Harmony

Harmony isn’t a perfect film. But damn, what a breath of fresh air it was. The ways in which Harmony struggles aren’t things that come up very often in the WLW film canon. This is an ambitious sci-fi anime film with themes of bodily autonomy, the human soul and also a lot of suicide. That last one isn’t that uncommon in WLW films. But the sci-fi universe of Harmony is a welcome change of pace from yet another romantic drama.

In an apparently utopian future, human life is both extended and monitored by technology. But of course, any “utopia” must be controlled. Protagonist Tuan Kirie works for the World Health Organization. In this world, the WHO is a powerful force akin to Interpol. But Tuan doesn’t personally agree with many of her organization’s ideals. As a teenager, Tuan was infatuated with the charismatic Miach Mihie. Miach declares their “utopia” is one which allows zero control over the body. Tuan and fellow classmate, Cian Reikado become enamoured with Miach’s philosophies, leading the three girls to attempt suicide. Only Cian and Tuan survive the attempt. In the present, Tuan and Cian meet again. But Cian takes her life in front of Tuan. Tuan begins investigating the string of suicides which Cian was just one of. Yet the more she investigates, the more Miach seems to play a role in present events.

I cannot tell you how exciting it is to have a big, ambitious sci-fi story to review for a change. This novelty really bolsters my opinions on Harmony. The first two acts of the film build a really intriguing universe. The themes the story deals with are extremely clear and timely. Harmony also does a really great job of weaving its big, sci-fi cyberpunk mystery in Tuan’s personal narrative and stakes. The second act is particularly strong. That’s when the film starts getting into the themes of autonomy and free will in a really interesting way. A lot of the themes covered in Harmony don’t come up in other WLW films. It’s really great to engage with a work that explores such themes as well has having a lesbian presence in the narrative.

Eventually, the places Harmony lead me to got a little silly. I was on board and ready to engage for the first two-thirds of the story. But we end up in a place where there’s a literal gene for the human soul and a small ethnic group lacking that gene. And I couldn’t make that leap. I can’t consider the concept of human soul gene as anything other than silly. That revelation leads into a third act that deals specifically with this new knowledge. But the third act feels too rushed to deal with this new aspect. And even if they had a full two hours to explore it, I still don’t think I could get on board with the basic concept of a soul gene.

The queer element comes from Tuan and Miach’s relationship. As teens, their relationship isn’t a normal friendship. Not that it was ever going to be that. Miach is basically running baby’s first suicide cult. But Tuan and Miach share a connection and affection that neither share with Cian. By that, I mean Tuan and Miach kiss on the mouth. The tragedy is that it’s likely Tuan’s affection was not returned. Much of Miach’s affection was likely manipulation. But Tuan doesn’t get that or maybe doesn’t care. Even 13 years later with Miach presumed dead, Tuan still can’t get over her. When Miach again plays a role in Tuan’s life, Tuan’s motives become conflicted. By her admission, she loves Miach. Almost to the point of sacrificing everything and everyone for her.

I did find the way Harmony dealt with suicide to be a touch troubling. So much of the film is dedicated to very convincing arguments from various philosophical points of view about why suicide might actually be the best/bravest/most moral choice. There are also some very graphic depictions of people taking their own life. This is not necessarily a critique, but a warning for anyone who might have sensitives surrounding the topic.

Harmony is a film that benefits from my belief that queer women should have at least one film in every single random genre. In this case, the genre is ambitious sci-fi that’s maybe not quite as smart as it thinks it is. But even with that being true, it’s still an entertaining sit, provided you can find entertainment in a film that deals so heavily with suicide. The world Harmony creates and the way that world is depicted through animation and editing is really engaging. And it asks some interesting questions, which is in my opinion, the point of sci-fi. But dang, the idea that you could locate something as intangible as the soul on the human genome really exceeded my suspension of disbelief.

Overall rating: 7.3/10

Other WLW films in similar genres