Hello World Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

Hello World Blu-ray Movie Review

Hello World is an exciting and fast-paced science-fiction anime feature-film with a sense of action and adventure. The series features animation production by Graphinica (Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, Legend of Mana: The Teardrop Crystal). The film features CG animation by GEMBA. Key animation production is by LIDEN FILMS Kyoto Studio. Hello World was produced in cooperation between CoMix Wave Films, Orange, Shirogumi Inc., Stereotype, Sunrise D.I.D., and Wit Studio. The feature-film theme music is performed by Nulbarich, Official HiGE DANdism, and OKAMOTO'S. Hello World features voice performances by Takumi Kitamura, Tori Matsuzaka, and Minami Hamabe.

Naomi Katagaki (Takumi Kitamura) is a 16-year-old teenager living in 2027 Kyoto. The city has changed from its simple years and has advanced with cutting-edge and expensive technology. A developed city with a futuristic energy behind it, Naomi meets another man in the city who identifies as being Naomi (Tori Matsuzaka).

Could it be true that Naomi has met his future self and that time travel is something real? Listening to stories from his mysterious future-self, Naomi is told that he will soon fall madly in love with his beautiful and charming classmate Ruri Ichigyō (Minami Hamabe). Could it be love at first sight?

Yet that love will shatter by the unexpected death of Ruri. Naomi has come to his younger self with this knowledge so he can try and course correct fate and prevent the death of the love of his life. Yet there might be more to the story and secrets 16-year-old Naomi has yet to uncover from his future self. Can Naomi trust himself to save the day?

There is a romantic element to the story and the character interactions. Fans of romantic anime films with a science-fiction element will appreciate the romance of the story. The lover element adds an element of sweet romance for fans of these genre elements. Audiences will wonder – will these characters survive together?

The character designs by Yukiko Horiguchi (Hiragana Danshi, Tamako Love Story) are a highlight of the film. The design work in Hello World is something that left a strong impression on the production. The cast of characters are well drawn and realized by the production team. These designs feel distinct and befitting for the science-fiction film and the worldview of the filmmaking.

The animation is outstanding. Hello World is a beautifully animated film. This is the best thing about the film and the thing that makes the film worth seeing more than anything else. The animation is colorful, vibrant, and engaging. The art supervision by Yūsuke Takeda (Gunbuster 2: Diebuster, Sword Art Online the Movie: Ordinal Scale) brought forth amazing work from the production team.

The animators who worked on the film did excellent work with the animation – the end results are fantastic. The animation looks especially fluid and engaging during the second-half of the film. The animators ramp up the action significantly and there are so many details in the animation – with the characters going on a whirlwind with energetic sequences to keep audiences glued to the film.

Written by Mado Nozaki (Another World, KADO - The Right Answer), Hello World doesn’t have the most compelling screenplay. The concept is decent and the execution is reasonably engaging but it still isn’t something that stands out as well as the other production elements. Nonetheless, a solid script with some fun moments.

Storyboarded and directed by Tomohiko Ito (Occult Academy, Silver Spoon), Hello World excels as an action film first and foremost. The action sequences (especially in the second half of the film) are entertaining and engaging. Director Ito has a fun time playing in the sandbox of the film and the filmmaking is more compelling as a result. Science-fiction action-anime fans will be intrigued.

Hello World Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Released on Blu-ray from Anime Limited, Hello World is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high-definition in the original aspect ratio of 1.78:1 widescreen. The release has colorful and vibrant art and the aesthetic of the presentation is well-reproduced by the release. The encode quality is excellent. An outstanding encoding with a healthy bit-rate. The picture-quality is all the more impressive as a result (with the presentation never suffering from any serious issues with banding or the like). Good work by Anime Limited.

Hello World Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes a selection of lossless audio options: Japanese uncompressed PCM 5.1 (with English subtitles) and Japanese uncompressed PCM 2.0 (with English subtitles). The release does not provide an English dubbed option. The release capably reproduced the original language audio. Dialogue is clear during the presentation. It is nice to have a lossless presentation as the better depth to the audio is something that allows for a more robust presentation. Streaming options only provide a lossy audio presentation with a more compressed soundstage. By comparison, Blu-ray offers a significant audio advantage for audiophiles seeking the absolute top-tier option for presenting a film. The release of this film certainly benefits from the better encoding.

The soundstage is compelling in surround sound. The surrounds are active throughout the presentation. The second-half of the film features some especially compelling sound effects during the key action scenes. The sound direction by Yoshikazu Iwanami is brought to life with compelling encoding. The English subtitles are excellent and are free from any significant spelling or grammatical errors.

Hello World Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The collectors edition includes a deluxe chipboard art-box (with an embossed title-front), a deluxe clear case inside the art-box, sleeve art with additional key artwork, a 13-page booklet, 4 high-gloss art cards, and a poster.

On disc extras:

Trailer (HD, 1:31) provides a glimpse at the feature-film pre-release.

30s Teaser 1 (HD, 00:31) provides an early tease of the film.

30s Teaser 2 (HD, 00:31) is another early tease of the film.

The only real downside to the supplemental package is the lackluster content on the disc itself. The release could have benefited from some behind- the-scene documentaries exploring the production, audio commentaries with cast and crew, photo galleries, interview segments, and other begind the scenes footage. Unfortunately, the package only provides a small assortment of standard extras (as found on the majority of anime box-sets and television series releases).

Despite these small shortcomings, Anime Limited certainly makes up for the on-disc supplemental package some with the effort made in to the packaging and the other goodies included with the release. Not only is the embossed front art a nice design touch, the clear case and interior-art clover sleeve add some extra wonderment to the package design. The only package element that might have made the set stand out even more is steelbook package (but the release does not come with a steelbook and if such a release should ever happen it would be released at a later time). 

The package looks and feels great in hand – the set has considerable heft as a package and looks far prettier than a standard edition copy does on the shelf. A standard edition copy will do fine for someone who only wants the movie and none of the cool bonus swag but for someone who also enjoys the collectability factor and enjoys the extra goodies in the package, the edition makes a good impression and offers something extra for fans to enjoy.

Hello World Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Hello World is an entertaining and action-packed science-fiction feature-film. The anime film has a sense of adventure. The script is decent and the directing is engaging. Though not a masterwork in any sense, Hello World is fun and the concept is compelling. The animation is beautiful and this is the best thing about the film. Director Tomohiko Ito (Occult Academy) has a ton of fun with the film – even though Hello World doesn't have a first-rate screenplay, the director enjoys playing in the science-fiction sandbox. Ito certainly wants to make the worldbuilding element of the film a fun one for audiences.

The Blu-ray release features a strong high-definition video presentation and lossless audio presentation by Anime Limited. The collector's edition release includes a stunning chip-board art-box, booklet, and high-gloss art cards. Recommended.