Appleseed Ex Machina [Blu-ray]

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Editorial Reviews:

Product Description
Studio: Warner Home Video Release Date: 03/11/2008

Amazon.com
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. (Rated PG-13: violence, violence against women, profanity, grotesque imagery, potentially offensive religious imagery.) --Charles Solomon

Customer Reviews: Read 104 more reviews...

4 out of 5 stars

Worth the watch. March 4, 2008
29 out of 32 found this review helpful

The visuals are nothing short of stunning, especially in HD. It's worth the download just to check out how beautifully the cg animation is rendered. The action scenes are tight, with Matrix-esque slow motion shots, crazy camera angles and an emphasis on heavy gun play, indicative of producer John Woo's style. One drawback on the cg animation though is that when characters interact with each other physically it seems awkward. They don't feel like they are touching. I imagine that when you make something with animation like that you'd run into clipping issues when the characters intereact heavily. In fact, it reminded me of cut scenes from Eternal Sonata, a video game using similar animation techniques but on a bigger scale obviously.

The story is an upgrade from the first movie, although the main antagonist borrows heavily from classic Star Trek villain, the Borg. There's even a Borg like cube of sorts that serves as it's foundation. The subplot consists of a triangle between Deunan, Briareos (the main protagonists from the first movie) and Tereus, a biroid created mostly from Briareos's DNA who becomes Deunan's new partner after her lover falls in battle.

If I were to make a criticism I'd say that the main antagonist was revealed a tad too late, making the final resolution a little anti-climactic. At a runtime of about an hour and 40 minutes I felt like another 20 minutes would have been justified. When it was over, I couldn't quite believe it at first. Also, and this may be a good thing, events from the first movie go almost completely without mention. This means that you won't have to have seen the first one to appreciate this, but at the same time there is a lack of continuity for those that did.

All in all though, it's a good film and worth a watch.

3 out of 5 stars

Inferior to its predecessor in every way. March 15, 2008
17 out of 31 found this review helpful

The producers of EX MACHINA have robbed Appleseed of its uniqueness and given us something that resembles a video game cut-scene. The shiny cell shading that made the previous film so visually appealing is completely gone. Everything looks like it's made of rubbery plastic and the people look and move like dolls. Deunan's cute anime look has been removed. Her eyes are much smaller and her lips are too thin. The corners of her mouth are turned down much of the time, giving her an odd pouty look. Briareos now has green "eyes" instead of red. The streets are no longer paved with reflective material and the vehicles, for the most part, move on tires rather than hovering. The city of Olympus has only one mirrored dome rather than two. Furthermore, the music is nothing special. There are no Boom Boom Satellites or Paul Oakenfold tunes to accentuate the action. The English voices are all different and the dialogue is peppered with profanity. Yet, much of the commentary track is devoted to telling viewers how "rushed" the 2004 version was and how much better this version is. And the features on the bonus disc are devoted to telling us how great anime is, despite the fact that this sequel has been stripped of all its anime-ness. Sorry guys, EX MACHINA is okay, but the first movie was not broke and therefore should not have been fixed. Simply put, if you loved Appleseed 2004, you will most likely be disappointed with this effort.

4 out of 5 stars

Better Than The First? Yes and No April 9, 2008
15 out of 15 found this review helpful

The first Appleseed film (from 2004) was quite a treat. The cell-shaded CG graphics looked very good for the time. Complementing this obvious standout aspect was an intriguing story and an excellent soundtrack. It's worth noting that the story, in particular, felt like a genuinely original re-animation of sci-fi concepts.

Fast forward to today and we have the sequel, Ex Machina. It's pretty simple to separate what works and doesn't in Machina:

GRAPHICS:
The level of detail in the graphics has improved dramatically, and characters look less like geometric objects with textures painted on and more like genuine people. The cityscapes are even more impressive. Furthermore, the action is more frequent and looks even slicker.

My two gripes with the visuals are these: First, in what is all too common in action movies like this, the best scene is the first one. Hands down. I don't understand why so many directors feel the need to frontload their movies. I will say that the movie is less guilty of this than its predecessor. Second, movement outside of action scenes still looks a bit jerky. Some might fault mo-cap technology, but for my money, Final Fantasy: Advent Children boasted some mighty believable movement.

STORY/WRITING:
Here's where Ex Machina falls apart. The story here isn't anything you haven't seen executed better in anime/other entertainment. Compared to the plot of the first movie- which created a unique sci-fi framework, this one felt like a filler episode. The villain was cliche, the story far less complex/meaningful than the first, and any intrigue or mystery the story might yet have held was ruined by the horrible writing. The film tasks itself with letting the viewer in on a number of concepts necessary to the plot, but rather than integrate them seamlessly into the dialog, it bashes the viewer over the head with them.

MUSIC:
The soundtrack wasn't bad- I just didn't notice it most of the time. This constitutes a slight letdown considering how often I return to the soundtrack from the first movie.

OVERALL: Ex Machina is a sight to behold and warrants a blu-ray purchase. Just don't expect it to expand much on the ideas introduced in the first Appleseed.

4 out of 5 stars

You're my partner, no matter what happens March 11, 2008
13 out of 16 found this review helpful

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.

5 out of 5 stars

Looks like another Steelbook for the 2-disc edition! January 12, 2008
8 out of 76 found this review helpful

So I'm looking at my "Open and Recently Shipped Orders" and I wonder why the price on this item is still so high. So I come here and see the new pic for it. Looks like another Steelbook, just like the one from the first movie's 2-disc edition. Which is good because it'll fit next to the original quite nicely.

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