The ending is perhaps one of the most satisfying endings I have ever seen in anime. In fact, it uses it to very useful affect. However, never does the film stray away from its commitment to its premise.
The film never pokes fun at the ridiculousness of itself, as in “haha, yeah, this is kinda stupid, but just watch and it will get better!” Obviously, to me, this whole concept is a little funny – and I will admit, despite how much I love this film, there were some instances that I laughed at the absurdity of what was presented. The film does not make a joke of its premise, but instead presents it as something that everyone in the setting believes. I will say that the premise alone is a big determining factor in one’s enjoyment of the film. It does not perfectly mesh into the Left Behind series, obviously, but I think the religious elements, meshed well with science fiction, result in such an interesting take on an already interesting premise. It adds believability while simultaneously being mythological or even epic. I always love works that manage to explain the same narrative from a (albeit fictional) scientific perspective and a religious perspective. The Aiga and their apparent rule of the rest of humanity, the whole concept of people flying to the heavens for their supposed religious sins, and the religious function of the Aiga’s leader really reminds me of certain stories that is, a world government setup by an anti-Christ, an apocalyptic event, and a select few sent into the sky (“heaven”) for a religious reason further, Yoshiura even meshes it with science fiction. The people of Aiga are basically what’s left of humanity. In Patema Inverted, the government of Aiga basically claims that Patema is part of a groups of sinners, and as punishment they were cursed to float to the sky.
#Sakasama no patema explanation series
The story oddly reminds me of the novel series Left Behind. In order for her to live on the surface world, Age takes her to a cottage where she stands on the ceiling. As in, literally, When Patema comes to the surface world, she is floating to the sky and is only saved by Age. The big difference between the two, however, is that Patema (and her people) are upside down. Led by a religious fanatic and kept in power by his Kerberos lookalike secret police, Age is expected to fall directly into the image dictated by his Glorious Leader.
Age lives on the surface world, in an Orwellian society calling itself Aiga. She is in line to be the next leader of this tribe-like group. Patema is a princess living in an underground society. The film follows two character, Patema and Age, who come from completely different societies. It is another fantastic entry to Yasuhiro Yoshiura’s line of directorial works with an interesting plot and an amazing ending.