'Trapezoid' animation movie review

Key Takeaways

• Trapezium offers a realistic look at the challenges of the idol world without any flashy conclusions.
• The film explores the manipulative side of the protagonist as he tries to form an idol group, blurring the lines between ambition and friendship.
• Trapezium's art and music capture a modern J-pop vibe that will appeal to fans of idol anime, but may lack deeper nuance for newcomers.

The idol music industry has been a powerhouse of Japanese pop culture for decades, and that industry's unique structure has not had any impact on anime for many years. From light and cheerful glasses Love Live! and PriParaGossip scandal Oshinoko Or psychological madness perfect blueThe dynamism and performance of young, highly marketable musical talent is a constant source of fascination and curiosity within Japan's sister arts of animation and manga.

A new film from one of the most popular animation studios explores the experience of being an idol, juxtaposing it with music and the realistic challenges and ambitions it takes to become a success.

Trapezoid in the world of idol animation

trapeziumis a new feature film from Cloverworks, the studio behind some of the most popular animated series of the 2020s. spy x family and Bochy the Rock!He certainly has the pedigree to be a major figure entering the world of idol animation. What adds authenticity to the idol experience is that the film is adapted from a novel by Kazumi Takayama, a former member of a Japanese idol megagroup. There are a lot of expectations to live up to with previous works that could lead to potential comparisons. and how trapezium Will we have to contend with the many facets of the multi-faceted idol world? Living up to its name with so many different ways to approach everything is kind of…balance them.

There are very few big “twists” or shocking conclusions. trapeziumAnd this leads to some careful judgment about whether or not something constitutes a spoiler. The core setting of the movie is that Yuu, a high school student who has loved idols and idol culture his entire life, carefully selects the friends around him who want to start his own idol girl group. The location of each girls' school corresponds to the different directions of north, south, east, west, and the group name is “tidings.” The girl group finally comes together, but the clash of the girls' different ambitions and desires in their lives leads to questions about the future of their musical journeys and their wider friendship.

Big dreams, bigger ambitions

Positioning the movie as such would certainly be accurate enough for marketing or press junkets, but it doesn't fully get to the heart of the movie. In reality, it's more of a character study of a dedicated wannabe idol. Yuu consciously shapes his friendships based on group gimmicks in his head, distorting the truth about his own motivations to make it seem like their bond is rooted in natural friendship rather than secret ambition.

The girls in the group (a wealthy girl attending an elite Christian school who loves tennis, a shy robot enthusiast attending a vocational school, and a recently reunited childhood best friend) all seem like pleasant enough idol group members. On paper, the extent to which Yuu obliquely pushes his personal passions by playing a game for months that essentially feigns interest in his own life goes beyond desirable passion into somewhat uncomfortable manipulation. The film knows that this resulting dynamic isn't perfect, but it doesn't wholeheartedly condemn it. These characters have interesting dynamics and motivations that clash with the harmony of the music, but the film isn't quite sure what tensions it wants to portray and how far it wants to go to depict them.

actually, trapezium It puts a negative light on the main character's incidental outbursts against his idol peers and resolves personal differences in his friend group. It never goes the same distance to show the overall camaraderie of the group. This appears to be sincere, but nevertheless the reason is that it has an ulterior motive. Dere. From a slightly different angle, if the film had focused more on Yuu's internal monologue or self-doubt about the scope of her ambitions, it could have been a fascinating character study and, dare I say it, more modern and much lower stakes . spiritual companion perfect blue. But still, ultimately, by leveraging all the cheerfulness and flawed dynamics of the group's performance, trapezium's take on Idol ultimately feels like an attempt to have the cake and eat it too.

Sights and sounds

On a technical level, the film's art and animation are generally good. Director Masahiro Shinohara, whose work previously focused on directing TV animation, does a great job of maintaining and creating character expressions that give a lot of life to the girls and their interactions. The film gives the impression of a clear visual sensibility, simple expressive pauses, and frames that retain a strong emotional quality, intertwined between storyboard and final art.

CGI appears throughout the film, but only sparingly. Some external CGI environment characters walking in some shots feel a bit of a clash between the 2D figures and the 3D shaded environment, but these instances are less common overall and the CGI is still visible, although less evident in the girl's performance dance. A routine that takes up much more of the visual core of the film.

It goes without saying that music should be a major component in an idol movie, and the same goes for the idol's music. trapezium It captures the upbeat, modern feel of J-pop while fitting (literally) to the beat of girls' idol journeys. Masaru Yokoyama, a composer who collaborated with Cloverworks in 2019 her blue skyutilizes both the sensibilities of a high school drama and the more upbeat feel of J-pop to deliver an enjoyable soundtrack and a particularly memorable opening theme. The opening sequence is expressive with music and is quite entertaining in the beginning.

trapezium It would certainly make a great gift for devoted fans of idol anime, but it might not be the best introduction to this side of the medium for newcomers. It has the seeds of fascinating and complex character dynamics, but handles them with a civility that respects sentimental conventions over the deeper nuances likely to be revealed in the original novel. In other words, for fans of the idol genre trapezium It may prove a fascinating balancing act.