Berserk Golden Age Arc I: Egg of the Supreme Ruler [Review]

How would you rate this movie?!

  • AMAZING. Loved every second!

    Votes: 21 13.1%
  • Enjoyable, but disappointing in certain aspects.

    Votes: 66 41.3%
  • Indifferent. It is what it is. Nothing more.

    Votes: 10 6.3%
  • Meh. I'll only keep watching cuz it's Berserk, but I'm not happy with it at all.

    Votes: 34 21.3%
  • HORRIBLE... it's an abomination to Berserk and Miura.

    Votes: 29 18.1%

  • Total voters
    160
Walter said:
Whoever gets the first viewing should post a thread with their review of it, and we can all jump in there and post our own reviews.

Well, let me just state... I know this movie is going to be a hit or miss with Berserk fans. This movie is NOT the 100% most accurate adaptation in the world, by no means. But I'm from the school of thought, where I see this Saga Project as a supplement way to enjoy my Berserk. And to me, it's a great fucking supplement. :serpico:

Though far from perfect, in short... I loved it!!! I smiled, I laughed, I got pretty emotional in certain parts... it was an excellent excellent 70+ minutes. The character designs look great in motion, and after they flash forward a few years, I really dig Casca's look. The voice acting was top notch, except I'm not really a fan of Carcus's new voice. The action scenes are really intense and fluid (minus one scene which I will get to later). The scenery is gorgeous. As for character development, we barely get to know any of the other Hawk soldiers besides Griffith and Guts, and a bit of Casca. The story really focuses on the main two. I feel young Guts and young Griffith were developed well, but in the latter half of the movie when they are older it felt a bit rushed. However, the fountain scene with the big 3 and Charlotte was really nice. I have a feeling movie 2 will have a ton of Casca though, and the audience will finally get to know her more. I'm looking forward to that!

I do have some gripes though, and the main one being the pacing in certain scenes. My biggest disappointment came during Zodd/Guts fight scene. Honestly, I felt the '97 anime did it better. The '97 anime just made the scene feel more intense. This new version, half of the scene is done with a voiceover over it, so it really lessens the impact. It just went by too quick.

My other major complaint is about the music. It's fine for some parts, but it's just distracting and random in other parts. It doesn't hold a candle to Hirasawa. And I gotta say (and I'm sure many will agree on this), Hirasawa is soooo soooo integral to the Berserk world. I really do miss his music playing in the background. I want my "Earth," "Guts," and "Beherit"! :ubik:

But overall... though there are shortcomings, and though the movie & story would have benefitted by SO MUCH MORE if they just extended it by 10-15 minutes... I'm really happy!!! And I just have this gut feeling, that movie 2 and 3 are only going to get better and better!!!
 
Nice review there DK, you've pretty much voiced my concerns about pacing, especially for the Zodd scene and I've more or less geared myself up to accept that. As you say, with the next two films having a longer running time (and better animation by the looks of things) we should hopefully see a significant improvement over our anime "supplement" in pacing at least :slan:
 
Pretty much covers a lot of what I want to say about the movie, DK. Just finished watching it and it's a bit to take in.

The backgrounds throughout the movie are pretty but on the flip side, there's no consistency to the character drawing for the faces of Guts, Casca, Griffith. Pippin's face stayed the same throughout the movie, thank god! Hah. The use of the soundtrack was disappointing with that one awkward moment where there's a piano part or the over-use of the theme for Griffith. Zodd man, I was looking forward to it and it's disappointing to see him move around slow or with lethargic gait. And, is he supposed to be that big in his Apostle form? His fur looks weird. His swordplay was slow and everything put together didn't make him look as menacing or threatening as you see him in the manga. That's part of the aesthetic side. I recently introduced a co-worker to the first 6 volumes, he saw the art on the pen and remarked "That doesn't look like Guts". Btw, Guts' neck muscles = beast haha.

Biggest gripe is the seclusion of important plot and Studio 4C's decision to make changes to the existing story they decided to keep from the manga. To me they waste too much time with the opening battle scene and could've given us something from the manga they left out instead instead (like Guts' attempt to meet Griffith after Zodd's encounter and Casca punches him ... 2/3 minute scene!). Has nothing to do with budget. Guts' flashback could be confusing to newbies. The same can be said about the overall plot. I could go on but I'm gonna re-watch it after my post haha. Guts' fight with Griffith at the beginning was changed, his recovery was different, etc. *shrug* I also thought Guts walking towards Bazuso at the start look unnatural, just weird (CG?).

