But don't you think your points here reinforce what I was saying? What I found interesting about the approach in the film is how little it comments, but rather simply shows characters being people. Is being friendzoned or ignored enough of a provocation for rape? Absolutely not. That's not acceptable, it's morally wrong, and in every civilized nation it is illegal. But that doesn't mean people don't do it, feeling justified. It could be a moment of weakness, it could be evil intent, it could be poor upbringing. Doesn't matter, there's no excuse for it, it's wrong. I don't think a show has to SAY it's wrong, especially if the audience are adults who can form their own opinions with their own life experience and moral compass. Is he shown to be a violent guy? No. Is he shown to be an obvious sexual deviant? No. But not all rapists are. Rapists, murderers, molesters, and various sorts of sick people don't come in one package. Often they are completely normal people on the outside, and sometimes they give in to temptation or they snap. Obviously there are also those who have clear warning signs, and commit premeditated acts, but not everyone is the same.
I don't think the show is making a social statement about women in particular either. In fact, I feel that Honneamise represents and showcases a lot of the worst in human society, and things which people don't like to think about much or see. The reaction to the rape scene clearly shows people don't want to see stuff like that, and it's a fair reaction. You shouldn't. The other is the lack of satisfaction the show gives anything at all. It's a story of unresolved things. The relationship is unresolved. The aftermath of the rape is unresolved. The political maneuverings amount to nothing. Even the "successful" launch of the ship is meaningless. No one expected it to succeed, and in the end no one cared. He got to make a transmission which vindicates his personal achievement, but that's about it. It probably inspires no one, it makes no difference in the world, and he's probably dead after that.
This lack of satisfaction and resolution is something I find really interesting because it can be seen as a warning to what happens in a world where apathy has taken over. The movie does not comment on this directly, just like it does not really comment on anything directly. But simply watching what they chose to show, that is the only conclusion I can come to. It shows a world which mirrors our own in many ways, but things here have gotten to a point where there really isn't much hope for those living in it. There isn't much of the future or positive progression in society, people are forced to rely entirely on their own initiative and set personal goals to get any sense of satisfaction, there is a terrible support system for people who feel lost, and all this leads the various people in the show to do the things they do. The politicians act against their own interests because change is more frightening. The engineers have more or less given up and take things one day at a time because no one else cares. The lonely fall towards the redemptive concepts of religion without benefiting from the community support which should come with it. I don't view the movie as "light-hearted" at all, even though the rape scene is probably the only physically dark moment in the film. The tone throughout is bleak, even though the protagonist is largely whimsy and care-free. The fact that such a society is seen by everyone as largely normal, and so they act normally in it, creates a really sick undertone.
Wings of Honneamise is a really interesting movie because there's a lot that can be read from it. Whether it was designed to be read a certain way or whether much of it was inspired by things in reality isn't as important, because by not saying anything explicit about what they show, it allows the audience the freedom to judge such a world and relate it to how we see our own world. I think that is far more valuable than a film which has a specific message telling people what they are seeing is right or wrong. We have enough of those sort of stories, the ones simply showing things as they are definitely hold my interest more. Probably why I'm a huge fan of Wong Kar Wai movies.
