+++ REVOLUTION +++
The revolution in the movie is much different than the anime: it is much more of a obvious revolution (as opposed to the anime version, which was much more of a "quiet" revolution, depending on the interpretations/conclusions of the viewer), and it is brought on more by Anthy than Utena.
When Utena finally manages to catch up to Anthy at the arena after being freed from her vice, the revolution is about to take place. As Utena grabs Anthy's hand though, large machinery suddenly appears out of nowhere in the arena and sucks Utena in. Her body is caught inside, and as Anthy tries to hold on to her hand to save her, only her rose signet ring slips off her finger. That is all that is left of Utena for Anthy, but as the wheels turn in the machinery, it produces a pink sportscar with the license plate "UTENA."
According to Akio, a car will rust without a key. As the UTENA car starts to rust, Anthy looks down in her hand and the rose signet ring turns into a key, so with it, Anthy starts the engine of the UTENA car, which sheds its rust, and off they race towards revolution.
Thwarted by a SHIORI car and many locust cars swarming after them in hot pursuit, Anthy is able to escape (with a little help from the Student Council in a WAKABA car) in her UTENA car, only to face Akio, the prince Anthy once loved, telling her to return back to Ohtori, into that dream world. Gears on either sides of the UTENA car start to crush them, seeming as though Akio has won over them, but at the last minute, the UTENA car turns back into the regular Utena, and she and Anthy leap out yelling "Grant me the power to revolutionize the world!" Together, they escape from Akio and his world of illusions and are heading towards the real world again.
So now the interpretation: what does this all mean?
Director Ikuhara hinted that the whole car transformation is actually a metaphor. From my understanding, the whole point of the revolution in the movie is to escape from Ohtori Academy, and to do so, you need a means of transportation. A car is a form of transport, and with it, you are free to travel anywhere you please and change your surroundings (even if only temporarily).
For Anthy to escape Ohtori, she needs a form of transportation. In the movie, this is taken in a literal sense as Utena is transformed into the UTENA car. It is by the UTENA vehicle that Anthy is able to escape, so the UTENA car serves as a literal plot/theme vehicle.
For my further interpretations and insight about the movie, please visit the movie section at Utena.net here.
|
