Rob Reviews "Scarlet"

A few years ago, Zack Snyder released his two-part opus, Rebel Moon.  Although I did not do an official review of it, I did refer to it as a ”Sci-Fi Megamix,” meaning it was a full-on mish-mash (both subtle and blatant) of a TON of genre films to a result that was less than desirable.  When it comes to Scarlet, I will refer to it as a “Literary Megamix,” but in this case that is not a bad thing.

This Japanese animated film written and directed by Hamoru Hosoda, who was nominated for an Academy Award in 2018 for Mirai, tells an epic story that is both entertaining and gorgeous.  Mana Ashida plays the title character, a gender-swapped take on Hamlet whose father is murdered by his brother in order to take the crown of Denmark and wed her mother.  In doing so, she is killed and sent to the Underworld where she seeks her revenge on the man that took her life as well as her father’s.  Along the way, she meets Hijiri, a paramedic who doesn’t realize why he himself is there and aids her on her quest.

While this synopsis really makes this look like a take on Hamlet, it is SO much more.  Hosoda admits that he also took inspiration from everything like Princess Mononoke, The Lion King, Paradise Lost, The Divine Comedy, and even the story of Joan of Arc as he put this story together.  Some of the characters ARE taken directly from the Shakespeare masterpiece, but that never overshadows this tale at any point.  For me, it was more like “oh yeah, those guys are in the play” and that was it.

The animation style here is a hybrid of traditional hand-drawn characters with CGI and what has to be life action backgrounds (if not, it’s THAT doggone good), which is another thing that has proven itself to mixed results in the past.  Here, it works like gangbusters, especially in a higher-quality visual format.  The colors pop off the screen as Scarlet goes on a journey that will take her farther into even herself than she could have ever realized.  EVERYTHING about this film is nothing short of AMAZING.

Knowing the possibility of an IMAX release here intrigues me greatly as well.  Historically, I have been more of a fan of watching animated features in an environment like Dolby Cinema (which also wouldn’t be a bad idea), that all changed last year with Ne Zha II and continues with Scarlet.  The scope and beautiful visuals seem made for the format, and as much as I enjoyed viewing it on my home theater system, I would not be surprised if I am able to catch it in a theater in a premium format.  And if it stays subtitled, I am alright with that too.  The Japanese language just adds to the aesthetics this film puts forward.

Be on the lookout later this  year, as I am sure it will get a re-release for award contention.  It already has garnered three 2026 Annie Awards, and that for me should be just the beginning.