Written and directed by Mamoru Hosoda, and inspired by Shakespeare’s Hamlet. A medieval princess on a quest to avenge her father’s death awakens in a realm between life and death, where she encounters an idealistic young man from the present day who shows her the possibility of a future free of bitterness and rage. Voiced by Mana Ashida, Masaki Okada, Yutaka Matsushige, Kotaro Yoshida, Koji Yakusho, Masachika Ichimura, Yuki Saito, Shota Sometani and Munetaka Aoki.
You can quickly sense what Mamoru Hosoda was going for with Scarlet, especially having those roots in classic theatre, as Hosoda takes the style back in time along with the setting. It’s as if you took his usual animation style and merged it with a painting, which also makes it feel slightly video game-esque. It was a great choice to match the epic nature of the story that they’re going for. It adds extra layers to that underworld-like landscape that the characters find themselves in, as well as a lot of character.
While the animation style is likely to grab viewers right from the beginning, it’s very well done and colourful, with a superb amount of detail, the story might not get a hold so quickly. It moves quite slowly and can make some unexpected, and rather random, decisions. Granted, audiences do typically love an out of the blue dance sequence, but it doesn’t quite fit in here. It’s a good example of what’s holding back Scarlet, it has these little quirky additions and there’s a surprisingly sweet vein running throughout but it never fully embraces that. It’s not strictly sticking to its Shakespearean roots but it’s also not moving far enough away from them.
Another element holding it back is how they present the lead, Princess Scarlet (Mana Ashida), she feels constantly unsure of herself, and it hinders the direction of the plot. She’s not quite stumbling but also lacks momentum, which when the progression is quite drawn out, stands out more. However, the voice work is great, and she has a wonderful chemistry with Masaki Okada’s Hijiri which adds a surprising romantic edge to Scarlet. Although it is also disappointing for the film to make red such a key colour, the character is named Scarlet and yet her hair is pinkish rather than blazing red, and the design of her costume could also use some tweaking to create a stronger look.
Scarlet is a great piece of animation and builds an epic adventure, but it can feel slow and the story doesn’t land that strongly. There are sparks here and there of something quirkier and more fun, and it was a shame not to see it build that more into the personality of the film. It doesn’t have too much to add to the legacy of Hamlet, but it does have an interesting influence on the style of the film, particularly in how it has a touch of darkness throughout. Where the dragon truly comes into that, is not entirely clear but it’s terrifically animated so a welcome addition. If you’re a fan of Hosoda and animation, you will find more than enough to enjoy but for the wider audience, it may feel quite drawn out.
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