KOKUHAKU

DESCRIPTION

REVIEWS

• 

  Joseph

  100/100
  The only animation to ever make me cry

  This is my first review, and the first review of this absolute masterpiece that deserves a more significant spot in animation history. This review will go in-depth on the complex, multi-layered, and astonishing 40 seconds that is Kokuhaku.
  THE BEGINNING OF THE END
  The start of Kokuhaku remains drilled into my brain to this day. The very first frame brings a dark and heavy green carpet, most likely made by the senseis atop the highest Nepalise mountains. The absolute aura that this ground gives off reminds oneself of the infamous backrooms, where only the sound of lights buzzing and yellow-beige walls are rampant. Immediately you are present in the fact that there is most likely no escape from this world, and accepting it is the only way you can attempt to find inner piece. Mind you, I, along with many others, were able to grasp the entirety of this information from the first frame.
  INTRODUCTIONS
  The sound of crows, or perhaps ravens, squawking at the endless void, enacts the feelings similar to works of Itachi Uchiha, or Edgar Allen Poe. The darkness ever so present with these vibrations of air are interrupted by the crimson, platypus-like rectangle feet, of our main character. A goddess and demon simultaneously, who herself has struck the hearts of many watchers, figuratively and literally. Her burgundy knee-high socks seem to prepare you for the loli of your dreams, but lest you forget, the carpet has already warned you, nothing here is what it seems. As our first person POV camera angle moves up, we ever so graciously pass the sliver of skin that is her knee, onto the beige-gray skirt and hourglass figure, IMMEDIATELY to our Queen/enemy's face.
  THE ACTION
  Not even a NANOSECOND after the camera is centered on the ever so symmetrical face of our one and only, her ultra-instinct activates faster than time itself, as she thoroughly examines every square millimetre of your eternally vulnerable and helpless excuse for a body. The salmon and textured brown walls in the background only add to her ominous movements, and as you ponder the existence of anything and reasoning behind why god made it this way, you realize the universe's creator, is standing right in front of you. Her perfectly cut dark ginger hair waves in the wind as the crows squawk once again, at her command of course. She inhales, breathing in enough oxygen to asphyxiate a large group of cattle, and exhales the exact same amount. This cattle you have pictured, probably from a far away camera angle, is nothing in comparison to the cattle she has imagined and manifested. YOU are the cattle in HER field. Each steer, constantly waiting for anything to happen, to keep itself going.
  CLIMAX
  Most definitely my most favorable and treasured seconds of my entire life come to pass in this section of the holy manuscript. Her highness herself, demon, devil, god, and goddess, ALLof her, with the absolute sliver of generosity she hands out to you, gives you more than enough time to react as she lifts her arm, but alas, you have already prepared to accept the dreadful, morbid, and distorted fate that awaits you. Her smile shines as bright as a thousand suns as the knife, forged from the volcanic ashes of mars, sears into the veins of your neck, and leads to your death by bleeding out.
  THE END OF THE BEGINNING
  Her satisfied look of satisfaction satisfies you as well, as you tumble to the ground, the geyser of blood spewing out into the area you once knew as home. The tears have already reached the carpet at this point, and falling to the ground as the red fills up your screen, you have but one final thought as your mind wonders around humanity and ethereal alike:
  "Anything for Her"
  CONCLUSION
  Not once did I have to refer back to the original masterpiece when writing this detailed review, and neither shall any of you who wish to be graced by her highness. But whether or not it is your desire, she always finds a way, to get to you.

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• 

  Ksapskogrido

  100/100
  Overall, its the best anime i have ever seen and i highly recommend to new anime users ! :D

  KSAPSKOGRIDO
  Where do I begin... Kokuhaku is a masterpiece in the broad medium of anime. It is said that if you watch Kokuhaku you will reach a new level of anime elite. I feel ascended after witnessing such art in the form of animation, but enough of what this anime has done to improve my life, I'm going to analyse ans review all the many beautiful aspects of this ONA.
  The best anime i have ever watched. I liked the plot so much that it made my day. The animation is great and the characters got a great dressing and voice. The thing that i like the most is the ground. I am just staring at this green grass . Thats a masterpiece in the broad the best anime. It is said that if you watch Kokuhaku you will reach a new level of anime elite. I feel ascended after witnessing such art in the form of animation, but enough of what this anime has done to improve my life. Im new to anime community and i already can say that if i will have kids in the future thats the first anime they'll see.

  Story: 10
  The plot is extremely good and entertaining. It manages to pack the plot equivalent of Monster into every second. While it may seem confusing at first, it expands into something that not even the greatest minds in the world could comprehend. The plot twists and turns with every millisecond, overloading our minds with information and story. This artistic storytelling method of overloading us with information and revealing everything at the end was sloppily done in the popular anime, Steins;Gate. It took Kokuhaku 1 second to deliver the same effect but 10x better in one second. The story ends with something that can only be described as MAGNIFICENT.

  Art: 10
  Kokuhaku is probably one of the only anime's that has nailed 3D animation, something that animation studios have not been able to do for tens of thousands of years. It bears a unique art style, detailing their cute girls with wonderful intricacy, contrasting with the dark and gritty tone.

