Aura: Koga Maryuin's Last War
AURA～魔竜院光牙最後の闘い～Ichirou Satou is an ordinary high school student who pretended that he was a hero by the name of "Maryuuin Kouga" back in middle school, which led to others frequently bullying him. Now that he has left this embarrassing phase behind, he does his best to avoid standing out and live a peaceful life, although he feels the world has become quite dull. But when he makes his way back to school one night to grab a textbook he left in class, he runs into a strange girl wearing a costume. This girl, Ryouko Satou, happens to be his classmate and is affected by the exact same condition that he once had, holding on to a delusion that she is someone else and dressing up to reflect this. The very next day, Ichirou is asked by his teacher to become friends with Ryouko, to which he adamantly refuses, unwilling to be reminded of his own history. When he sees that she is being bullied just as he once was, however, the boy makes it his responsibility to take care of her and break her free from that which what once plagued him—the perfect job for Maryuuin Kouga. [Written by MAL Rewrite]
Reviews
bgorczany - 2015-12-27 11:57:45
There comes a time when people dislike reality. In Japan this has the name of Chuunibyou. Aura follows a former chuunibyou who is trying to become a "normal person" when he one day meets a girl who calls herself a researcher looking for dragon terminals. He hesitates about helping her since he doesn't want to relapse back into it but in the end decides that she needs his help after watching her get bullied. This is less of a comedy show and more of a drama with subliminal messages and realistic elements that explore bullying.
This is just the surface story of the film though. You can also view the film as a modern japanese interpretation of Don Quixote by Cervantes. Explaining how the film fits that interpretation would take a long time and many spoilers. What I can say though is that one of the biggest reasons the book Don Quixote has survived until today and became a classic is that is that the titular Don Quixote isn't mad and believes himself a knight. He intentionally sets out to become a knight in a Spain where knights are no longer needed. The dragon to Don Quixote's knight is not the windmills or the giants but normal spanish life full of little taverns and farmers living mundane lives. He is making an enemy of society to become a knigth.
The art and music is average in the film but they are good enough to bring out the best of the storys themes and they do in no way detract from the experience.
The story feels believable and has a good flow of progression that will bring out a river of emotions. The characters all feel very natural and believable.
Aura is a critique of stark realism and a praise of fantasy. I really recommend this powerful drama that. Just have a open mind and try to not compare it with Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai! since they have two completely different goals and genres.