Evangelion: 3.33 You Can (Not) Redo Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

Evangelion: 3.33 You Can (Not) Redo Blu-ray Movie Review

Like they said, no do overs.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman May 5, 2017

It ran for barely one season over twenty years ago and has yet to be released domestically on Blu-ray, but Neon Genesis Evangelion is an anime series whose impact continues to be felt to this day. Though it’s hard to remember these days, when Neon Genesis Evangelion first appeared in the fall of 1995, the Japanese anime industry was experiencing something of a doldrums if not an outright dearth of real creativity. Even the vaunted mecha subgenre wasn’t being exploited in any really innovative ways, and that left the field open for Neon Genesis Evangelion to come along and pretty much rewrite the rule book in its own rather distinctive image. Looking back now from the vantage point of two decades or so, it’s easy to almost ascribe a “BE” (i.e., Before Evangelion) and “AE” (i.e., After Evangelion) demarcation line, since the influence of Neon Genesis Evangelion has spilled over (and continues to spill over) into countless later Japanese animated entries. As with so many other Japanese anime, Neon Genesis Evangelion, despite its relative brevity as an actual series, has spawned innumerable multimedia enterprises, including a film franchise which includes Evangelion: 1.11 You Are (Not) Alone and Evangelion: 2.22 You Can (Not) Advance.

Two elements which recur throughout Evangelion: 3.33 You Can (Not) Redo are on display from the opening moments of this third entry in the film franchise, namely absolutely staggering visuals and equally staggering (as in stumbling and hard to follow) story telling. What exactly is going on in this visceral opening sequence? Something in space involving some kind of satellite and two female pilots, but with absolutely zero context and no character introductions, Evangelion: 3.33 You Can (Not) Redo presents some narrative hurdles to overcome that even those completely conversant with the franchise may be scratching their heads over.

Mystically inclined viewers, especially those with an interest in some of the occult tendencies of certain major religions (chief among them Judaism) may be prone to look for hidden meanings in the morass that Evangelion: 3.33 You Can (Not) Redo offers, and it probably wouldn’t be too far off the mark to suggest that the anime’s creative staff wants the viewers to be looking for such “signs and wonders”. The proto- religious aspect to the Evangelion franchise has always been one of its most interesting, if at times confounding, aspects, as I’ve mentioned in both the Evangelion: 1.11 You Are (Not) Alone Blu-ray review and the Evangelion: 2.22 You Can (Not) Advance Blu-ray review. Once things settle down after the opening sequence, we’re at least granted the welcome sight of Shinji Ikara, who was in a kind of suspended animation in that aforementioned satellite, a satellite that Asuka Langley Shikinami and Mari Illustrious Makinami had been sent to retrieve. This particular entry hints at doppelgängers throughout its (re)introduction of several key characters, and that’s at least part of the subtext with regard to Shinji, who may or may not be “our” Shinji.

Part of the consternation on hand is no doubt intentional, meant to reflect Shinji’s discomfort at being “awakened” after a decade and a half (more or less), to find that already roiling situation between humans and Angels even more convoluted. When Shinji extricates himself from his capsule, everything and everyone he thought he knew are at least somewhat different from how he remembered them to be. Most distressingly, Shinji has been fitted with some kind of collar which seems to be there to keep him “in line”, behaviorally speaking. Shinji’s still iffy memory is cogent enough for him to distinctly recall having saved Rei Ayanami, but the whereabouts of his colleague are unknown, and several characters suggest she has perished. But even former cohorts like Misato Katsuragi seem substantially different than they were in times past, and in fact seem to be downright antagonistic to the erstwhile hotshot pilot.

Even (and perhaps especially) some intrepid Evangelion fans may get a bit of an ironic kick out of a disclaimer that is offered at the beginning of this presentation:

The localization of this film has been overseen and approved by the creators of Evangelion to ensure the story being told remains faithful to their vision for the film. Any terminology shifts that may conflict with those found in the previous localized releases of Evangelion are at the request of the creators.

