I Cried at the End of AI...

Spanky The Dolphin · Post by **Spanky The Dolphin** » 2003-01-04 11:41am

On Thursday Utsanomiko and I went out shopping. While he didn't buy anything, I brought home a ton of stuff:

From Blockbuster: January issue of Newtype USA.
From Barns & Noble: Volume 10 of Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z, and The Annotated Hobbit.
From Best Buy: Series set for Martian Succesor Nadesico, Dark Star, and AI.

Utsanomiko had already seen AI during it's theatrical run with DP Dark Primus, so I bought it based primarily on his recommendation.

While I know that quite a few people had a problem with the ending, I thought it was truely touching, and was crying for easily the last ten minutes of the film. For me, it was like a combination of Grave of the Fireflies and The Iron Giant. There was just so much emotion that I was overwhelmed, and broke down.

I felt it was the perfect ending for the film.

Admiral Valdemar · Post by **Admiral Valdemar** » 2003-01-04 11:46am

I wish Jude Law was in it till the very end, he rocked.

Still, I came close to tears at the end of Gladiator, Cowboy Bebop, Macross Plus and The Iron Giant so you're not alone. Death scenes like Boromir's can also be very emotional.

Incidentally, how much is the Nadesico set (I assume DVD)? I must see the film since I saw the last ep on Thursday and it confused the hell out of me, but then I did miss eps 13 to 23. The last Blue Gender and NGE eps were on too, the latter I already had seen and have Death and Rebirth on DVD and EoE, but Blue Gender was equally dodgy.

HemlockGrey · Post by **HemlockGrey** » 2003-01-04 11:52am

Hmmm...I've never cried during a movie...

Admiral Valdemar · Post by **Admiral Valdemar** » 2003-01-04 11:55am

HemlockGrey wrote:Hmmm...I've never cried during a movie...

Nor have I, I just said I felt very sad and wide eyed.

Evil Sadistic Bastard · Post by **Evil Sadistic Bastard** » 2003-01-04 11:58am

Just checking, people.. can anybody recommend any sad movies to me? From what I've seen there's Grave of the Fireflies (is is anime?) A.I. and the Iron Giant (I wanted to watch it but it somehow slipped my mind).

Any others?

Spanky The Dolphin · Post by **Spanky The Dolphin** » 2003-01-04 11:59am

At the Best Buy in Cedar Rapids the Nadesico set was $60 USD. And yeah, it was a DVD.

Yeah, Jude Law was great. And I thought Teddy was wonderful. Although for some reason, I absolutely could not conceive the whole Flesh Fair thing. I just couldn't understand their hatred.

In a way, AI has the saddest happy ending I've ever seen.

There are actually quite a few films that can make me cry. Including some surprising ones, like The Abyss (Special Edition). And The Iron Giant is a very dear film to me: so much that even thinking of the last section can make me choke up.

Another thing that can choke me up/make me cry is when I'm visually/emotionally overwhelmed. I often tear/choke up while watching things like Princess Mononoke and (shocking!!) The End of Evangelion and the Eva TV series.

DPDarkPrimus · Post by **DPDarkPrimus** » 2003-01-04 12:34pm

Whoa, the Nandesico set was only $60? Damn, if I didn't need the last three Escaflowne DVDs...

And AI was one of the most touching movies I have ever seen, and it's rather hard to touch someone as cynical as me. (My brother bought it, so I've seen it about three times now. I've found new insights on the movie each time.)

Alex Moon · Post by **Alex Moon** » 2003-01-04 12:50pm

Yeah, the AI ending was pretty sad. I don't cry at movie endings usually though. I do remember that Grave of Fireflies almost brought me to tears

Dark Primus · Post by **Dark Primus** » 2003-01-04 01:00pm

The Green Mile made me cry.

B5, Sleeping in Light made me cry too. Not a movie, but still.

Post by **Mr Bean** » 2003-01-04 01:29pm

The Espodies towards the end of Trigun make most people cry

As does the ending of Cowboy Bebop

Sir Sirius · Post by **Sir Sirius** » 2003-01-04 01:34pm

Evil Sadistic Bastard wrote:Just checking, people.. can anybody recommend any sad movies to me? From what I've seen there's Grave of the Fireflies (is is anime?) A.I. and the Iron Giant (I wanted to watch it but it somehow slipped my mind).

Any others?

Star Trek II:"Wrath of Khan". Spock dies, so sad.
Das Boot, U-96 is sunken in the end, so sad (damn the mean British with their bombers).
Return of the Jedi. Darth Vader and the Emperor, the two coolest meanies ever, die, so sad (damn the Rebels and their rabbits foots and four leaved clovers).

Durandal · Post by **Durandal** » 2003-01-04 02:45pm

I thought the ending to AI sucked. It should have ended with the kid begging the blue fairy to make him into a real boy, zoom out, fade to black, credits. That would have wrenched at the heartstrings of everyone in the audience, and that's where I expected the film to end. The extra 20 minutes seemed contrived and unnecessary.

