Appurushîdo (2004) Reviews

• Appleseed(2004)

  DanielJosLeary2004-10-17

  My thoughts on Appleseed may be perceived as a bit more negative then the reviews preceding mine, but that is pretty much because my experience with the movie was greatly influenced by the reaction of the audience I saw it with. This was at the U.S. premiere of Appleseed as part of the Boston Fantastic Film Festival which screened the Japanese language, English subtitled print of the film. And it is important to note that the group around me were there because they wanted to be. The BFFF is an all science fiction, horror and genre film festival and is only in its second year. So anyone there was there because they love these types of movies. Once the film started the reaction was good. Everyone(including myself) seemed stunned by the visuals, and if not impressed at least forgiving of the Matrix style slow-mo shots. But about forty minutes in people began laughing. Unfortunately the laughter was actually coming from the ridiculous nature of many clichéd and over dramatized moments. The first of which came when the character Hitomi, an emotionally engineered "Bioriod," wonders what it would be like if she was able to love, leading a soft piano chord to swell onto the soundtrack. The entire audience actually burst into laughter. Sadly to say Appleseed has quite a few more moments that caused the same reaction: When the heroine flashbacks realizing that she is the key to the plot, one character dies dramatically in the others arms, it is revealed that the baddies can be stopped if only the failsafe button way up there can be reached, the heroine reaches breathlessly for the button with seconds to go, etc, etc. And when the movie ended EVERYONE in the theater burst into discussion of what they had just seen. But the conversations I overheard were not favorable. Most people seemed to think they had wasted their money and I even heard one guy in the theater alley afterward saying it was "the worst movie he'd ever seen." I don't feel nearly that feral toward the movie. Personally, I have to say Appleseed is one of the most groundbreaking animes in the last six or seven years. The visuals are stunning, the action is well paced, and most of the capabilities of this cell-shaded CGI animation are explored, delivering many moments that would be impossible in hand drawn. And I also liked much of the art style and how it called back to all the post-apocalyptic cyberpunk anime and manga of the late 80s/Early 90s. The environments and characters really seemed like living, breathing versions of the ones in Akira and Ghost in the Shell. But the distracting and embarrassing clichés in Appleseed seem to come from this new art style. With the cell-shaded CGI you are experiencing anime style characters existing in an environment much more like the real world then 2D hand-drawn anime. The characters are bound very close to real world physics in this form of animation. Their heads can't grow big when they yell, a single drop of sweat can't appear on the temple of their foreheads when they are embarrassed and a flashing colored background can't run behind them when they transform or become excited. But the creators of this new Appleseed movie still kept many of the story elements and character mannerisms that are convention to other anime. Along with all the other over dramatized Japanese sentimentality that have been in so many hand-drawn movies anime fans don't blink twice at them. But they just didn't work in this form of animation. Ultimately, this movie will have difficulty becoming a classic the way Akira and GitS did, because Appleseed doesn't break new ground in story as it does with visuals the way earlier anime classics have. But it's still a wonderful first stepped toward new possibilities in both Japanese and world animation.

• Way of the future.

  littlemanheaven2004-12-07

  First things first; if you're looking for a literary masterpiece or an anime masterful like the works of Hayao Miyazaki and Mamoru Oshii, then Appleseed is not for you. It's plot is cliché with the overused science fiction premise of struggle between two coexisting races and the flaws and sins of humans, and the general execution of the plot is also in no way an outstanding one of the genre. What Appleseed truly is, is a technological achievement in 3D animation for Japanese anime. It's animation style is far from Hollywood animation features like Finding Nemo and Shrek, instead it uses cel-shading technology which we've already seen in video games, and takes it up to a very high and polished level. The result is a beautiful movie with jaw-dropping animation, such that one cannot doubt that this style will pave the way for the future of anime movies. The range of emotions expressed through the CG is impressive; and motion capture has worked beautifully into the film, making it a seamless viewing experience. As a whole product, it's graphical presentation rivals that of great 2D animation features. Other aspects are fairly well done; the music is done fairly well, with the opening song giving it a distinct flavour but later that fades away to the average run-of-the-mill songs that aren't particularly effective in rousing the emotions and senses. The artistic direction is great, with wonderful colors and tones chosen to accentuate the mood from the bleak dark ruins to the pastel colors of the Utopia. Scene execution is also stellar, and the structural development of the movie is natural although inter character relationships are somewhat lacking in development. As a whole, it's an extremely graphically polished product based on an overused premise.

