'Ultraman: Rising' Touches More Then It Punches
The superhero genre. It's been played to death, but the stories as cliche as they are, are effective. Ultraman: Rising doesn't do anything different to separate itself from other superhero flicks, but it still has an affectionate, resonant story that helps the film grow beyond its genre conventions. At its heart, Ultraman is a family narrative. Unlike most animated films, the family isn't together. They used to be, but as the years went on, they grew separated. How our protagonist reconciles with his loved ones is effective. It's not the same old tale of a loving family getting along swimmingly. They have problems like any other unit. The only exception is that some of them have superpowers.
Ultraman: Rising starts like every other animated film I've seen. The opening narration provides exposition because a cartoon flick always has to have narration, apparently. The story is about Ken Sato (Christopher Sean), an all-star baseball player who also happens to be Ultraman. Ultraman is a gigantic Iron Man who fights against the Kaiju, a collection of gigantic monsters who want to destroy Japan. How Ken got his powers is never revealed in the film, nor does it have to be, as Ultraman Rising doesn't need to be another superhero origin story in a world filled with them.
At the beginning of the film, we see Ken's childhood, where his father, Professor Sato (Gedde Watanabe), tells him about the Ultraman who protects Japan from the kaiju. As a boy, Ken can't be Ultraman, but his father is. The opening is a nice intro to the family. Everyone is gathered around the house. Ken's mother is watching a baseball game, instilling her love for the game to young Ken. Flash forward to twenty years later. Ken is an adult playing baseball for the Giants. Not the San Fransisco Giants, but the Giants in Japan. Moving from the United States back to Japan, Ken is assigned to defend his home country from deadly monsters. Also, after twenty years, Ken's mother has gone missing.
Despite Ken and Sato's efforts to find her, they've come up with nothing. Sato stays close to Ken, guiding him on his superheroic journey to seize the kaiju. The responsibilities of being a hero and an athlete are a lot for Ken to bear, but he does so anyway with a degree of charisma that makes him a model citizen. With everything being routine in Ken's life all of that is about to come crashing down. When defeating a particular kaiju, Ken recovers a sphere device that contains an egg that hatches a baby kaiju. The baby thinks that Ultraman is her mother. Not knowing what to do with the youngling, Ken takes her to his headquarters, where he must raise the kid on his own. Unfortunately for Ken, there are people out to get the child. The Kaiju Defense Force (KDF) is on the hunt for the child, putting even more of a damper on Ken's life.
Ultraman: Rising has all the ingredients for a film that could very well be an Incredibles knockoff. Luckily, it still retains its own identity with a strong narrative. Ultraman Rising is a story about responsibility. Ken is thrust from being a protector to being a father. With the KDF on the kaiju's tale, Ken puts his life on the line to protect something he grows to love. Despite the big monster battles, Ultraman: Rising keeps its story focused on Ken's family. It's about how we grow apart with age. The older we get, the more problems we have to deal with. Ken must learn how to be not only a defender of Japan but also a loving father and pro baseball player. It's a lot for one person to handle, but Ken gets the job done.
The movie doesn't reinvent the wheel or turn the superhero genre on its head. For better and worse, Ultraman: Rising is yet another superhero film about someone having great power dealing with great responsibility. What makes the story work is the family dynamic. Although Ultraman has action, it keeps most of its narrative centered around Ken and Professor Sato's rocky relationship. Both men have experienced tremendous pain with the mother's absence. Minus their grieving, they must learn how to work together again. It's about the touching moments beyond the large-scale action set pieces. Family may be an overused theme in kids' films, but if it works, it works. And gosh darn it, it works well with this film.
If you want to see an effective kid's film from home, Ultraman: Rising may be your best option to watch with the children this weekend. It still has its flaws. There are predictable story elements and plot holes that are hard to go unnoticed. How has nobody seen Ken become Ultraman when he switches in front of everyone? Also, how did Ken and his father get their powers? I know I said I don't want an origin story, but a quick explanation would have sufficed. Furthermore, the film also has a generic animation style to it. It looks like anything you'd see from Pixar or Dreamworks Animation. That's a real shame, as there are some awesome anime-like fights that would have really soared in a hand-drawn 2D narrative. Even with a generic look and cliche plot, Ultraman: Rising has enough depth to it to warrant a meaningful Netlflix chill and watch with the family.
