The story seemed a little too familiar, but the animation has greatly improved in this 2007 sequel to the 2004 original. The animation is so spectacular that you’ll forget about some of the similarities to other storylines and soak in the fabulous action and visuals.
I have to admit up front that I’ve not seen the first Appleseed, nor read the series of manga (think comics) that it is based on. You get enough of the plot imparted to you that viewing the first series is not exactly a given.
There are some clips of the first one in some of the special features and it has to be noted that the technology used to animate the film has greatly improved and evolved from what was used for the first film.
The world was involved in a non-nuclear war (as it states in the opening credits, somewhat of a novelty since most other storylines credit a nuclear war for the decimation of the planet) and half of the planet’s population was destroyed. The utopian metropolis of Olympus has been pulled together in the aftermath and is attempting to form an alliance with the other surviving cities via an integrated satellite system.
The city is patrolled by a police force that is made up of bioroids, robots based on a DNA code, as well as humans. One of the humans is a woman named Deunan Knute and her partner Briareos. Briareos is a bioroid, but at one time he was her human lover until on the brink of death he was made into a bioroid (the events of the first film).
As the time for the conference to link of the satellites arrives, they get a new soldier on the force named Tereus. The problem is that Tereus is made from the DNA of Briareos and looks like he did before the accident that made him into a bioroid. Not only that but a virus called Halcon is taking over both humans and bioroids alike and threatens the peace of Olympus as well as appearing to be on a course to assimilate what is left of civilization, with those not assimilated being destroyed.
Ex Machina is a technical marvel and boasts some fine animation. The participation of producer John Woo also makes for some grand action input and look to the beginning of the film for a tribute to the filmmaker by the use of doves. The design of the bioroids reminded me a bit of the robots of Robotech, which is not surprising since director Shinji Aramaki was responsible for their design as well.
Several of the plot points seemed to have been culled from other anime storylines and the final revelation of who was at the heart of Halcon didn’t really come as a surprise to me. However, the breathtaking animation, action, and still intriguing storyline kept my interest. I thought that the film was quite spectacular and can forgive a bit of the plot.
Appleseed Ex Machina is presented in anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1) and is enhanced for 16x9 televisions.
Disc one features the 16 minute “Team Up: John Woo and Shinji Aramaki” that is about the two legends teaming up for this feature, Woo as producer and Amamaki as director. Next is the 18 minute “Revolution: Animated Ex Machina” that talks about the new technology that was used to animate the feature. There’s also a commentary by Jerry Beck (animation historian and co-founder of Streamline Pictures, one of the first companies to import Japanese animation to US shores) and producer Joseph Chou.
Disc one ends with some trailers, including a sneak peek at the upcoming Speed Racer movie. This set adds a really groovy steelbook case and a second disc of special features. Those special features feel a bit light for an entire disc, but are interesting nonetheless. The 19-minute “Appleseed Chronicles” looks at the history of the story from manga to movie. The 18-minute “East meets West” looks at the merging of Japanese and American cultures. It’s too bad that they didn’t use the extra space to include the first film on this disc.
It’s not necessary to have seen the first film, but fans of it will only be more impressed with the wonderful animation and action. Some of the plot seemed a bit familiar but I was mightily impressed with the final product.
Appleseed Ex Machina (Two-Disc Special Edition) is now available at Amazon . As of yet, there is not a release date for the UK. Visit the DVD database for more information.
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