The movie is based around the popular
manga/
OAV series "
Oh! My Goddess" (sometimes referred to as "
Ah! My Goddess" due to an initial mistranslation). The movie takes place three years after the events in the OAV series, where
Belldandy and
Keiichi have matured into a loving, good-natured couple. They are still living together with Belldandy's two sisters,
Urd and
Skuld.
However, the idyllic tranquility is shattered upon the arrival of Belldandy's old sensei, Celestin. Celestin effectively disrupts Belldandy's memory of anything Keiichi-related (including the promise she made in the OAV series that she would always remain by his side). By doing this, he infects the computer system of Heaven with a virus of such destructive power that it might unmake the world.
Long ago, Celestin was imprisoned on the Moon because he rebelled against Heaven. He believed the people of Earth were suffering too much and sought to end their misery by destroying creation. God openly disagreed with this incentive and sentenced Celestin to be exiled. However, someone has released him from his imprisonment.
At the same time, a mysterious, dark-haired girl by the name of Morgan joins Keiichi's motorcycle club with the intention of replacing Belldandy as Keiichi's co-rider. She turns out to be an accomplice of Celestin's - a fairy who was once deprived of her love by the Gate of Judgment and now seeks revenge on a world she finds to be impossibly cruel. She, incidentally, is the one who freed Celestin.
To prevent Celestin from carrying out his plan, Keiichi, Skuld and Urd team up to try and combat him. But things are complicated when Belldandy, having only lost her memories of Keiichi, still recalls the strong feelings she had towards her sensei - and thus is heavily conflicted when it comes to her emotions. In the end, it is up to Keiichi to prove his love and stop Celestin.
The animation is top-notch, fueled by immersive computer animation and sharp-looking traditional cel animation. The soundtrack, seiyuu and general flow of the movie is also class. The story does drag heavily, and the characters often seem uninvolved and helpless. The ending, of course, is painfully predictable. In conclusion, it is a worthwhile movie if you were a fan of the OAV series (and is surely a spectacle to behold), but casual anime fans may be turned off by the predictable and uninvolving storyline.
The movie was released in 2000 to somewhat bland reviews, citing the lack of character depth and involvement.