An anime film with six hitsujibungaku insert songs already has our attention. Whether its story can match that musical pull is another question.
Anime News Network’s October 24 review of ghost – end of night describes a visually ambitious but narratively frustrating feature from Shingo Natsume, whose credits include Space Dandy, One-Punch Man and Sonny Boy. Its strongest endorsement goes to the soundtrack, while its biggest reservations concern how difficult the film makes understanding—and caring about—its world.
That is a review assessment, not a consensus verdict. Still, it gives viewers a useful sense of what kind of film to expect from Natsume’s big-screen debut.
The soundtrack is the main attraction
Alternative-rock band hitsujibungaku contributes six insert songs, alongside a synthesiser-based score by collaborator Ohzora Kimishima. ANN identifies that combination as the element that most successfully holds the film together.
Anime fans may recognise the band through “More than words” from Jujutsu Kaisen Season 2, “Burning” from Oshi no Ko Season 2, or “When the Light Shines” from The Heike Story.
The review’s argument is that the music does more than accompany the action: it gives shape to emotions the characters struggle to communicate. ANN consequently places the film closer to a sustained music-driven experience than a straightforward plot-led adventure.
A teenager with authority over death
The story centres on Nike, a high-school student entrusted with administrative control over a system that determines when people die.
Her society offers continuing consciousness and freedom from labour, yet its inhabitants fill their lives with distractions. Nike also experiences a connection to the universe at night, encountering flower-like formations that she regards as contamination to be removed.
Her predecessor, Masu, offers a different response to existence. He understands that relationships can end without warning, but continues to value ordinary experiences and connections. His travels become tattoos; small gestures become ways of responding to loss.
Their relationship brings questions of meaning and permanence into focus. What makes an experience genuine, and does losing something erase the value of having held it?
Big images, harder connections
ANN praises the film’s psychedelic animation and its quieter observations of isolation. However, the reviewer finds that the subdued colours, realistic environments and restrained facial expressions can create distance rather than intimacy. The character designs are by Natsume Ono.
The storytelling attracts similar criticism. According to the review, important background information arrives late, transitions between scenes can feel disconnected, and the film continues beyond the point where its thematic argument seems established.
Crucially, the reviewer remains interested in revisiting it. The assessment is mixed rather than dismissive: the ambition is appreciated, even where the execution does not fully land.
Why Malaysia and SEA readers should pay attention
Our take: this is worth tracking if your interest in anime extends beyond familiar franchise films, particularly if you enjoy interpreting unresolved imagery or following directors across very different projects. Natsume’s involvement and hitsujibungaku’s substantial musical contribution provide two concrete reasons to stay curious.
But liking One-Punch Man does not automatically make this an easy recommendation. Based on ANN’s account, expect ambiguity and atmosphere rather than clean explanations or constant momentum.
The supplied review does not establish Malaysian or wider Southeast Asian screening dates, distribution or streaming availability. For now, the useful takeaway is about the film’s creative direction—not where local viewers can watch it.