Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone

In Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone, Shinki Ikari, a 14-year-old boy, arrives in Tokyo-3 and gets caught in the path of a giant monster attack. He’s whisked off by people working for his dad at some top secret agency and ends up piloting a giant robot to battle the monster.

But the story here is not as simple as “robot smash, baddie gone,” though. In spite of the massive destruction in the aftermath of every robot vs monster battle, there are other problems lurking. Our hero has issues with his dad, the robot suits he wears are volatile and there’s some massive conspiracy brewing just below what seems normal. Shinki Shinji is also going through all-kinds of teen issues and has bouts of being very whiny.

To long-time Japanese animation fans, the plot above is nothing new. Evangelion is was one of the most iconic series to come out of the ‘90s. The show gained a massive cult following that still salivates over any new action figure release and discuss plot details with the kind of fervour you expect from Star Wars fans.

If the plot to Evangelion’s big screen debut sounds like the series to old fans, there’s a very good reason for that. This film is a complete relaunch of the franchise with the plan being for four Evangelion movies set for release covering the massive story arc of the original series. This first movie pretty much covers what would have been from the first six episodes of the series. Rumours about this being a 3D animated flick is false though, this is still done anime style (albeit updated to speed of today’s technology).

No doubt, with this new incarnation of the series starting at the beginning, new fans will benefit the most. But old fans will find plenty to enjoy too. Since everything has been redone, the animation looks a lot smoother compared to the ‘90s version and several creatures have been radically redesigned. Some of the action sequences here, while paying tribute to the original scenes, have been pumped with more eye-popping visual candy.

While the original Evangelion made its debut 13 years ago, the franchise’s popularity is sure to swell again thanks to this update of the series. Watching massive battles scenes on the small screen just does not give you the kind of reward you deserve. Make sure to catch this in the cinema.

Directors Hideaki Anno (chief), Masayuki, Kazuya Tsurumaki Cast Megumi Ogata, Megumi Hayashibara, Kotono Mitsuishi Runtime 98 minutes Opens 3 July