'Evangelion' movies get special 4D theater screenings

Superfans of the “Evangelion” franchise will tell you that the most rewarding way to watch it is with complete and laser-focused concentration. The anime franchise is so dense with layered themes and religious references that giving the on-screen events and dialogue anything less than your complete and undivided attention will keep you from picking up on the subtle tells that reveal the characters’ hidden fears and secret desires.

They might be right, too. But if you’d rather watch Eva while being not just mentally shaken, but physically too, perhaps while having your face blasted with liquid, you’ll have the opportunity to do just that at a series of special 4D screenings of the first three “Rebuild of Evangelion” films.

If you’re primarily familiar with Eva through the original 1995 TV series and its immediate theatrical follow-ups, you might be wondering how much the often slow-paced experience can be enhanced through motion seats, flashing lights, blasts of wind, smoke clouds, and water sprays that the Japanese theater industry collectively refers to as a “4D” showing (like, is there supposed to be a warm squirt of liquid during one of Shinji’s particularly emotional moments?).

However, the “Rebuild of Evangelion” retelling, which began in 2007, keeps things moving at a much brisker pace with more frequent action, while also cranking up the intensity of its Evas vs. Angels fight sequences, which now end with a burst of enough LCL liquid to flood an entire city.

▼ Announcement video for the “Rebuild” 4D screenings

The 4D screenings will have staggered start dates, with those for “Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone” beginning Dec 4, “Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance” Dec 11, and “Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo” Dec 18. The screenings will continue until Dec 24. It’s sort of an unusual move to close out the events right before Japan moves into the end-of-the-year vacation period, but maybe that’s a sign that Eva’s handlers at Studio Khara will finally then tell us when we can see the delayed fourth “Rebuild” movie, which is supposedly going to bring the Evangelion franchise to a final, permanent conclusion.

The “Rebuild of Evangelion” 4D screenings will take place at 82 Toho Cinemas theater branches across Japan, with eight in Tokyo at locations including Toho Cinemas Shinjuku and Roppongi Hills (a complete theater list can be found here).

Source: Evangelion official website via Hahcima Kiko