Overall, I'm glad the movie's out and the manga is animated. Like DK mentions, movie 2 already looks a lot better in the previews you get to see under the 'Special' option on the BR. I fear they're going to spend a lot of unnecessary screen-time on battle sequences versus important dialog or plot.
 

Gobolatula

praise be to grail!
I'm going to type my thoughts as I watch the movie.

Whoah I forgot this is a Warner Brother's film. That Warner Brothers bit at the beginning makes this feel more "official."

It's nice to see this clear and in hi-def.

This first 10 minutes has grown on me a bit. I love the first shot of Guts' eyes. I don't mind the CG when it's not a character's FACE that's CG'd. I still think Bazuso should be fatter. These "extra" soldiers look kinda bad. Oh shit here comes Guts. OH FUCK BAZUSO'S HEAD SPLIT OPEN. That was pretty cool. Glad I get to see that uncensored. I turned the volume way up when the "Aria" intro started. I still love this.

Time for the movie to really start. Past the part I already saw, I mean.

I am surprised how fluid this animation is when Guts got his payment for killing Bazuso. Sucks they cut the "DON'T YOU TOUCH ME" part. Oh fuck hear comes Carcas and his goons. This action is really cool. Guts' sword swings especially. I'm at Guts VS Casca now. The CG is slightly distracting here. I feel like I'm watching this movie with heavily scrutinizing eyes. The original TV anime was brand new to me, since it was my first exposure to Berserk. This time around, having read the manga a million times, I find myself waiting for mistakes and parts that don't look "as good." I wish I could watch this as a new fan. Oh fuck Guts VS Griffith round 1.. Huh, that was interesting. The pacing of some of these fights is kinda strange.

Here's Guts' childhood scene. I like how this looks. A very creepy dream sequence. There's Donovan. You can't really tell what he's doing, since all of this is Guts' point of view. There's Gambino. You can hardly call this scene animated, more like a sequence of pictures. Almost like hitting "slow" on your remote watching an old VHS tape. Now this is different. Guts waking up while Casca is laying with him. I miss the "black eyes" line. But Casca gave him a good punching.

I really like how the Band of the Falcons' camp looks. In general, the backgrounds are very colorful and pretty looking.

Guts VS Griffith round 2. Whoa this is awesome. I really like how they did this fight. You know, I wasn't liking Griffith's voice up until the moment when he started explaining to Guts that he can either give up or his shoulder gets dislocated. His voice got nice and sinister. I don't like how guts wasn't smiling when he called him an asshole right afterwards. I really really don't like how Griffith gave his "I will get my own country" talk RIGHT after the dislocation.

Oh fuck they skipped Guts' first raid. UGH... Well looks like they're merging the earlier party with this fight. I like how Guts looks after the 3 year gap.

I like Casca's voice a good deal.

In general, it feels like things are happening way too fast. Guts is already about to face Zodd. Wow I gotta say I like how this area looks. Zodd is pretty damn awesome. His transformation is great. So is the way hs just plows through and rips apart the Falcons. So is the way he BLASTED through the ceiling.

KISSAMA NO SE DA

Ooh, it's time for the hunt! Oh wow, I love Charlotte's outfit. Looks super snazzy.

This movie feels like they're doing a "Best of Berserk." I really wish they didn't cut so much fucking stuff out.

I like how both Guts and Griffith look when they're discussing killing Julius. I kind of like how Guts looks with his face hidden. This scene is intense. This is probably one of the greatest parts of the movie. Wow. A+ on this scene. There was so much tension when he killed Adonis. They need to make more scenes like that.

Here's another good scene. One of my favorite moments in the Golden Age part of the manga. When Casca is scolding Guts, who is just so emotionally and physically drained. This scene looks really good. Charlotte is pretty. I love all the outfits they gave her. Wow, another great expression with Guts' heartbreak as Griffith explains what a friend is to him.

Well that was an interesting movie. There were parts that fell a little flat, but a few really good scenes. I liked Zodd, LOVED the Guts Assasin scene, and the end was pretty great. Griffith makes a great sinister face as he hears the news of Julius being killed.

I look forward to the 2nd movie. I was left wanting more Guts & Casca. Luckily we'll get tons of that in movie 2.

It was okay. I'll go to the theater to see this when it comes to the U.S. I'll buy it again when it gets an American Blu Ray release.

But I wonder now... Umino Chica said Miura had a "mysterious smile" when he saw this movie. I wonder what kind of smile it really was.

Oh well. I still think we needed a little bit of the Black Swordsman arc as an intro, but it's a little too late for that. I feel a little confused about this movie right now. There's part of me that's upset at the changes, and there's part of me that enjoys the parts they did well. I guess I'll let it digest for a bit.

