Grimerlana Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike

Sexyloutak Absolutely the worst movie.

AnhartLinkin This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

Jonah Abbott There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

ufster ufster What's not to find here that you would expect in an elaborate tragedy: War, corruption, greed, betrayal... At its core Windaria is about the journey of a boy, ambitious yet unaware of at what cost his ambitions will come to fruition. Buyer beware, true love doesn't conquer all in this, mostly unknown in the west, gem. Quite the contrary, blinded by greed, lust and the desire for self-worth through the admiration of others, love takes a distant fourth place right up until the end when our protagonist repents for his sins and decides that love was all he needed after all. As it stands, it works more of as a cautionary tale. Full disclosure: I watched it first as a young boy at the age of 8 or 9 and it had quite an impact on me so that years later when I managed to drag it from the collective knowledge of the interwebs, I had no idea whether the actual experience of it would match the memory. In all fairness, it came as close as possible.

hellraiser7 The beauty of Shakespere's stories are they are timeless, there is just more than one way to tell them and their content is as significant now as it was then. Based on a Manga mini series, this film is an underrated and forgotten anime gem that is one of my favorite anime movies. But it's also one of the saddest anime movies because it is a tragedy of manners.The animation for it's time was great, I really like how the world of Windaria is developed, it's almost a bit similar to the world in a bit of the book Keith Roberts "Pavine"where it's a mix of eras. Some things in the world seem a step into the past from the medieval period but also from some of the technology like their weaponry or vehicles making the play a step into the future. The music score is great it has an almost dream like quality which fits both the world and the emotions from the characters.The best of all is in the characters themselves and their stories. In a way we have two stories in one which were inspired by both "Romeo and Juliet" and "Macbeth". This is a double focused format which is something I really don't see much, but it makes sense because it shows there is a parallel between two couples. We really love both these couples and it's heartbreaking when they meet their inevitable doom and it was all because of stupidity of two different forms.The first couple is the obvious Romeo and Juliet. Ahna is a princess of one side and Jier is a prince of another. You really like both the characters, Ahna is a proactive person that is sweet but has sort of a feistyness and adventurous quality to her. Jier is sort of like myself the passive aggressive type he is a bit shy but not short of courage or confidence. We really like the time they spend together because it feels right which makes it all the more heartbreaking when things get worse and both families try to impose their will I'll admit moments like this made me mad at those families, both Ahna and Jier have done no wrong except love each other. Just like in Romeo and Juliet both die because of both their families stupid prejudicial attitudes killed them. Both Ahna and Jier had aspirations in life and it wasn't fair they never had the chance to have them realized, if both families just swallowed their pride and prejudice and listened to the two then their could of been a chance for peace and they would have still been alive but they didn't and in they end both families got nothing but more death, desolation and destruction which is exactly the path of stupidity.And of course we see the other story of Izu and Marlin a bit on the "Macbeth" story. Both are a married couple, I really like the chemistry it really feels like both do have history together. Marlin is sweet likes beautiful things, Izu is fun, funny, proactive, ambitious, kinda egotistical and obnotious (like Ben Tenison in the "Ben 10" franchise) but in a harmless sense at first. This guy most of the time talks about what he desires which is mainly to be a hero of some sort as well as a bit more in his everyday existence he rants about. We do see his life and what he has and does, and we can clearly see all of those things he desires he already has from stopping a dam from flooding his town to his beautiful wife; there are those people out there who feel what they have isn't enough when in reality their lives really are great, I always think "What the hell more do you really want?" It also reminds me of what Yoda on "The Empire Strikes Back" once said on the fundamental problem of dreaming, "All his life looked away to the future, to the horizon, instead of where he was, what he was doing?" At the point he sells out and sins that when I really hate the guy and that's the point, just like Macbeth he has sold out his soul, Izu's ambition becomes his own stupidity as he lets it override his conscious, by selling out to his rivals and killing innocent people all for an ambition worth nothing once Izu is betrayed by the people he helped, and Izu in the end realizes his sins but it was too late.As an old saying goes, "You don't realize what you have until it's gone." Rating: 4 stars

