REVIEW: WE WITHOUT WINGS / CERT: 18 / DIRECTOR: VARIOUS / SCREENPLAY: VARIOUS / STARRING: JOEL MCDONALD, SCOTT FREEMAN, RICCO FAJARDO / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
We Without Wings is based on the forgettable 2009 visual novel video game, Under the Innocent Sky. For all its faults, the game demonstrated far more restraint than the subsequent anime, being that the hentai took a backseat. We Without Wings is a vulgar blight on the genre, which unfortunately swamps genuine gems like Wolf’s Rain and Hayao Miyazaki’s treasure trove of classic films.
The 2011 anime is comprised of 12 episodes; the first few (crotch shots, camel-toes and sentient breasts aside) is little more than exposition, setting up a mass of unsympathetic characters in the terrible hentai vehicle of a plot.
Like Aesthetica of a Rogue Hero, We Without Wings completely commodifies women, objectifying them at every single plot turn, taken to utterly farcical extremes. It doesn’t stop with the misogyny, but also peddles skewed ideas on masculinity (‘real men don’t wear condoms’).
The worrying thing is that We Without Wings hardly stands alone, though it’s certainly one of the most insidious examples put to disc. There’s plenty of more explicit examples saturating the web, but a DVD release is indicative of an audience, which makes one wonder who the hell is buying it.
There’s idiosyncratic and frenetic humour by the bucket load which gets lost in translation. Yes, there’s cultural differences, but the ends doesn’t justify the means. The paedophilic overtones are deeply uncomfortable and concerning, especially when it tries to justify itself with cod social commentary.
We Without Wings seems to take glee in showing demeaning pornographic elements: conversations with women where their jiggling breasts fill up the screen, instead of their mouths moving, and underwear so tight it leaves nothing to the imagination. It’s insulting, for sure, but other than a whiff of titillation, it’s all but functionless. You’re better off steering clear of this one.
Extras: Commentary / Trailers / Songs
