Review of Sword Art Online the Movie: Ordinal Scale
Not the SAO we needed, but the one we deserved. The franchise that launched a 1000 'trapped in a videogame' copycats gets its theatrical debut with a film that exemplifies all SAO's strengths and weaknesses. STORY "What if Pokemon Go could kill you?" Taking place after the events of SAO II, a new video game craze is sweeping Japan. Using a new device called the 'Augma' that lets gamers play while fully conscious, the video game Ordinal Scale seems to have none of the inherent risks of a full-dive system. But there's a catch, because we wouldn't have much of a story if there wasn't one, nowwould we? (Seriously, why hasn't the Japanese government banned these devices yet?) The story itself isn't too bad for an action film, even if I was able to guess what the last act would look like by the time I was halfway through. Granted, it isn't too good either. Be prepared for more characters sitting around eating while they dump exposition (although mercifully never for as long as some of the TV episodes). There was some potential here, such as the way the first act of the movie brings Kirito's power level down to mortal levels with a convincing explanation thus restoring a degree of tension, but then in the last act those rules and limits are simply broken because the plot demands it. If you see the plot as simply an excuse to set up cool duels and boss battles, the story is servicable. Interesting premise, hit-or-miss execution, a trademark of SAO writing.
CHARACTERS
The cast from the TV shows returns and isn't really changed. They do go through some dramatic moments, but those moments never add up to any kind of character growth. At the end of the story nobody is noticably different or has changed from what you would recognize from TV. Kirito is still Kirito, Asuna is still Asuna, all the girls in Kirito's harem still haven't figured out that Asuna won a long time ago, and I still can't name a single one of the guys in Klein's guild. The antagonists are step up from what we're used to in that they have a clear goal we can somewhat understand and sympathize with (even if their plans and motivations aren't terribly original). This film is pure SAO, it doesn't do anything the franchise hasn't already done before, although it usually gives us the best version of it.
PRODUCTION VALUES
On that line of thought, this film also brings the franchise's traditional strengths. SAO has always relied on excellent music and animation to counter its relatively weak writing and characters. LiSA is back again with the theme song 'Catch the Moment', another high-energy-but-easy-listening J-Pop song in the vein of 'Crossing Field'. The animation is excellent, although if a SAO movie had second-rate animation there might be a riot. For those of you with a knowledge of Tokyo geography there can be some bonus enjoyment in picking out which real-life location the scene is happening in. They took the best part of the TV series and bumped up the budget.
OVERALL
This movie is pure SAO, distilled into movie form and with the increased production values a movie normally entails. It is at least the best form of SAO I've seen, maximizing existing strengths and minimizing traditional weaknesses, but neither fixing the existing problems or adding any new strengths. I'm sure it's just what the fans ordered, but I'd be surprised if Ordinal Scale turned that many heads in the doubters community. As for people like me who see the SAO franchise as a decent place to get your action and sakuga fix, it's a fine movie but not a (video) game-changer.