However, 'The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya' changed my opinion on the series quite a bit. Whether the effect was intentional or not, I'm not sure, but it is this one theme I felt that made me appreciate Haruhi a whole lot more.
Throughout the series, you see the ridiculously random events that Haruhi drags you into. You are not on the same energetic level as her. You quickly become tired of her outrageous antics and things become almost like a chore. You go through everyday following the orders of this crazy woman and the unfortunate people who she has dragged along with you until one day, it's all gone.
The theme I felt in this movie is 'you never realise what's important until you lose it'. I strongly felt this theme and it poked and prodded at my emotions really well. I didn't realise how much I appreciated the characters. I took them for granted. To me, watching the series was about as tiring and chore-like as how Kyon viewed his day-to-day life. While the shock of Haruhi's disappearance wasn't as strong as Kyon's (it's quite obvious what happens due to the title), I still felt the emotions and trauma he went through in the rest of the movie. As I watched, I cried, I squealed in joy and watched in awe. It was a great experience.
While this experience was great, there were definitely some flaws. The main one is a couple of loose ends. You get hints as to what happened but never a clear answer. As a stand alone movie, it felt slightly incomplete. It did leave a good impression for me to continue watching the Haruhi craze to see every detail and event that happens. I thoroughly enjoyed how closely it linked with past events. I don't feel that other anime connect with seemingly meaningless events with world changing ones. It just made the movie that little bit more interactive with the viewer.
This is of course, animated by KyoAni. It is a company well known for it's gorgeous art. The company has outdone itself with this movie. I did not believe that KyoAni could get any better but it did. There was soo much attention to detail, it was such a visual treat. The differences are only small but it changes the look and feel of everything. It is definitely one of KyoAni's magic touches and it certainly did the trick. Amazing animation.
Music was also done incredibly well. A famous piece called Gymnopedie is played several times in the movie. It creates a nostalgic and sad atmosphere which reflects upon the theme really well. Most of the BGM was of a beautiful symphony which brought out the emotions and the events yet still managed to stay quiet and hidden when deep in thought. Voice actors have stayed the same which is great. It wouldn't have been the same if they didn't. Overall, I loved and music and sound.
This movie, just like the series, follows Kyon, his emotions and thoughts. While following him, we also obverse the SOS Brigade characters through his eyes. Through his eyes and my own, I watched the characters mature or open up just that little bit. I understood the characters more, I felt the characters more. They weren't just the 'alien girl' or the 'time travel girl' and the 'ESP', no, they were their own individual selves. TDoHS is a more personal approach to the series. From here on out, it will probably become more personal and interactive. I am expecting these characters to become almost real. This series can really go a long way.
All in all, it's an amazing movie. I knew it was good before I even watched it but I didn't prepare myself for what did happen. It was a journey for Kyon and a bit of one for me as well. The movie was executed incredibly well. I am really excited for the next installment if there will be one (there should be but I don't keep up with this stuff). While it is a great movie, don't watch it unless you have watched ALL of BOTH series. I skipped the last three episodes of season two and I missed out on some bit of info that would've been pretty cool to know. Endless Eight you can skip a bit though. Haruhi Suzumiya is really something you need to start from the start otherwise you just lose the essence of Kyon's world. The movie won't be as enjoyable otherwise.
