End of Evangelion

Duration: 90m23s
Type: Film
Rating: 10/10
Summary: An superb piece of animation and a worthy addition to the nge series.

The three big names associated with this production should be enough to hint at the quality of the production. Production IG [Ghost in the Shell, Blood: The Last Vampire], Manga Entertainment [Akira, Ninja Scroll] and Gainax [The Wings of Hanneamise] are all well respected in the field of anime, and and come together superbly in this final installment if the hit series Neon Genesis Evangelion. (for more info on the series go to www.lwhy.clara.net/nge)

End of Evangelion is infact made up of two alternate episodes that are a replacement for the final 2 episodes of the original series (episodes 25 & 26), though, with the exception of a brief title frame in the middle of the production, it does play like a single feature (it is not for example split in half by a credit sequence)

The first part of the feature focuses on SELEE's attempt to complete it's Human Instrumentality Project, despite Gendo Ikari's own agenda. They start with a computer hack attempt, then move on to a special forces assault, and finally an all out assault using the Eva final production models 5-13!

The second part of the feature focuses on the much anticipated third impact, which infact was what was happening in the original episodes 25 & 26, in this feature the events leading up to third impact are tackled in a far more literal way, rather than the extremely dreamlike sequences of the original.

The strength of the film is in the complexity of the story, and unfortunately in order to appreciate it there are no shortcuts, you simply have to have seem the series first. This is no bad thing as it gives the film a level of depth and history not often captured in a 90min feature, but those who haven't seen the series will be unaware of the significance to the characters of the events they are seeing. The rating I gave (10/10) is therefore from the point of view of a fan of the series. having seen and enjoyed all 26 episode of the series this film was a suitably climactic finale. So watch the film... but watch the series first!