Neon Genesis Evangelion is one of those rare series that go beyond the realm of animation to become a pop culture phenomenon. Its dark storyline, flashy action and likeable characters have gained it millions of fans since it first came out back in 1995. So it’s no surprise that Gainax, the original creators of the franchise decided to remake it as a movie series 10 years after The End of Evangelion, the last movie based on the franchise was first released. This movie series not only allows Gainax to make some more money out of its cash-cow but also introduce the franchise to newcomers as well as reminding fans what they love about it.
Rebuild 2.0 is the second movie in the new series and picks up directly where the first one left off. It covers episodes 8 through 19 of the original series and though it struggles to contain all the material plus the new scenes and characters, the end result is a great combination of both old and new.
The first half hour is the one that suffers the most from the too-much-shit-happening-in-too-little-time syndrome as it introduces both Asuka and franchise newcomer Mari Makinami. I felt very disappointed during this part of the movie as I found myself struggling to make heads or tail out of all the things going on. The pacing suffered; things were over before you knew it and the action, though great looking simply did not satisfy. Not only had that but the characters failed to develop in any significant way.
Thankfully though, after the introductions are over and the first couple of angels attack things pick up. The movie becomes more story-centered from that point onward. We get to see the characters we know and love (or hate) albeit with some new traits. For example, Asuka and Rei seem more aware of their feelings for Shinji and both actually try to learn to cook for him, something that would’ve been unimaginable in the original series. This new changes to the characters are welcomed as they don’t take anything away from what everyone liked about them, quite the contrary actually, it makes them more human.
The same can’t be said of Mari however, as she just comes and goes randomly from the story and didn’t have a crucial role until the final scene and even then it just felt random and misplaced. This is disappointing because it feels as she was added only to have another hot girl character to cash in from, but she’s rather interesting and I hope her character is further developed in the sequels.
Needles to say, this movie contains the same dramatic tension we’re used to see in anything related to Evangelion. The last 15 minutes or so include some of the best and weirdest moments in the franchise’s history. The battle against Unit 03 (which is no longer piloted by Touji) is also one of the most tension-filled moments in the whole movie; the fact that it’s piloted by a new person also helps to make it even more emotional.
In my review for the first Rebuild movie I said that Evangelion never looked better. Well, with Rebuild 2.0 the animation has reached new highs. Everything looks absolutely mesmerizing. The use of CGI combined with traditional animation gives it a unique look that makes it feel more modern without losing the classic Eva touch. The reworked angels, created almost entirely out of CGI look and feel more menacing than ever before. This is just simply the best looking anime movie created so far.
Though the convoluted first half-hour, addition of new characters and overall complexity of the plot might turn away any new fans gained with the first movie, Rebuild 2.0 still contains all the drama, action, tension and emotion we’ve come to expect, this is Evangelion alright.
Note: This review was written based on the 2.22 DVD version of the film, I have no idea of what differences in story or pacing there are between it and the original theatrical version.
