Thread: Why do you prefer Anime to real movies?

I have to disagree with that Mantis. Sure, CGI can allow you to create more things but you're still limited by reality. It has to look like it blends into the real world so the designs have to be done in a way that would look like it could potentially exist in our world. You'll hear a lot of filmmakers talking about how they want their movie to feel real and grounded in reality so, even if we can go for something otherworldly, it still has to conform to what our reality looks like, at least somewhat. Compare the mechs from District 9 to something like, say, Gundam or Gurren Lagann. Anime (Or animation for that matter) doesn't have this problem so you can create things that are much more stylized and abstract compared to a live action setting so it allows the imagination to go much wilder.

I'll give that one to you Mantis. Each one does have their own advantages. On one side the original Lion King to me out beats the "live action" (cgi) in every-way. It couldn't capture the color and flow and invitation the original brought. Instead we got CGI creatures and faded world that never felt like it had life to it. However the new live action Aladdin really expanded on and made scenes a lot more explosive, real, and engrossing. Especially the arrival of prince Ali, or escape from the sacred treasure chamber.

I don't. I watch way more "real" movies than I do anime, if I'm honest. I will happily watch a feel-good drama series or comedy series on TV, but I find the equivalent slice of life anime to be either a) boring as hell with kiddy voices, or b) full of panty-shots, undertones of incest, and other awkward stuff... and I'm like "Hell no, I'm out of here. I'm sure there is a slice-of-life anime out there that I might enjoy, but I honestly don't watch enough anime to find those gems among the rough. I tend to watch more fantasy, sci-fi or historical anime because they are more likely not to take me on an awkward ride lol.

As for "...animation can do more..." Years ago, animation was the only way a studio could successfully re-create some stories. For example, there was a 1970's animated version of Lord of the Rings. I remember back in the late 90s, maybe even 2000, this kid at my school who was a big Tolkien fan was like "I heard they are making a LoTR movie. I don't think they'll be able to pull off that world on the big screen. They should stick to animation." Boy was he wrong! With modern technology, it's no longer a stretch to create realistic and fantastical, immersive worlds on-screen in live-action.

Having said that, I don't think there's any reason to enjoy one medium over the other. I have my favourite films and some of them happen to be anime or western animation, others are live-action films. It doesn't matter to me what media was used to create them. =)