Anime Movie Review: Liz to Aoi Tori (An Emotional Story about Friendship): Hibike Euphonium Side Story Movie

High school life was probably one of the enjoyable aspects of my life. Whilst I always complain about wanting to finish high school, just like many people, when you go to university or go to work, you wish you were back in high school, because life was just so much simpler, you get to meet your friends everyday, it was tight-knitted community. I'm sure most people who would be interested in watching this movie would have watched the original Hibike Euphonium series. If you haven't, I recommend watching the original series first before watching the movie, but it's not essential. It's more an extension to one of the side complications in the movie.

Liz to Aoi Tori focuses on two characters, Nozomi and Mizore and their tight-knitted friendship. The concept of friendship and attachment is the most prevalent aspect of this movie, in the form of a storybook - Liz to Aoi Tori or Liz and the Blue Bird. In this storybook, Liz is lonely and becomes acquainted with a bird who removes her sense of loneliness, but eventually she has to let go of the bird. This storybook is very relevant to the story itself - we see two friends who see themselves as Liz, being unable to let go of the other, essentially seeing themselves as a burden to their other counterpart. Liz to Aoi Tori is also the piece that the band is performing, and features a duet between the oboe and the flute, which is what the two friends play. The two must synergize for the duet, and this juxtaposes with the storybook where one wants to "control"/have strong attachment to the other. And that's a really important part of the story.

You may ask "why is it important?". It's because Nozomi and Mizore blame themselves and see themselves as the main character in the storybook, and we see this behavior throughout the story. For example, Mizore questions why the main character wouldn't have locked the bird in a cage because she would have - it shows that Nozomi is very important to her, and perhaps due to that, she feels that if she loses her, she loses everything. Fair enough, considering her quiet nature, I wouldn't have done that but I'm sure people with one/few friends would have kept their friends as close as possible, maybe to the extent of "restricting them of their freedom". From Nozomi's perspective, she betrayed Mizore in the first year by quitting the band and then suddenly rejoining, and she also feels that she lacks the musical talents that Mizore has. It's two friends clinging onto each other because their guilt or their fear.

But the main important outcome of the story is that what friends are for. Neither Mizore or Nozomi should think themselves as Liz, but rather think themselves as two birds soaring in the sky. Whilst being free, they are still close to one another, able to help one another, and most importantly of all, feel unrestricted to doing something because a good friendship will never break easily. Furthermore, they were able to help each other with their problems - e.g. Mizore with her loneliness and Nozomi with her sense of guilt and lack of musical talent. The movie highlights this at the end and it's a really beautiful ending - we see that these two have made up, and it's extremely important since it's their last year of high school and they are deciding on their future careers. Also, since it's a movie about friendship, it may be a bit slow at times and this may frustrate viewers, but that's the aspect of friendship - it's bound to take a lot of time. After all, be patient since good things takes time to bear fruit.

In conclusion, Liz to Aoi Tori is a wonderful addition to the Hibike Euphonium series as it gives an interesting aspect of two side characters in the main story that were the most interesting and the most emotional. The movie highlights a simple message that a friendship is a bond forged for years to come and that friends should never feel that they are a burden to one another and most importantly, should never restrict/control friends for your own needs/insecurities. Coupled with beautiful OST, amazing art, Liz to Aoi Tori must be a movie to watch since the emotional aspect of friendship is

rarely discussed in anime.

Overall Score: 8.75/10

Story: 9/10

Characters: 8/10

Art: 10/10

Sound: 9/10

Enjoyment: 8/10