Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai. Movie

I just watched this film at the Aniplex showing at the downtown independent. There was no reason for this movie to exist other than as a cash grab. The movie added nothing to the series except tacking on that menma was apparently a loner? Way to tack on the typical pseudo character development cliche onto a character that still remains completely shallow. This movie wasted its opportunities of having character development in all sectors. They turn popo into a running gag instead of developing him (granted they did 2 good scenes showing off his character)and Jintan remains just as shallow as menma. They act all"buddy like" but we don't even see much bonding. Outside of the shack we see them split off into pairs, never venturing off together outside of 1 shrine; as if to say if there wasn't this dead girl we wouldn't even be friends. To top all of that off they leave anaru where she left off in the series because"friendship", if they were gonna go that route why bother teasing us with a few scenes of her anyway?, really faulty logic there. It really does pain me to write this because i really enjoyed the series but this movie was such a huge let down and was made for the wrong reasons.

I watched this movie when it premiered in downtown LA and I didn't really know what to expect. I had just finished the series which was great timing and the quality of the series gave me high expectations for the movie. However the movie basically just retold the story of the series and added in a few extra scenes. The most entertaining part of the movie was the actual "letters to Menma" scenes. Where all the characters are thinking of what to write. These scenes really reveal the feelings that they didn't communicate in the series, and tells what and how much they've changed sinceMenma appeared to Yadomi. Even though the story was simply being retold, I guess the essence of it is to see how the characters truly felt at that time through them writing their letters and then letting it change your perspective while rewatching the same story from the anime series. All in all, for me, the movie just gave me another perspective to think about the original story with, and made the story that much more meaningful and enjoyable.

AnoHana: Letters to Menma follows in the tradition of countless other anime movies before it - that is, it functions mostly as a recap of the original series with some new scenes sprinkled throughout. If you've seen the original anime (and if you haven't go watch it right now before you read this review), then you're familiar with the story and it's resolution, so I'll spare the summary. The actual movie itself takes place roughly a year after Menma's wish has been granted, and catches up with the rest of the Super Peace Busters as they gather together to write their own letters to Menma, sharingtheir thoughts and feelings about what she meant to them and how they're doing now that she's gone. Using this premise, the show switches back and forth between three different perspectives. The first of these are scenes from when the Super Peace Busters were children, and how they welcomed Menma to their group and played around. From there, we follow the characters writing their letters in the present, preparing for a celebration of sorts for their departed friend. And using that as a springboard, we see flashbacks to events from the actual show, as the process of writing the letters brings them back to the surface. The problem with the movie is not so much anything to do with it's characters, story, poor writing, or what have you. Simply put, it suffers from a lack of new content - while maybe half the movie features new scenes (both in the show's present and past), the greater part of it consists of flashbacks and scenes from the original anime. Put together with how often the perspective changes, the result often feels disjointed and slightly unfocused. What AnoHana: Letters to Menma does well, however, is provide a little more closure for fans of the anime. Getting to see the Super Peace Busters playing around as children was priceless, and certain scenes even add even more emotional gravitas to the show's powerful ending. That's a tricky feat for something as well written and self-contained as AnoHana - one wrong move and you risk looking revisionist or retroactively harming the story's original impact. And while there wasn't much development during the scenes set in the present, getting to catch up with the characters a year later felt a little like revisiting old friends and was rewarding in it's own way. When all is said and done, this is a good movie. It's not without it's problems, and it's not one you should watch without seeing the show first, but it serves nicely as a sort of 'where are they now' and does a fine job of adding additional back story without damaging the integrity of the original show. If you're already a fan of the show, there's nothing you can lose from watching this movie.

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