)
Subsequently, GAINAX won word-of-mouth and gained a foothold with two acclaimed works of "Flying Over the Top" and "Sapphire Mystery", while also diligently engaging in some outsourcing work, game development and other business subsidies cash flow, and finally produced this great phenomenon-level work in 1995: "Evangelion".
The story is set in an imaginary future.
An experimental error by humans on the Antarctic continent triggered a catastrophe that swept the globe, and the earth's ecology changed dramatically, which was called the "second shock".
In 2015, when the protagonist lives, a huge mechanical battle group of invaders appears on Earth, known as the "Apostles", who are awakened by the "Second Shock".
A mech directly controlled by the driver's nerves, known as EVA, was developed to take on the "Apostles".
But in reality, the Apostles, the EVA, and the Driver (the Qualified Ones) are not as simple as they seem, and the organizations NERV and SEELE have some other important secrets about the origin and evolution of human beings.
(Classic NERV logo)
Looking at the introduction alone, you may think that "EVA" is just like this - this is a very common "open mech to fight monsters" routine!
But that's exactly what makes the EVA series interesting. Jokingly, at first the audience will think that it is a hot-blooded machine battle animation, then it will feel that it is actually a metaphysical fantasy animation, until the end can find out that it is actually an emotional animation....
(The most typical is the mainland imported version of that year, translated into "New Century Sky eagle warrior" and made a lot of abridgements...."Brave teenager, go and create miracles!") ”）
Why?
First of all, the first impression of the "EVA" series is a bloody battle scene, a huge robot full of personality and a sense of strength, and the protagonist grows up against a powerful enemy.... Seems to be similar to other animations:
(In different versions, the classic protagonist body, the "First Machine" image.) ）
But then, it seems to abruptly introduce some strange elements of the occult: the Kabbalah Tree of Life, Adam and Lilith, the Dead Sea Book, the Seat of Souls, and the name of the body itself in the title, "Evangelion" (meaning "Gospel").
This kind of "mysterious deception" was extremely advanced at the time, instantly allowing the style of "EVA" to open up several similar works of the same era; at the same time, when interpreting fragments related to the occult, the supervisor (that is, animation director) Hideaki Anno could also boldly add his favorite stream of consciousness pictures, so that these fragments have high aesthetic value:
(Hand-painted Kabbalah Tree of Life)
However, as the plot progresses, many seemingly "mysterious" puzzles show their true faces, but bring another layer of metaphor:
For example, the crucial concept in the series: "The Human Completion Plan":
Human beings (whether physical or mental) are made of fragile matter, and the world of the mind is isolated from each other by the body (the wall of the heart), and it is impossible to understand the people around it, and the people around it cannot understand themselves. Violence, crime, sexual impulses, and deception are all despicable means by which human beings protect themselves.
In order for humanity to evolve into higher realms, it is necessary to free the human mind from the shackles of the body and return to the "Egg of Lilith", the birthplace of mankind (all human beings become collective consciousness). Only in this way can we finally dismantle the spiritual barrier between people, so that different spiritual worlds can complement each other and move towards the end of evolution. The Human Completion Plan was created to accomplish this sacred purpose.
Metaphysical concepts that seem to be empty are actually a reflection of social anxiety.
Another example is the protagonist who has no self-confidence, loves to escape, is full of nihilism and lacks care, and is a critique of Japan's young people who have fallen sharply after the collapse of Japan's bubble economy.
In addition, the relationship between the protagonist and his father, the connection between the EVA body, the driver, the insertion plug and the LCL, and the form of each "apostle" are all full of metaphors.
But in fact, what really makes everyone fall in love with the work of "EVA" is actually the growth of the protagonist.
Like GAINAX's other metaphorical work, Special Her (aka FLCL), these metaphors are actually set up to depict the complex inner activities of the protagonist and highlight the growth of the protagonist.
In fact, after watching, the audience is no longer concerned with the grand issues referred to by these metaphors, but on where the protagonist should go under this grand narrative; and when the audience empathizes with the protagonist, he will find that the people around the protagonist seem to appear several times in their lives in different ways.
In this way, nature is still unfinished and unforgettable.
(One of the most famous smiles in the history of animation, I don't know who everyone thought of when they first saw it)
From the first episode of the old TV version in 1995, to the two theatrical versions of "True For You" and "Death and Rebirth" in 1997, and the reset version in 2003, the EVA series has been a classic that many fans have been talking about since then. However, due to financial and artistic expression, the ending given by Hideaki Anno is too obscure, which makes many people have always been grumpy.
Eleven years later, in 2006, Hideaki Anno founded the "Khara" club and launched the first "Prologue" of the "New Theater Edition" series of "EVA", which restarted the series; to "The End", which was released this year, four films, another 15 years.
In the past 26 years, it has influenced more than one generation; even the "new" audience who began watching "EVA" in 2006 may be able to change from a "secondary two" teenager to a "Ben San" social person.
So even though I already know that the ending of the recently released "The End" is far from the imagination and expectations of the year, I still think that the tetralogy of "Prologue", "Broken", "Urgent" ("Q"), and "End" is the best "EVA".
Somehow, I remembered the song of the Universal Youth Hostel:
"Who comes from the mountains, lakes and seas, but is confined to day and night, kitchen and love."
◐