UPDATE:

NO TWITTER NAMES ARE LISTED IN THE CREDITS. I guess this was for theaters only? Fucking waste of my fucking time with this shitty Twitter contest. FUCK.
 

turkitage

ターク
Gobolatula said:
I'm going to type my thoughts as I watch the movie.

Thanks Gob. I feel I pretty much watched the movie through you. I honestly don't want to watch this movie anymore with all the up and down comments from everyone.

Oh, and Gob, remind me to never sit next to you in theaters. :slan:
 

Gobolatula

praise be to grail!
Turkitage said:
Thanks Gob. I feel I pretty much watched the movie through you. I honestly don't want to watch this movie anymore with all the up and down comments from everyone. Oh, and Gob, remind me never to sit next to you in theaters. :slan:
Don't worry. I don't really type my thoughts when I sit and watch movies. :troll:

I can't wait to read Aaz's 593,127 paragraph long review that scientifically proves that this movie is worse than garbage. :troll: :troll:
 

Truder

"I frown at Griffith's nipples" -Aazealh
Gobolatula said:
I can't wait to read Aaz's 593,127 paragraph long review that scientifically proves that this movie is worse than garbage. :troll: :troll:
I predict that he wont be that harsh on the movie.. but like the old anime, he'll watch it once and never see it ever again. :iva:
Place all bets on Aaz's review now! :daiba:
 
Thanks guys for sharing your reviews with us. The main complaint that I am getting here aside from CG that it is rushed since some parts are cut will going by discussions since the first announcements of these movies Aaz had always stated that doing the Golden Arc in a movie format isn't a wise choice and it shows in the reviews. I will be waiting for the English release hope it is coming soon.
 

Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
Bekul said:
Ugh. I can't imagine. Poor guy.

Indeed.

Truder said:
I predict that he wont be that harsh on the movie.. but like the old anime, he'll watch it once and never see it ever again.

Don't quit your day job to become an oracle. :beast:
 
so they'd cut out Guts' first raid scene, Casca punching Guts scene... oh come on :mozgus:
I can image that "mysterious" smile of Miura
 
It's a little disappointing but somewhat expected to read some of the negative comments. One thing that I loved about the original anime was the music. I'm picturing the theme "Ghosts" (I think it's called) being played when the God Hand first reveal themselves at the eclipse :ubik:..also plays when the Baron of Koka Castle - Snake Baron turns into his apostle form in the 1st episode - Black Swordsman volume. It just builds up a huge sense of despair and fear. Also, "Murder" that plays as Judeau gallops off with Casca while trying to escape the eclipse. :judo:

Basically all of the music was awesome, and based on what I've read, if we combine inferior music in this movie vs. the first anime along with some of the changes / omissions from the Manga, it's a little depressing.

That being said, I haven't seen the movie yet, and will obviously watch all of them...but when I have a craving for Berserk, I will likely continue to break out one of the 35 (and growing) Dark Horse volumes sitting on my bookshelf. Nothing rarely ever lives up to the source material in movie adaptations...Berserk isn't the only victim.
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
For the full SKnet admin review, check out our newest podcast here: http://www.skullknight.net/forum/index.php?topic=13330.msg210781#msg210781

But for the purposes of this thread, I didn't think it was very good, as a movie or an adaptation. It's fundamentally flawed because of how rushed everything is, on top of how unfaithful it is to the characterizations. It's not really worth seeing, even for Berserk fans, and certainly not recommended for newcomers as they would be utterly lost. As I say in the podcast, let me underline one salient point here:

Zodd is on screen for under 6 minutes. That's a pretty good example of the underlying problem with every major scene in this montage of a movie.

DirectDK said earlier in the thread that 10-15 minutes would have saved this movie. I don't agree. How would you share those minutes? An extra minute per scene that was ruined? It's fundamentally flawed because they chopped out the feet from the scenes that mattered the most. Even within the space they allot themselves to achieve emotional resonance, it falls flat. The ending sequence is a good example, and pretty much any scene where Guts and Griffith are supposed to be having any sort of connection is another.

Honestly it's painful for me to even type out about why the movie didn't work, and I believe it's the same way with the other admins, so I don't think anyone should expect a long rant. Just listen to the podcast if you want to hear our complete review.
 
