You’ve probably seen the purple robot. Or the blue-haired girl. Or the memes about the kid who won’t get in the giant machine. Honestly, it’s hard to exist on the internet without tripping over Neon Genesis Evangelion at some point. But when Hideaki Anno decided to reboot his 1995 masterpiece with the Evangelion 1.0 You Are Not Alone film in 2007, he did something that still confuses people today. He made a movie that looks like a HD remaster for the first hour and then slowly, almost imperceptibly, begins to tear its own reality apart.
It's a strange beast.
If you’re coming into this fresh, you might think you’re just watching a polished version of the first six episodes of the original TV show. You aren't. Not exactly. Evangelion 1.0 You Are Not Alone is the opening salvo of the Rebuild of Evangelion tetralogy, and while it starts with the familiar story of Shinji Ikari arriving in a post-apocalyptic Tokyo-3 to fight "Angels," the vibes are off. In a good way. The colors are sharper. The scale of the city is more terrifying. The blood—and there is a lot of it—feels heavier.
The Problem With Calling This a Remake
People love labels. We want to call this a "recap" or a "reboot," but neither word fits. Studio Khara, the production house Anno founded specifically to make these movies, spent an absurd amount of money to ensure that the world of Evangelion 1.0 You Are Not Alone felt tactile. You can practically smell the ozone and the cooling fans of the Evangelion units.
The plot is deceptively simple.
Shinji is a traumatized fourteen-year-old. His dad, Gendo, is the coldest man in existence and runs NERV, an underground organization that uses bio-organic mechs to stop giant monsters from triggering a third global extinction. Shinji is forced to pilot Eva Unit-01. He hates it. He does it anyway because he wants his dad to look at him for five seconds without sneering. It’s a psychological horror show disguised as a blockbuster.
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But here is where it gets tricky for the purists. While the "Rebuild" starts with the same beats as the 1995 series, the subtle changes in Evangelion 1.0 You Are Not Alone are massive. The oceans are red now, not blue. That’s a huge lore implication that the movie doesn’t explain until much later in the series. It suggests that this might not be a remake at all, but a sequel—a cycle of time repeating itself.
Ramiel and the "Operation Yashima" Peak
If there is one reason to watch this movie even if you’ve seen the original show a dozen times, it is the Sixth Angel, Ramiel. In the 90s, Ramiel was a blue floating crystal. It was cool. In Evangelion 1.0 You Are Not Alone, Ramiel is a terrifying, shape-shifting geometric nightmare that screams like a haunted flute.
The final act of the movie focuses on Operation Yashima.
The stakes are basically "the entire electricity grid of Japan vs. one giant sniper rifle." It’s one of the most tense sequences in anime history. Watching the power drain from every prefecture, the lights going out across the country, just so Shinji can take one shot? It’s peak cinema. The animation team used a mix of traditional 2D and CGI that, for once, didn't look like garbage. It felt massive.
Misato Katsuragi, the field commander who takes Shinji in, is the real emotional anchor here. While Gendo is busy being a villain, Misato is trying to balance her roles as a guardian, a soldier, and a woman who drinks way too much beer to forget the "Second Impact" that wiped out half the world's population. She’s the one who tells Shinji "You Are Not Alone," giving the movie its subtitle and its soul.
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Why the CGI Actually Works (For Once)
Most anime fans groan when they see 3D models. We’ve been burned too many times by clunky movement and "uncanny valley" faces. However, Evangelion 1.0 You Are Not Alone used CGI to emphasize the inhumanity of the Angels.
When the Fourth Angel walks, it shouldn't look natural. It’s an alien entity. The contrast between the hand-drawn, expressive faces of the humans and the cold, mathematical precision of the Angels creates a visual tension that helps the "fear of the unknown" theme land.
- The Lighting: Look at the sunset scenes. The way the light hits the skyscrapers as they retract into the ground is gorgeous.
- The Sound: Shiro Sagisu returned to do the score, and he went hard. The orchestral swells during the battle scenes make the movie feel like a religious experience.
- The Pacing: They cut the filler. You get the meat of the story without the 90s monster-of-the-week slowdown.
The Shinji Ikari Debate
Look, I know people find Shinji annoying. He cries. He refuses to fight. He’s "whiny."
But honestly? If my dad ignored me for ten years and then told me to get inside a giant, bleeding cyborg to fight a mountain-sized alien that shoots lasers out of its face, I’d cry too. Evangelion 1.0 You Are Not Alone leans into Shinji's vulnerability. He isn't a hero. He’s a victim of circumstance who is trying to find a reason to exist.
The movie does a better job than the original show at making his internal struggle feel earned rather than just repetitive. When he finally steps up during the climax, it isn't because he suddenly became brave; it's because he realized that other people are depending on him, and that's a burden he's finally willing to carry.
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Essential Viewing Details for Newcomers
If you are planning to watch this, you need to know a few things about the versions. There is 1.0, 1.01, and 1.11.
Basically, just find 1.11.
The 1.11 version is the home video release that fixed some lighting issues and added about three minutes of extra footage that actually helps the flow. Don't bother with the earlier versions unless you're a completionist.
Also, pay attention to Kaworu Nagisa at the end. He shows up on the moon. It’s weird. He’s talking to himself. He knows things he shouldn't know. This is the biggest hint that the Rebuild series is going to go off the rails in the sequels. If you stop after the first movie, you’re missing the point. The first movie is the "hook" to get you comfortable before the second and third movies completely destroy your expectations.
Actionable Next Steps for the Evangelion Journey
Getting into this franchise is like trying to learn a new language. It’s dense, it’s confusing, and there’s a lot of homework. But it’s worth it.
- Watch the original 1995 series first. You don't have to, but Evangelion 1.0 You Are Not Alone hits way harder when you can see what they changed. It’s like hearing a cover of your favorite song—you appreciate the new arrangement more if you know the melody.
- Stick to the 1.11, 2.22, 3.33, and 3.0+1.01 order. This is the "Rebuild" sequence. Don't jump around.
- Don't try to "solve" it on the first watch. You’re going to have questions about Adam, Lilith, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the Human Instrumentality Project. Just let the visuals wash over you first. The lore is deep, but the emotional core of Shinji and Rei Ayanami is what actually matters.
- Check out the "Groundwork of Evangelion" books. If you’re into animation, these books show the frame-by-frame sketches for the film. The level of detail in the mechanical designs is staggering and explains why these movies took so long to produce.
- Listen to the soundtrack. Shiro Sagisu’s work on this film is legendary. The track "Angel Attack" is a masterclass in building dread.
Ultimately, this movie is about the terror of being seen and the even greater terror of being alone. It’s a spectacular technical achievement that managed to take a 90s classic and make it feel modern without losing its depressing, beautiful heart. Whether you're here for the giant robots or the psychological breakdown, it delivers. Just make sure you have the lights off and the sound turned up for the sniper scene. It's the only way to do it.