JTurner82 This little-known feature from 1986 didn't receive much attention when it was brought in America, but I have a strange attraction to it. WINDARIA was probably my absolute FIRST experience with mature-themed Japanese anime. I purchased this title blindly without knowing the meaning of the catch phrase "animation for adult audiences", but viewing WINDARIA left me with surprise.No, it's not graphically violent or sexually explicit like some other "adult" Anime available, but WINDARIA is very much an animated fairy tale aimed at grown-ups rather than children. Set in a lavish countryside where a giant tree looms over everything (shades of Miyazaki's CASTLE IN THE SKY here), WINDARIA's plot involves two kingdoms at war with each other. The prince and princess from each empire are deeply in love with each other, but their romance is both forbidden and doomed by the unyielding conflict between their parents. This ROMEO AND JULIET style set-up is merely a back-story to the tale.The real main character is a young farmer who dreams of a chance to be a hero and famous. When a mysterious stranger arrives with an offer to act as a spy for the warring kingdoms in return for wealth and fame, the young farmer jumps at the chance. He ends up paying a terrible price, however, for in carrying out his mission, the farmer betrays both his devoted wife and homeland--and even destroys an entire kingdom.If the above sounds downbeat and depressing, it is. Indeed, I was totally unprepared for such a complicated, dark story involving deceit, greed, and infidelity. What made WINDARIA appealing, however, were the artwork and the lovely soundtrack. The frame rate is a bit on the stiff side, but the character designs and backgrounds are gorgeous and imaginative. Satoshi Kudakura's score is beautiful and tearjerking, and can easily hold its own against Joe Hisaishi's works for Hayao Miyazaki's films.The U.S. release, however, is another story. At the time I purchased the video, I did not realize that I was watching a heavily edited, outrageously rewritten version of what was once a more complicated story. From what I have learned across the net, U.S. distributor Harmony Gold and its script writer, Carl Macek, saw fit to market this adult story toward children, hence why some of the more intense scenes were omitted and, probably all the characters were renamed from Izu, Marlin, and Jihl to the likes of Alan, Marie, and Roland, respectably. In addition to which, they even added a narrator (the protagonist at an older age who recalls his vile deeds from long ago) which was NOT in the original version. This is why many Anime purists have held this edited dub (in addition to many others produced by Mecak and his equally controversial company, Streamline Pictures) in extremely low regards. (In all fairness, the production company behind WINDARIA, Tatsunoko Productions, is to blame, too; apparently they didn't provide Macek with any materials to the story or the characters, hence the rewritten script.)I can't tell you how dismayed I was to find out about this, because I was emotionally impacted by what was left of WINDARIA, even before learning about what was done to it. It's unfortunate that this movie was cut down from its 101 minute running time. Even more so because there is indeed a lot more subtlety and complexity in the Japanese version that you don't get from this edited version; for instance, the ending is arguably even MORE depressing than the watered down rewrite.Equally dismaying is that this is the only version of WINDARIA that is available on our shores to this day. Indeed, the DVD from ADV Films, a company who has the resources to redub older titles (they did a stellar job redubbing an earlier title from Mecak's, Gainax's NADIA: THE SECRET OF BLUE WATER), is basically just the Carl Mecak dub (with its new title, ONCE UPON A TIME) with NO Japanese LANGUAGE TRACK. I can imagine Anime fans skipping over this, especially since it has become common nowadays to release Anime with its initial language track as well as an optional dub.Yet as I write this, I credit WINDARIA for being the title that introduced me to Japanese Anime; without it, I probably would never have discovered the countless amounts of titles that exist from this multi-faceted genre (Miyazaki's works, LODOSS, NADIA, SLAYERS, HIS AND HER CIRCUMSTANCES, THE VISION OF ESCAFLOWNE OUTLAW STAR... the list goes on and on). It's a shame, though, that this title fell into obscurity; for in spite of its grievous edits, WINDARIA remains a powerful, compelling drama with meaningful messages to take away from. Here is hoping that this underrated title will receive a better treatment with an all new, uncut, faithful dub and its original Japanese language track. It would certainly be best for both the original creators and devoted fans of animation.

darkman-27 Windaria is one of the most depressing films I have just about ever seen, but I was moved by it as well.I really, really like this film despite its small plot holes. The Art and Character designs are just wonderful. If you think that Characters Eyes are too big, then I guess you just don't get it. The soundtrack is outstanding as well.Some things about Windaria still haunt me today... you'll find yourself doing a lot of thinking after you watch this film. I first saw it back in like 1991, I paid $30 for a copy of it because I thought the box art was good, and the story sounded interesting. I scored big; I must have watched this movie about 10+ times. Fairly recently I was able to get a hold of the original Japanese version Subtitled in English. I was very interesting to finally see the movie as it originally intended. I thought it would answer all my questions. It did answer some, but also created some new ones. The difference between versions is quite interesting. For example, I can remember at least one occasion that dialogue existed in the US version, where the Japanese version was silent. Then of course there is some dialogue in the Japanese version that was changed into something completely different in the US version. I must admit, after watching both versions I think I still like the US version best, probably just because it is what I am used to, and is what I saw first.This film is a unique Romeo and Juliet style story, but it goes much deeper than that. It is also not just about one couple, but two. Who struggle because of foolish war, seduction, temptation, and decite.I personally loved this film and give it a 10, as long as you're not anti anime and have an open mind you'll enjoy it as well.