I had been hearing about this one ever since I started searching for more and more animated horror movies. The summaries I could find of this film were often so vague I had no clue for what I was really in for. So here's a better summary:"In a world ruled by the gods of Love, Time, and Hate, a young man seeks to kill the gods for making him do "a terrible thing". He is guided by a little man named Patience while being pursued by the tyrannical ruler of his former town - Big Daddy~" Watching it for the first time I had a hard time keeping up and getting into the flick or it's lore. But after the film was over and especially after a second viewing I found myself liking it more and more. It's a busy plot but not an overly complicated one. The characters manage to be unique and likable enough and the lore is very well thought out. There were some audio problems in the version I saw though, so I feel like certain details I don't fully understand might make more sense if I could hear the characters better. The animation is no Sita Sings the Blues as far as quality is concerned, but it's art and style is appealing and the film makers know how to set up a theatrical shot. I hope this film gets more attention. It deserves it.

I saw this film very early in it's career during a small showing at MIT. Those who saw the film all agreed that it was a stunning film and an excellent debut for the director, who was kind enough to give an extensive Q&A afterwards and was extremely entertaining in his commentary and insightful in discussing the experience of bringing a film to fruition.The Romantic offers an amazing ride through a very well built world. Certainly living up to it's name, what is offered is an incredibly romanticized world that delivers over the top performance in an amazing capacity. There are great bits of deep commentary on our world and art spruced throughout the epic tale of the romantic, and you can't help but cheer on the heroes every step of the way. What I love most is the quality of film presented. This is a serious animated work for serious film goers. And I'm happy to see animated work be used for what it should be, building quality and impossible worlds for the sake of their perspective on our own.Be warned; this film will make you laugh hard at one moment and leave you utterly shocked and dismayed at another. It is gruesome, but so is the world they're in.If you're looking for that next piece of unknown film to round out your collection of "Hey, check this cool thing out", look no further.