It seems almost comical that anyone would get upset at the at times picayune differences in "terminology", when so many major plot points go either unaddressed or at least fitfully developed in this enterprise. Shinji's predicament upon awakening is deciding which of two competing forces he's going to align himself with, either his father's NERV entity, or a new upstart called WILLE, though the film's attempt to inject a little generational angst into the proceedings by having Shinji's Dad seem a little, well unnerved (sorry) doesn't ever really work up any significant amount of suspense. Even subplots dealing with Rei (who may in fact not actually be Rei, or at least the same character Shinji thought she was) similarly dangle potentially alluring elements without allowing them to ever amount to very much. That leaves the film to wallow in its admittedly stupendous visual splendor while the audience awaits the predictable reemergence of Shinji the hero.

Evangelion: 3.33 You Can (Not) Redo Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Evangelion: 3.33 You Can (Not) Redo is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. This is another generally nice looking video presentation in what has been a pretty remarkable looking franchise on Blu-ray, though there are a few more problems with this release than with the first two releases. Once again a bold and varied palette is given a beautiful rendering, with some impeccably vivid primaries colliding rather vigorously with a host of interstitial tones, and with CGI artfully interwoven with more traditional methods. The colors are probably the most uniformly awe inspiring thing about this sometimes nearly psychedelic enterprise, with some luscious reds, purples and blues being especially evocative. Line detail is typically very well sharp and well defined. However, some recurrent banding is on display that is typically most evident in bright effulgent washes of some of the special effects sequences where things like eruptions of color come into play.

Evangelion: 3.33 You Can (Not) Redo Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

As with the two previous film releases, Evangelion: 3.33 You Can (Not) Redo features Dolby TrueHD 5.1 mixes in both English and Japanese. To my ears, there's a subtle but noticeable difference in amplitude in the two tracks, with the Japanese track sounding just slightly more forceful in terms of overall mix. I have to say I was generally a bit more pleased with the voice acting on the Japanese track as well, with its commendable emphasis on less childlike (or even childish) sounding characterizations and a better handling of what in previous reviews I termed the Howard Hawksian sound design, where all sorts of layers of overlapping dialogue can accrue in some sequences. One way or the other, though, surround activity is a near constant on both of these tracks, with some nicely rendered LFE and some well done discrete channelization. Despite my qualms with various (English) voice actors, dialogue on both tracks is offered cleanly and clearly.

Evangelion: 3.33 You Can (Not) Redo Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Teaser (1080p; 1:16)


• Trailer (1080p; 1:09)


• Additional Trailer

  Type A (1080p; 1:42)

  Type B (1080p; 1:42)

• TV Spots

  15 Sec Type A (1080i; 00:17)

  15 Sec Type B (1080i; 00:17)

  15 Sec Type C (1080i; 00:17)

  15 Sec Type D (1080i; 00:17)

  15 Sec Type E (1080i; 00:17)

  15 Sec Type F (1080i; 00:17)

  30 Second (1080i; 00:32)

• EVA Extra 08 (1080p; 3:04) is a patently odd short that has almost a minute and a half of silence at the beginning while a timecode of sorts is featured and then which turns into what I guess is a trailer. This is almost as hard to understand as the film itself (and, yes, that's a joke).


• Teaser for TV (1080p; 1:32)


• Trailer for nicofarre (1080p; 1:04)


• Trailer for niconico (1080p; 00:35)


• TV Spot for Kinro (1080i; 00:17)


• TV Spot 15 second (1080i; 00:17)


• Promotion Reel Type A (1080p; 1:02)


• Promotion Reel Type B (1080p; 1:02)


• Rebuild of Evangelion 3.33 (1080p; 10:56) offers looks at different sequences in various stages of the production process, from storyboards through early renderings, to final product.

Evangelion: 3.33 You Can (Not) Redo Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I've been a big fan of the Evangelion film reboots, and so I may be one of those more willing to cut this third entry a little more slack than the general populace might be. That said, this is often a downright confusing and ultimately less satisfying entry in the franchise, one that could have used some tightening in the writing and certainly some more artfully handled exposition and development. The extras on this release also boil down to a bunch of marketing materials, for the most part. All of that said though, and with an acknowledgement that the video presentation takes a slight downward turn on this Blu-ray, Evangelion: 3.33 You Can (Not) Redo is a pretty trippy little enterprise that at least gives the viewer plenty to look at if next to nothing to think about. With caveats noted, Recommended.