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| Overall | Art | Animation | Character Design | Music | Series Story | Episode Story | Reviewer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rent | 8 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 7 |
 Ggultra2764
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[series:3151#1552] | |
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I suppose the closest title you could compare Aura to would be Love, Chuunibyo and Other Delusions in that both explore a male lead trying to move on from his middle school days as a chuunibyo and encountering a girl his age undergoing the same delusions of grandeur that he went through in middle school. Unlike the mentioned TV anime that is more light-hearted and comical in its focus on Yuuta and Rikka, Aura explores the chuunibyo issue in a more realistic bent as Ryoko and other chuunibyo like her in their school are social outcasts who face frequent bouts of bullying. Ichiro's past as a chuunibyo in middle school is a dramatic one full of similar issues as Ryoko's as he tries fitting in with others while getting dumped with the task of looking after Ryoko as she goes through her delusions as a chuunibyo. Throughout the movie, Ichiro finds himself conflicted with how to handle Ryoko as his attempts to protect her from bullying lead him to face pressure from both the chuunibyo seeking his support and the normal crowds wanting him to butt out of their hazing on the chuunibyo students. This drives the developing relationship he has with Ryoko throughout the movie which does come off as a natural one thanks to the gradual changes that both their characters undergo. Aura is not without its faults though. The climax to it borders a bit on the absurd and pushes believability quite a bit with how one of the major characters in the film could set it up, as well as the visuals to Aura looking more on par in quality with a TV anime than a movie. But perhaps the biggest issue I took with Aura had to do with how it addresses its chuunibyo issue. While more realistic in exploring the issue, the film suffers the same fate as Love, Chuunibyo and Other Delusions in that it chickens out with how to resolve the chuunibyo issue and the moral it pushes with conformity and regarding more unique traits as a bother may not sit well with Western viewers since the Japanese culture mostly values group over individual social dynamics. While I did have interest in the more realistic direction that Aura addresses the chuunibyo issue, it still suffers in lacking a satisfying resolution to the situation and having a rather ridiculous climax with Ichiro and Ryoko's situation. The film as a whole is still mostly enjoyable for the character development and chemistry between our two leads, but the finale of the film will not be one to satisfy everyone. Last updated Monday, January 18 2016. Created Monday, January 18 2016. | ||||||||
