From director Naoko Yamada (A Silent Voice, Liz and the Blue Bird) comes a beautiful coming-of-age story featuring music by Kensuke Ushio (Chainsaw Man, DAN DA DAN). Totsuko has a unique way of seeing the world – she can see colorful auras around people, though she isn’t able to see her own. She finds herself drawn to her classmate Kimi, who glows with the most beautiful color of all. To get closer to Kimi, Totsuko forms a band with her and Rui, a quiet musician who plays the theremin. As the newfound friends develop the sound of their music, they start to uncover the desires driving the heart of their songs.

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Video Quality

The Colors Within comes to Blu-Ray from GKIDS with a sumptuous 1080p transfer in its original aspect ratio. The animation techniques are replete with pleasing detail and texture. Every scene delivers a feast of dazzling imagery that makes you grateful there is still room for 2-D animation in the world, even if there are some digital enhancements. The colors are bold and brightly saturated with complex hues delighting the senses. Highlights are deftly maintained, and black levels are deep with no trace of compression artifacts or digital anomalies. This feature showcases rich detail in the setting including unique facets that make the space feel more lived-in. The character designs are consistently rendered without a hiccup. The transfer handles every change in the environment with stability including no jagged lines or color bleeding. This is what you want from a modern anime experience.

Audio Quality

The Blu-Ray comes with a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless track presented here in its original Japanese, along with an English language dub. The film is presented with optional English, English SDH, and Spanish subtitles. One of our favorite aspects of the film is the music, and the soundtrack adds powerful emotions to the story as it touches the audience with the surround sound presentation. The environmental detail in the surround channels is favorable as the sounds transport you into this narrative. The soundscape capitalizes on its narrative ambition with some natural texture to the world. Dialogue comes through clearly without getting clipped by any competing elements. GKIDS always comes through for fans with a worthwhile presentation.

Special Features

Garden of Remembrance: An 18-minute short film from Naoko Yamada is presented here in HD.

Starting A Band with Kensuke Ushio: A ten-minute interview with the composer who discusses the creation of music for the film.

Live Talk & Drawing with Naoko Yamada: A 38-minute panel with the filmmaker in which she discusses the inspiration for the film, the importance of hand-drawn animation to her work, the production process, and more.

Crate Digging with Naoko Yamada: A four-minute piece in which the director browses a record store and discusses her love of music.

Photowalk with Naoko Yamada: A seven-minute featurette in which the filmmaker visits historic sites in Los Angeles.

Scene Breakdowns: A series of videos is provided in which the director dives into the creation of key moments in the film.

- The Candlelit Church Sequence (12:41)

- The Final Performance (7:57)

- Totsuko’s Flashback Sequence (7:20)

Color Palette Featurettes: A series of interviews and behind-the-scenes footage is provided that takes you into the creation of the film.

- Interview with Director Naoko Yamada (9:18)

- Interview with Music Creator Kensuke Ushio (8:37)

- Interview with the Cast (11:55)

- Behind the Scenes with the Cast (6:10)

Trailers & Teasers (6:38)

Final Thoughts

The Colors Within takes a little time to get going, but once it does, it develops into one of the more rewarding anime features we have seen recently. The close personal bonds that are forged through the creation of art are quite rewarding to witness – especially since the songs are legitimately good. The film is not as fantastical as many of the breakthrough titles internationally, yet we welcome a narrative that puts human connection above all else. GKIDS has released a Blu-Ray with a stellar A/V presentation and a valuable assortment of supplemental features. If you love an emotionally driven anime feature, you should not miss this one. Recommended

The Colors Within will be available to purchase on Blu-Ray + DVD Combo Pack on May 27, 2025.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: GKIDS and Shout! Studios have supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.