• Here's a bit of everything, violence and fighting scenes, hi-tech armory, some love and some conspiracy as well.

  scobbah2005-12-14

  First of all, this piece is brilliantly animated. Combining the visual effects with the sound effects this way makes me think of The Matrix, with fast cuts, some slow-motion sessions and of course a lot of doppler effects. I thought the plot was quite OK, not too original but not too hasty either. It has a good development I thought, and I have to admit that I were a bit worried for a while if it'd be able to sum things up in a good way, which I think it did quite well. Here's a bit of everything, violence and fighting scenes, hi-tech armory, some love and some conspiracy as well. I'll give this a 7/10. I can't say how much in fact the plot has earned these points, but if you like visual effects and fast-paced fighting scenes you're probably going to like this.

• Clichéd, slow and melodramatic, but worth it when it gets going

  CuriosityKilledShawn2006-04-02

  Appleseed simultaneously suffers from the worst Anime has to offer and benefits from the best animation and production a modern production can have. If you are a hardcore Manga fan (or just occasionally fond of it like me) you'll be aware of the most typical clichés, most of which make up the bulk of the Appleseed story. So...we have a world set after WWIII, in which a Utopian Society has finally found peace. But there are still some people who cannot help but let their anger and bigotry take hold. Android/Clones with suppressed emotions help balance out Utopia and some even want to be fully-fledged humans. There are humans who hate these Androids and wish them to all die out. And there are some Android who hate humans and wish them to all die out. And finally, there is a big computer who runs everything. Nothing there you haven't seen before huh? It also takes a while to build up momentum. Though when it does, the plot twists and turns and action scenes are truly exhilarating. The animation quality is breath-taking with seamless blending of hand-drawn, motion capture, CGI and 3D images. Style and plot-wise it is very, very similar to Sky Blue/Wonderful Days. But since they were in production at the same time one cannot accuse the other of plagiarism. The sheer amount of technology and hardware in the movie will make you drool. There are loads of cool devices, futuristic inventions and awesome weaponry. There is also loads of atmosphere with gorgeous, gorgeous sunsets, storm-lashed oil rigs and wonderfully blue-sky-ed cityscapes with an environmentally friendly amount of trees everywhere. The Matrix 'inspired' action can be a bit annoying sometimes. We've seen people diving through the air in slow motion will taking out supposedly highly-trained soldiers? And the music is kinda uninspiring. With contributions from Basement Jaxx and Paul Oakenfold one expected it to be a lot better. When you take the good with the bad, Appleseed still comes out as worthwhile and enjoyable. If your new to Anime then you can forgive the clichés, if your a big fan then you'll be awe-struck by the impressive production values.

• does justice to the source, validates 3D rendering for anime characters, and exceeds expectations

  shaidarharan2005-01-22

  rating - 10/10 (saw it subbed). I would give it an 11 if I could. After reading a 5.6/10 and watching, the movie far exceeded any expectation I had, that I could have dreamed of. Having read all of the manga and data books, this movie not only captures but adds to them. The 3D style looks better in motion than in screen shots, validating its place in Anime's future (for characters, Ghost in the Shell already displayed the awesome extent to which environments can benefit). The mechanical engineering (just wait until you see the cannons) of EVERYTHING is superlative. The complexity and detail of the city is awe inspiring. Every scene has this attention to detail. And the action? Just watch the beginning of the movie to understand how cool the ride is going to be, because I assure you, it does not let up. Well worth any price of admission. This is a work of love, a commitment to total quality. I see the score increasing rapidly in the near future. Thank you Shinji Aramaki, Masamune Shirow (comic) Haruka Handa (screenplay) & Tsutomu Kamishiro (screenplay)