By the way, the kid in AI (Halley Joel Osment) is one of my best friend's cousins.

Oh, and I always get choked up at the ending of Fellowship of the Ring, personally, especially when Boromir dies. The ending scene is also somewhat of a tear-jerker for me; I'm not sure why. It just holds a very beautiful sentiment with Frodo telling Sam, "I'm glad you're with me, Sam," and heading off to Mordor.

Exonerate · Post by **Exonerate** » 2003-01-04 03:02pm

Hmm. I was crying after I read this book, but that was in like 4th grade... I was getting pretty sentimental towards the end of Gladiator, but thats the closest I can recall to actually crying during a movie.

ArmorPierce · Post by **ArmorPierce** » 2003-01-04 03:11pm

I didn't like the ending of AI. Some parts of it just didn't make sense. The closest I've ever come to crying at the end of a movie was when I was like 6 or 7 and even then I didn't end up shedding a tear.

Post by **Dalton** » 2003-01-04 03:12pm

What is Grave of the Fireflies?

Spanky The Dolphin · Post by **Spanky The Dolphin** » 2003-01-04 03:15pm

An anime film that's about a boy and his little sister orphaned by the Allied firebombing of Japan in WWII.

It's ending is easily one of the saddest ever in cinema.

Alex Moon · Post by **Alex Moon** » 2003-01-04 03:16pm

Dalton wrote:What is Grave of the Fireflies?

An anime movie. The story is that a boy and his little sister loose their mother to an american bombing raid during the second world war, and then run away from their Aunt to live in the countryside while the war goes on. It's very sad.

Post by **Dalton** » 2003-01-04 03:17pm

Ooh, I might check that out though I'm not into "real" anime.

Durandal · Post by **Durandal** » 2003-01-04 03:53pm

Alex Moon wrote:
Dalton wrote:What is Grave of the Fireflies?
An anime movie. The story is that a boy and his little sister loose their mother to an american bombing raid during the second world war, and then run away from their Aunt to live in the countryside while the war goes on. It's very sad.

Unless the boy and his sister have super-powers and are somehow threatening to the universe as a whole, I think you're lying about it being anime.

Cpt_Frank · Post by **Cpt_Frank** » 2003-01-04 04:32pm

Durandal wrote:
Alex Moon wrote:
Dalton wrote:What is Grave of the Fireflies?
An anime movie. The story is that a boy and his little sister loose their mother to an american bombing raid during the second world war, and then run away from their Aunt to live in the countryside while the war goes on. It's very sad.
Unless the boy and his sister have super-powers and are somehow threatening to the universe as a whole, I think you're lying about it being anime.

While we're at non-crappy japanese animation, who else here liked Jin Roh?

Mark S · Post by **Mark S** » 2003-01-04 04:33pm

Durandal wrote:I thought the ending to AI sucked. It should have ended with the kid begging the blue fairy to make him into a real boy, zoom out, fade to black, credits. That would have wrenched at the heartstrings of everyone in the audience, and that's where I expected the film to end. The extra 20 minutes seemed contrived and unnecessary.

I agree completely and would have said this if you hadn't first. It had a great ending and then it was as if their test audience thought it was sad so they slapped on another twenty minutes with aliens and shit.

As for crying in movies, I never have but for some reason I get a little chocked up at battle scenes. Usually medival more than modern but there ya go.

VF5SS · Post by **VF5SS** » 2003-01-04 04:37pm

Durandal wrote:
Unless the boy and his sister have super-powers and are somehow threatening to the universe as a whole, I think you're lying about it being anime.

Damn straight.

I might've been more moved by that flick if I could've read the subtitles on the tiny school TV. The closest I've ever come to crying at the end of a movie was when I watched Momento. I was thinking, "Its finally over! Or has it just begun?"

Cal Wright · Post by **Cal Wright** » 2003-01-04 08:20pm

Momento was so bad ass.

While A.I. had it's moments, and I feel that some parts could be touching, if I had cried, the only reason would be strictly due to the fact that I would have realized that two hours of my life were just wasted by sitting there watching that film.

The whole point of the flesh fair was similar to the Yuzhan Vong in Star Wars. To them artificial life is an abomination and is trying to mimic what people have always held sacred, which is of course humanity. It's sort of like the whole cloning shit deal now a days.

DPDarkPrimus · Post by **DPDarkPrimus** » 2003-01-04 10:58pm

Dalton wrote:What is Grave of the Fireflies?

One of the most powerful anti-war films ever, and one of the most depressing as well.

phongn · Post by **phongn** » 2003-01-04 11:45pm

Cpt_Frank wrote:
Durandal wrote:
Alex Moon wrote: An anime movie. The story is that a boy and his little sister loose their mother to an american bombing raid during the second world war, and then run away from their Aunt to live in the countryside while the war goes on. It's very sad.
Unless the boy and his sister have super-powers and are somehow threatening to the universe as a whole, I think you're lying about it being anime.
While we're at non-crappy japanese animation, who else here liked Jin Roh?

Or for that matter, Wings of Honnimaise?