Warner Bros. | 2007 | 105 mins | Rated PG-13 | Mar 11, 2008
The next installment in the Appleseed franchise, Appleseed: Ex Machina, available on DVD! Produced by John Woo and Directed by Shinji Aramaki, and featuring next generation CG technology, Appleseed: Ex Machina is back bigger and badder!
Based on the manga from reknown creator Shirow Masamune, in this movie, Deunan and Briareos are both partners and lovers. As members of ESWAT, the elite forces serving Olympus, they are deployed everywhere trouble strikes. The two fighters find their partnership tested in a new way by the arrival of Tereus who uncannily resembles Briareos before the wartime injuries that led to his becoming a cyborg. At the same time, Olympus finds itself under a stealth attack. Cyborg terrorism, deadly nanotech zealots, and rioting citizens are just some of the threats that Deunan must contend with as she fights to save Olympus.
Produced by John Woo and directed by Shinji Aramaki, Appleseed Ex Machina (2007) ranks as the most elaborate, stylish, and violent of the three adaptations of Masamune Shirow’s manga. When it was released in 1988, the original Appleseed felt like a summary of anime’s past, while Akira pointed the way to the future. The second Appleseed (2004), also directed by Aramaki, was an unimpressive motion-capture CG feature that borrowed elements from other sci-fi anime.
In this latest incarnation, Deunan, Briareos, and Tereus of the E.S.W.A.T. team are charged with preserving the peace of the city-state of Olympus, a hi-tech paradise on a largely ruined Earth. Screenwriters Kiyoto Takeuchi and Todd W. Russell have given the story a contemporary twist, adding attacks by “cyborg terrorists” and an effort by the ruler of Olympus to control a world-wide satellite surveillance system. When cyborgs and human launch coordinated attacks on the government headquarters in Olympus, Deunan, Briareos, and Tereus swing into action against a mysterious enemy.
The plot has little in common with the earlier films: the Appleseed technology that was at the core of the story isn’t even mentioned. The look, tone, and characters in Ex Machina recall Shirow’s Ghost in the Shell, rather than the original Appleseed. Not surprisingly, the elaborately choreographed fight scenes reflect Woo’s signature style, with slo-mo martial-arts combat, close-ups of falling shells, dynamic camerawork, and all-out gun battles. But the weightless movements of the motion-capture characters and the limited rendering of the skin textures gives Appleseed Ex Machina the feel of an extremely elaborate computer game. Despite the limits of the mo-cap technology, Appleseed Ex Machina is a fast-past, take-no-prisoners cinematic adventure that will delight action-movie fans as well as anime lovers.
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Product Details
Ai Kobayashi, Kouichi Yamadera, Yuji Kishi, Miyuki Sawashiro, Naoko Kouda
Shinji Aramaki
Closed-captioned, Color, Widescreen
English
English SDH, English
All Regions
1.66:1
1
Rated PG-13
Warner Home Video
March 11, 2008
104 minutes
91 Customer Reviews
Customer Reviews
You’re my partner, no matter what happens
By E. A Solinas “ea_solinas”, (MD USA) - March 11, 2008
One of the more underdeveloped storylines from “Appleseed” was the relationship between Deunan Knute and her cyborg love, Briareos.
Well, “Appleseed Ex Machina” more than makes up for that. In fact, this CGI action flick boasts upgrades in every area — a tighter plot, more complex conspiracies, and more lifelike animation. It’s a stunning experience with loads of fiery, spinning action scenes, albeit with a slightly improbable villain.
Olympus has a new threat — brainwashed cyborgs that are kidnapping officials, and disrupting planetary peace. During a rescue mission, Briareos is injured and hospitalized for awhile — and Deunan introduced to her new partner Tereus — a warrior bioroid cloned from Briareos’ DNA. She’s furious, Briareos is depressed, and all three are confused by Tereus’ similarities to Briareos.
But when President Athena calls an international conference, E-SWAT only narrowly stops an attack force — of cyborgs and ordinary humans who have somehow been possessed by a mechanical goo. Their message: “I am Halcon… all will be one.” And worst of all, Briareos is somehow being affected by the baddies, so he decides to do some investigating on his own. Now Deunan, Briareos and Tereus must join forces despite their tension, and stop a malevolent conspiracy that threatens the entire world….
While the first “Appleseed” movie had a rather simple plot, “Appleseed Ex Machina” tends toward complexity. Everything is bigger — the conspiracies, the mad scientist stuff, the potential warfare, and even the love story. And despite its fuller plot, the sequel actually manages to cram in some quiet moments between robot battles and personal scuffles.
Director Shinji Aramaki does a pretty good job with a pretty good plot — he unrolls it gradually, filling it with tension and horror at all the right moments. It kicks off strongly with an explosive, fire-and-darkness battle in an abandoned cathedral, and doesn’t slow much down. Lots of explosive battles and zombiesque attacks, but not so many that it overwhelms the storyline.
Along the way, Aramaki drops in some very “human” scenes, such as a funeral and Hitomi’s glammy birthday party. In fact, there are even some funny, cute moments such as Briareos and Deunan tussling over some monitoring wires in the hospital. These moments keep them acting like people.
What’s the problem? Well, while Aramaki succeeds in surprising us with the main villain, it’s revealed rather late in the movie, and there’s never much of a motive.
But the CG animation is stunning. There’s everything from mid-air shootouts to serpentine silver tentacles. Even the settlings are striking, with their Greco-futuristic marble, columns and sci-fi gadgets. And there’s a breathtaking level of detail — reflections, light, raindrops on Briareos’ metal face, and tiny facial chances. Some character still have “doll face,” but not as much.
But this movie gets its heart from the love triangle, which is thankfully handled in a mature manner. Deunan and Briareos’ loving, intense relationship gets plenty of cute moments, despite the confusion that Tereus causes them. And Tereus is a well-drawn rival, with a lot of Briareos’ rough kindness, but also the insecurities of being a “copy.”
And Aramaki particularly concentrates on Briareos’ fears that Deunan will prefer a flesh-and-blood lover, and that he is gradually losing his sanity. There’s an undercurrent of raw pain when he screams at Tereus, “why do you have everything I’ve lost?”
“Appleseed Ex Machina” is a worthy sequel that actually tops the preceding film — a stunning CGI shell around a solid sci-fi/love story. Definitely worth checking out.
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