Promare Review

Synopsis
30 years ago, people across the world began combusting. In the aftermath, those who could control the fires were called Burnish. In present day, Galo Thymos (Kenishi Matsuyama / Bill Kametz) the newest firefighter of Burning Rescue, works to stop the Burnish and protect the people of Promepolis from fires.

Review
Promare is the first animated feature from Studio Trigger, the Japanese animation studio whose animators and creators are behind such animes as Gurren Lagenn, Kill la Kill, and Little Witch Academia. While I haven’t seen most of their work, my friends I saw this movie with have and noted influences from and similarities to several of Studio Trigger’s previous works. For me, who is not as familiar, it was a new experience, but one I greatly enjoyed. As an animation fan, whenever I see a film that has a unique animation style, that’s a win in my book. The animation style of Promare is unlike anything I have seen before. It is vibrant, which in and of itself is not unique, but the way it uses the colors to accentuate the action is. It appears flat but is dynamic at the same time, particularly the way it portrays fire, smoke, and water. Lately it has felt like each new animated film I’ve seen has found its own design, allowing it to stand apart from other animated films.

This anime is very much an action film and it was edited like one. Tight camera angles and quick cut-aways, some of my action movie pet peeves, make the action difficult to follow at times, which was irritating because the action is extremely over-the-top but so exciting and it would have better to have seen it in all its glory. Knowing the history of the type of material this studio puts out, it’s no surprise that the best way to describe the action of this movie is “balls to the wall.” The first scene is a giant action set piece, then it slows down slightly for some exposition (not a lot of exposition but just enough to give you a hint of world building), followed by what feels like an hour long fight scene. Seriously, once it hits about the halfway mark, it never lets up.

I thought Promare was GOOD 🙂 Once it puts its foot on the gas, it never takes it off. At times it can feel like a bit much but the ridiculousness of it all makes it humorous and entertaining. Studio Trigger has show that they can successfully translate what makes their different anime series popular onto the big screen.

Trailer

Cast & Crew
Hiroyuki Imaishi – Director
Kazuki Nakashima – Writer
Hiroyuki Sawano – Composer

Kenishi Matsuyama / Bill Kametz – Galo Thymos (voice)
Taichi Saotome / Johnny Yong Bosch – Lio Fotia (voice)
Masato Sakai / Crispin Freeman – Kray Foresight (voice)
Ayane Sakura / Alyson Leigh Rosenfield – Aina Ardebit (voice)
Hiroyuki Yoshino / Billy Bob Thompson – Remi Puguna (voice)
Tetsu Inada / John Eric Bently – Varys Truss (voice)
Mayumi Shintani / Kari Wahigren – Lucia Fex (voice)
Rikiya Koyama / Steve Blum – Ignis Ex (voice)
Kendo Kobayashi / Michael Sinternikiaas – Vinny (voice)
Ami Koshimizu / Erica Lindbeck – Heris Ardebit (voice)
Taiten Kusunoki / Neil Kaplan – Vulcan Haestus
Nobuyuki Hiyama / Mathew Mercer – Gueira (voice)
Katsuyuki Konishi / Yuri Lowenthal – Meis (voice)
Arata Furuta / Mike Pollock – Deus Prometh (voice)
Ryoka Yuzuki / Melissa Fahn – Biar Colossus (voice)