H

hellrasinbrasin

Guest
... I wrapped up my viewing of the film 3 hours ago and I have to agree with the Adm that its little more then an 80 Minute Trailer. If Peter Jackson had done what this Studio and its Production Unit did and promised to do a complete adaptation of The Lord of the Rings only to release a 4 hour trailer I wouldn't just be infuriated I would have been betrayed. I'm sorry I don't mean to be harsh but I expected the material to have been taken seriously. Deceptive marketing aside all these montage films as they are now called have succeeded in doing is kill any interest in Berserk by people who are unfamiliar with the series as their only exposure to the material will be through these so-called films.

:: Final Ranking Mercy Killing ::
 
From the poll - 3 people loved the movie and 4 hated it. Safe to say the 3 Admins chose the last option (haha!)? It would be cool and interesting to hear from someone who loved the movie, as a good contrast and discussion. Could we have that in a podcast too?
 

Oburi

All praise Grail
IncantatioN said:
From the poll - 3 people loved the movie and 4 hated it. Safe to say the 3 Admins chose the last option (haha!)? It would be cool and interesting to hear from someone who loved the movie, as a good contrast and discussion. Could we have that in a podcast too?

Oh yea. Someone who loved it versus the three admins. Sign me up!
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
Oburi said:
Oh yea. Someone who loved it versus the three admins. Sign me up!
I'd like to have DK on for this purpose, but honestly I don't think we admins have much more to say on the matter.
 
H

hellrasinbrasin

Guest
I had left my 2 cents about the film on the forums at animenewsnetwork. And on that subject here is their review of the film from Feb.

Berserk Golden Age Arc 1 : Egg of the Supreme Ruler
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/berserk-ogon-jidai-hen-i/hao-no-tamago

I kinda felt bad for the person reviewing this mess because they had to lie
about the whole thing in their review.
 
hellrasinbrasin said:
I had left my 2 cents about the film on the forums at animenewsnetwork. And on that subject here is their review of the film from Feb.

Berserk Golden Age Arc 1 : Egg of the Supreme Ruler
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/berserk-ogon-jidai-hen-i/hao-no-tamago

I kinda felt bad for the person reviewing this mess because they had to lie
about the whole thing in their review.

How do you know that he didn't actually enjoy it? Nobody's opinion is fact

And for those who feel sad about Miura and think the mysterious smile wasn't of joy, here's something that might make you feel better about him. I too want to make a manga or at least a novel and definitely want an anime of my story a lot, and if someone made fillers of it, I'd really like to see it, it would be extremely interesting, how they understand my characters and all. There's 33.33% chance that Miura feels the same. Just saying that the mysterious smile wasn't necessarily of anger or sadness. Miura even asked them to do Black Swordsman arc
 
SuperVegetto said:
How do you know that he didn't actually enjoy it? Nobody's opinion is fact

And for those who feel sad about Miura and think the mysterious smile wasn't of joy, here's something that might make you feel better about him. I too want to make a manga or at least a novel and definitely want an anime of my story a lot, and if someone made fillers of it, I'd really like to see it, it would be extremely interesting, how they understand my characters and all. There's 33.33% chance that Miura feels the same. Just saying that the mysterious smile wasn't necessarily of anger or sadness. Miura even asked them to do Black Swordsman arc

I don't agree, if I were to write a story I wouldn't want anyone to butcher it. I think Miura wouldn't want it either as I red somewhere that he really did a lot of changes in the old anime so obviously he cares about his work more than about $$. Well of course that's only my opinion.

P.S. I didn't watch the movie and I'll probably enjoy it, just didn't want to agree with your point about fillers.Also I'll keep my hands from the podcast until I watch the movie as I fear it may influence my joy watching the movie :ganishka:
 
Berserk is Miura's lifework, on Berserk he has spent most of his years as a manga artist. And if I were in his shoes and someone wanted to make an anime of Berserk they best do it right or leave it alone.
But if a manga artist gets a offer to have a anime made from his/her manga, I think a lot of people consider doing it anyway. Because its a great way to bring more people to the franchise, if done right. A lot of people, including me, started reading Berserk after the tv-series.

I don't know how the anime industrie works and I don't know how the Japanese community thinks about it, but isn't it an honor to have a anime made of your manga. Miura has been writhing and drawing Berserk for along time so I don't know if getting an anime made for your manga is a great thing or just the most normal thing in the world, of course if you have good funding things get a lot easier.
 
I don't think anyone really knows Miura's opinions on the film(s). He could say he likes it, but that may be to promote the film and he may not like it behind the scenes. There's no real way to tell. The positive aspect is, from a financial point of view, his life work is gaining more coverage and will produce new fans to take an interest in the manga. So you can speculate all you like about Miura's opinions, but without tapping into the mans inner monologue you'll never really know.
 
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