Attack on Titan
2013
Original language: Japanese
- animation
- sci-fi & fantasy
- action & adventure
The story
100 years ago, the last remnants of humanity were forced to retreat behind the towering walls of a fortified city to escape the massive, man-eating Titans that roamed the land outside their fortress. Only the members of the Scouting Legion dared to stray beyond the safety of the walls – but even those brave warriors seldom returned alive. Those within the city clung to the illusion of a peaceful existence until the day that dream was shattered, and their slim chance at survival was reduced to one horrifying choice: kill – or be devoured!
What it’s like
Grey skies, muddy greens and soot-dulled stone set a bleak palette, with cramped walled streets giving way to wide, exposed fields that feel vast and unprotected. Hand-drawn animation alternates between still, heavy close-ups and kinetic combat, where characters swing through the air on cables and the camera whips alongside them. Hiroyuki Sawano's score swells with choral voices and pounding percussion during battles, then thins to lonely strings and near silence in quieter moments. The mood is dread-heavy and urgent, every excursion beyond the gates weighted with menace. Pacing is propulsive in action and slow-burning in its political and emotional scenes, and its arcs trace grief hardening into resolve and trust eroding under fear. Intensity is high: frequent graphic gore, bodies torn apart and devoured on screen, brutal violence, deaths of major characters, and disturbing scenes of cruelty and oppression. Sexual content is minimal. It is frightening rather than gently unsettling, suited to people who want a grim, tragic epic with big set pieces and political undercurrents, and not a fit for anyone seeking something gentle or low-stakes.
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