Escaflowne

Mix together equal parts LORD OF THE RINGS, THE WIZARD OF OZ, leaven with adolescent angst, add some fighting robots and you have this fantasy-adventure, spun off from the 26-episode Escaflowne TV series (1996), broadcast on American TV in 2000 (cut and dubbed) as Vision of Escaflowne. But be warned: Fans of the series may be disconcerted by the movie's darker tone. Fifteen-year-old schoolgirl Hitomi Kanzaki (voice of Kelly Sheridan) is sliding gradually into suicidal depression. She's quit the track team, withdrawn from her closest friends, feels constantly sleepy and wants more than anything to simply fade away. She's also haunted by a childhood memor...