Ah, Rintaro. I’m quite aware that this guy has made some of the most notoriously bad movies in existence, and I refuse to review his bad stuff. But boy, when he is good, he really is amazing. I’ve rated three movies he directed with 90/100. Add that to the storyboard he wrote for the adaptation of the Diary of Anne Frank, and that makes four of his works that I consider to be absolutely fantastic and among my favourite movies ever. I LOVE this guy as a movie director. Now, Take the X Train is nowhere near his best work; it’s much more an experiment than a full fledged movie. But it’s definitely an interesting experiment.
It’s this weird 50-minute movie about a ghost train and some salaryman that is in some bizarre way connected to it, but it isn’t about the story at all, really. Instead, Take the X Train is all about its atmosphere, and in this way it stands out as something unique. It’s really bizarre at times, especially considering that it’s also an homage to Jazz music, but the direction makes this short look utterly gorgeous. The animation isn’t as consistent as some of Rintarou’s other works, but the visual images still can get quite amazing.
It’s quite an experience, and again I don’t think that there’s anything like this. This just tells nearly its entire story about a ghost train with this unique style, animation and weird characters. It’s hard to find, but worth the watch if you’re into something artsy.
| Storytelling: | 8/10 – The atmosphere has this undeniable charm to it. It’s really hard to describe. |
| Characters: | 7/10 – completely one-dimensional, but likable. |
| Production-Values: | 9/10 – Lots of creativity has gone into these visuals. This show is ugly, yet somehow looks great. |
| Setting: | 8/10 – It’s a simple, but unique movie, definitely. |
Suggestions:
– Memories
