Despite living underground, the entire city is filled with brightness, mirroring its people. This interaction provides viewers with an understanding: that it’s not just the buildings that are in close proximity-the people are close like a family. They gleefully state they found seeds to plant for food.
After returning from the danger zone, Patema is greeted by the citizens. The city lives in the past, molding its buildings into the environment. Her house itself uses the old remnants of civilization, fit with its own archaic AC system. Outside her house even, a pile of rocks rests. While not overly filthy, Patema’s city is logically filled with dirt and debris. Elevator shafts even transport characters throughout the city, fashioning the impression of an underground mine. Buildings are built into the rocks with pipes connecting one rusty structure to the next. From these rules, the building blocks-the structures of their respective societies-are formed both ethically and physically. To guide their respective citizens (and the viewers), the chief of Patema’s village and the ruler of Aiga have a set of rules, one of which is never to interact with outsiders. Throughout the movie, two societies are presented back-to-back, and by flipping from different perspectives, viewers are encouraged to make observations. Patema Inverted has a knack for “structure,” conveyed through its clean writing and expressive architecture.