The Thaw

ゆきどけ

4.02(3K votes)

Ranked #14908Popularity #9236

episodes

Type

Movie

Status

Finished Airing

Aired

2004

Avant GardeHorror

Synopsis

The short film tells the story of a young boy, who as a result of seeing a dog's corpse, becomes interested in the bodies of living things and starts to develop phobias. Before long all manner of things begin to appear grotesque to him. (Source: Wochi Kochi)

5,535 Members

Worth Watching? — Global Verdict

5.4/10

Average Review Score

38%

Recommend It

Reviews Worldwide

International Reviews

xProdigal

Mixed Feelings

I entered "evangelion" into the search bar of the streaming site I used and for some reason it took me to the page for this (the site is known to have a weird search function). It was tagged as dementia, I clicked on it and seeing it was only 6 minutes long I decided to watch it. I'm not entirely sure what the animator was trying to do with this, I'm not even sure the animator knew what they were trying to do with this. It's poorly drawn, crudely animated, sounds like it was recorded on a built-in laptop microphone, grotesque, off-putting, and doesn't even haveany english subs. Despite this, it is possibly one of the most unique things I have ever seen and left enough of an impression on me that I decided to write this review, when I've never written a review before. It was the most unnerving thing I have seen in quite a while, I was completely unprepared for it. If you are looking for a quick trip down WTF lane or just have nothing better to do, watch this short film

37 found helpfulJan 5, 2016

WhatDothLife

Community Discussion

Yukidoke (The Thaw) is a conceptual work. In of itself, it shows the viewer the perspective of a boy who sees a dog's carcass, and from then on plunges into his own fears. Due to the nature of the film being short, it doesn't leave a lot to see, but a lot to interpret. The visuals are haunting, disturbing, memorable. The sound, minimal, but droning. Dread is the key word here; it's heavy, demented, and sickly. The negatives come with the character. There isn't much here in regards to that; the short film is more about the atmosphere, the feeling it gives, rather than the charactersthemselves. Overall, this is a good short, not really meant to be considered "anime", but still important in terms of Japanese animation. 7/9/7/5/8/7

n0hx

Recommended

see, most people get the wrong idea about this amazing show. You are to dense to see through to what is really happening. this is an ordinary boy and it is clearly portraying the imagination of a small child going through an emotional trauma such as the loss of a family pet. give this show a try, and see through it for yourself. Find the light in the show. and make it what you believe it to be !!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! I was really wrong about this show, but after watching it over 50 times I finally realized I wasbeing deceived by these creators. 2004 was a great year just because of this show. I will always look back and reflect on what I saw and try ot turn it into a positive experience to keep with me for the res tof my life. thank you for reading my review

15 found helpfulMar 17, 2020

CorsairFrosty

Not Recommended

*Spoiler warning!* *VERY SHORT REVIEW!!* You ever just regret something. Doing something, making something, creating something. Well, I just did that. I just watched the most randomly-disturbing thing I have ever seen. It was so boring, and so quiet. There was no story, and overall it was the worst "anime" I have ever seen. (If you could even call it a anime..?) also, the art was REALLY disturbing, and disgusting. Most of the time you couldn't even make out what the heck you were even looking at. Only reason I would recommend this to someone is to make them question life. :) (I also only found this causeof a Akidearest video I was watching.)

8 found helpfulMay 27, 2021

VoidRace

Mixed Feelings

The thaw is a conceptual work by Kei Oyama, detailing a boy that, upon seeing a dogs entrails falling out of its corpse, began to develop a phobia of every single thing around him. The work is just that. It has no special meaning beyond that, or at least none that is sewn into the work itself; you would have to add that meaning yourself. It is simply the story of a boy devolving into a paranoid mess. It does this well, the art aiding to the visceral concept and showing the perception of the world around the boy slowing deteriorating. The droning, noisy soundlike a throbbing headache that only gets worse. It all aids to showing us an already disturbing world slowing getting worse and worse for him, until we close out with the boy seeing all things as disturbing and horrific. There's not much beyond that. its an interesting 8 minute watch, but it does not leave you with any other thoughts then "neat, i guess". No questions are asked, none are answered. It is simply there to be there i guess. You can read a bit more on the process of it at the authors blog, translated here: https://www.wochikochi.jp/english/serialessay/2014/09/-kei-oyama-hello-everyone-the-weather-is-cooler-and.php

11 found helpfulFeb 23, 2019