  Sound: 10
  The background noise is just the sounds of crows, an artistic choice from the director which I cannot explain fully without writing this review for a few millenia

  Character: 10
  There are only two characters in this anime, but boy are they outstanding. We are seeing the story in first person through the eyes of an unnamed protagonist. The interactions he has with girl X are nothing short of superb, as we see the highest highs and the lowest lows of their relationship.

  Enjoyment: 10
  Even though I am not intelligent enough to fully understand this, I am elite enough to know that this is the elite of all elite anime. Something that is not always understood by the casual scrubs of the community and therefore overlooked or undermined. This is something you have to experience for yourself.

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• 

  knots

  1/100
  It's a really cool show. Really nice.

  Before I begin, I would like to ensure any and all potential readers of this review that my method for rating anime is purely objective. I have not and will not allow personal biases to cloud my judgment; my own preconceptions are irrelevant to the quality of any given artwork. With that said, I do believe that this film, Kokuhaku, is a refreshing masterpiece in the genre of anime horror. Elfen Lied was terrifying. Higurashi - perhaps even more so. Hellsing was thrilling. Perfect Blue was mind-boggling. The Promised Neverland had me on the edge of my seat. But Kokuhaku had something these shows didn't: style.

  Story - 10/10

  Oftentimes, stories begin with some sort of attention-grabber, a singular plot point to reel you in and keep you hooked. In Kokuhaku, this is done brilliantly by immediately presenting the viewer with a patch of grass. Ah, grass. Specifically of the puke-green variety, setting the tone for what is to come. Not more than five seconds later, our second character (some may say first character - more on this later) is introduced, and the suspense builds. What exactly happens in this stimulating adventure? Well, I wouldn't want to spoil. But, I can say that the flow and pacing is absolutely magnificent. At forty seconds long, not a single second is wasted.

  Art - 10/10

  The lone female in this film may convey mediocre animation at first glance, but digging deeper, there is much to be found. One particular thing to note: she has no nose. This has likely impacted her life in ways that we, the protagonist (more on this later), could never comprehend. Remember that good ol' phrase: "Wake up and smell the roses"? This is an experience she never had. Her noselessness could have also served as a source of bullying, which may explain some of her choices later on in the film. As for the design of her figure, it's brilliant. Too often is anime focused on the "cute", or "moe" side of Japanese women, rather than the dark, realistic side. Not everything has to be fan service. In fact, the female in this film somewhat resembles a Lego™ character, perhaps communicating that her existence is a metaphor for stepping on Legos™. Or, perhaps, she represents the building blocks of life. But I digress. As a sucker for atmospheric shows, Kokuhaku really blindsided me. The setting is perfect. There's a grey wall, and additionally, a brown wall. They are perpendicular. The brown wall has a crack in it, showing that not every structure can be perfect; there's beauty in mishaps. This crack is made more obvious when our female character cocks her head (very beautifully, might I add), foreshadowing the foreboding mishaps that are soon to taint our very livelihoods. You can see the sun faintly reflecting off the grass in the background, its beauty juxtaposed against the horrors that await us. Let's continue.

  Sound - 10/10

  Birds. Who doesn't like them? Hopefully not you, because that's all you can hear in this film. I believe this was in direct reference to the classic horror film by Alfred Hitchcock, The Birds. Genius, I say. Every other potential sound is muted, but interpretable - exactly what the creators were striving for. Allowing the viewer to create the noises in their head really adds to the immersive experience, and I wouldn't want it any other way.

  Character - 10/10

  Shows like Durarara, Baccano, and many others have incorporated dozens of characters into one show, forcing the viewer to keep track of several faces in order to follow the overarching plot. Kokuhaku, however, avoids this mental task completely. There are two characters. It may seem there is but one, but there are two. That's because, well, you are the protagonist. Yes, that's right. You, the viewer. So in essence, the quality of the characters is partially up to you as a person. Personally, I think I'm a pretty cool guy, so the character aspect of this film gets bumped up a few points. Between myself and the unnamed female of the show, we make a pretty great team....or do we? She may disagree.

  Enjoyment - 10/10

  I don't think I've had this much fun in my life. I haven't had sex, but I've eaten some great food and seen some great anime, but this film beats all of it. You could take me on a cruise to the Bahamas with a genetically engineered (legal) catgirl and an endless supply of MDMA and ping pong tables and I still wouldn't have as much fun as I did watching Kokuhaku. If a doctor told me I had forty seconds to live, and I could choose between telling my loved ones how much they mean to me and how I hope I retain some level of posthumous consciousness so that our memories together can exist for eternity, or watch Kokuhaku, I'd watch Kokuhaku.

  Overall - 10/10

  I think the rest of the review speaks for itself. This is a must-watch for all anime fans, and for all people in general. You know your beer-loving football-praising dad who thinks all anime is Pokemon or porn? Show him Kokuhaku. Show it to your dog. Show it to the Jehovah's Witnesses knocking on your door. Get the word out, and maybe the world could be a better place.

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