Aim for the Ace!: The Movie Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		3.5

Aim for the Ace!: The Movie Blu-ray Movie Review

Aim for the Ace! The Movie is a retelling of the popular anime series. Created by Sumika Yamamoto, Aim for the Ace! The Movie provides a new exploration of the tale that became a fan-favorite in Japan. The animation is produced by Tokyo Movie Shinsha (Lupin III: Dead or Alive, Space Adventure Cobra - The Movie). Executive produced by Yutaka Fujioka (Lupin III: Part II, Sherlock Hound), Aim for the Ace! The Movie is distributed by TOHO (Weathering With You, Wolf Children). Aim for the Ace! The Movie has a voice-cast including Makoto Kousaka, Masako Ikeda, and Nachi Nozawa.

Hiromi Oka (Makoto Kousaka) is new to the world of Tennis and has so little experience that she hasn’t even held a racket in her hand before. Now 15 years old and beginning her school year as Nishi Senior High, Hiromi finds herself learning about the game of Tennis when she joins the school Tennis Club (famous for its play). The school is even nicknamed as the “Tennis Kingdom” because of its Tennis legacy. The primary reason Hiromi decides to join the Tennis Club is superstar player Reika "Ochōfujin" Ryūzaki (Masako Ikeda).

Going by the unique name of “Madam”, Tennis star Reika is one of the most well-respected players in the game. As the game unfolds, Hiromi also finds herself experiencing learning curves with the brand-new Tennis coach: Jin Munakata (Nachi Nozawa). Even though Hiromi is new to the game and wasn’t sure how well she would do, coach Jin thinks she has big potential and she joins the game right beside her idol, Reika. Can Hiromi follow in the footsteps of her idol?

The feature-film version of the tale does a good job of exploring the same core cast of characters from the anime series. The feature version of Aim for the Ace still manages to focus on the same characters and fans of these heroes will find the focus in the film highly satisfactory. Hiromi makes an especially compelling central protagonist. Because of the fact that Hiromi is a relatable protagonist, there is an abundance of charm in the character and seeing her reach for success with the game of Tennis is something that enhances both the character-arc and the journey of the story.

There is a lot to appreciate about the icon status of Tennis star Reika and her role in the film (and this makes the film even more entertaining – seeing the character on her own journey, too). Last but not least, the coach plays a big role as one of the main characters and this is an essential element of many sports films and anime. The coach is important to the tale and to helping push Hiromi towards her future success.

The character designs by Akio Sugino (Cat's Eye, Treasure Island) are important to the filmmaking and enhance the characters. The designs are one of the best elements of the production. These excellent character designs are vital to the storytelling and the designs enhance the animation.

The animation in Aim for the Ace! The Movie is impressive and something to behold. The feature-film has new animation and is not simply a re-cut of the television series (as some anime feature films opt to do instead). The animation for the feature-film is true to the aesthetic of the anime series while offering a bit of a more ambitious production scope. The transition from television series to feature film is clearly noticeable.

The animation would not have been possible without the animation direction by Akio Sugino (Space Adventure Cobra, Black Jack). The production also benefited from superb art direction by Shichirō Kobayashi (Kimagure Orange Road, Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro). There is simply a lot of fine artistry at play from the team involved on the production of Aim for the Ace! The Movie. The film animators delivered good work on the feature. Even when the film sometimes opts for simplistic animation, the style is so creative and compelling – it pulls one in.

The cinematography by Hirokata Takahashi (Space Adventure Cobra, Cat's Eye) is one of the highlights of the production. Cinematographer Takahashi is a talent and the work done for Aim for the Ace! The Movie is something that adds a lot to the experience. The visuals are hypnotic and compelling. A fantastic effort by Takahashi.

The score composed by Kōji Makaino (Bubblegum Crisis, The Rose of Versailles) is a highlight of Aim for the Ace! The Movie. The music adds a lot to the production. The score works well as both background music and in enhancing the Tennis sequences. There is a lot to appreciate about the score Makaino composed.

Keisuke Fujikawa (Galaxy Express 999, Star Blazers) delivered an impressive screenplay. The script is something that helped to make Aim for the Ace! The Movie something all the more impressive and entertaining. The script provides the film with good dialogue and engaging characterizations. This retelling of the television series does a good job of adapting the core concept for a feature length version. Fujikawa is a talented scriptwriter.

Directed by Osamu Dezaki (Space Adventure Cobra, Treasure Island), Aim for the Ace! The Movie is a charming and enjoyable experience. Aim for the Ace! The Movie finds the right balance between the characters and the Tennis gameplay. Dezaki manages to bring out the best of the animation and the results are visually stunning. So many moments and sequences are compelling as unique works of art. Aim for the Ace! The Movie is a must-see for fans of the series.

Aim for the Ace!: The Movie Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Arriving on Blu-ray from Discotek Media, Aim for the Ace! The Movie is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high definition in a theatrical aspect ratio of 1.83:1 widescreen. Aim for the Ace! The Movie looks impressive in high-definition. The high-definition scan and encoding capably preserves the original animation for the feature-film. The fine line details in the animation are well reproduced and everything about the presentation appears filmic. Color reproduction is excellent and the animation shines with the transfer. The encode quality is top-notch as well – another stunner from Discotek.

Aim for the Ace!: The Movie Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release is presented in Japanese uncompressed PCM 2.0 (with English subtitles). The lossless Japanese audio sounds remarkable. The audio track sounds impressive on the whole. Although a presentation showing some age with the dynamics being not as crisp as modern productions, the encoding still sounds robust and highly engaging. The lossless encoding certainly kicks things up a notch. The lossless audio helps the Tennis game play to sounds more compelling on the release. The only audio area that might disappoint some is the lack of an English dub.  No English dub is included on the release. The English subtitles for the Japanese language track are well-done and are free from egregious spelling or grammatical errors.

Aim for the Ace!: The Movie Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The release comes with a beautiful o-card slipcover that slides over the main case.

The only on disc supplemental feature is the theatrical trailer (HD, 1:58).

Aim for the Ace!: The Movie Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Aim for the Ace! The Movie is an entertaining retelling of the popular anime series. The feature-film uses new animation and is not simply a re-edited cut using old animation from the television series. The film manages to provide a clean-cut retelling of the tale in a streamlined manner and fans will appreciate spending some extra time with the cast of characters. The journey of Hiromi Oka is one fans will be appreciative of as she pushes herself to be the best she can be in the game of Tennis.

The Blu-ray release features an excellent video presentation and a quality lossless audio encode. The release does not include an English dub option but the original Japanese language audio is reproduced exceptionally well. The release includes a nice slipcover and the original trailer for the feature- film is provided on the disc. Though the supplemental package is on the light side, fans of Aim for the Ace! will enjoy the feature-film version. Recommended.