Ok, here we go! This will be my attempt at an all inclusive review of Imagi's Astro Boy movie. Be warned, it contains spoilers!
It's been a very unique feeling having followed this film for several years, to work hard in documenting and share all the information with the rest of the world, to see the film released, and to have to try and sum it all up. It's like this is a new chapter: Life after the release of The Astro Boy movie. It's a lot to chew on when thinking about it that way, but I will do my best to condense my thoughts into something coherent.
That all said, I really liked it!
Clearly, I was quite emotionally invested in this movie before seeing it, both as the keeper of this website and as an Anime fan who understands the importance of this character. So I knew that I wanted to like it, but this could mean that it would either make me really enjoy it or make me like it less because of my expectations and how much I already knew from following the film for long. However, it didn't take long for the film to cast its spell on me and make any preconceived notions go away.
Here is what I liked about it.
- The story itself worked well. It was quite faithful to the original manga. Yes, there were differences, but I'd say that it was as faithful to its source as a movie like Spider-man was to the comics. Even though I knew the story, there were still enough twists and turns to keep things interesting. The bit at the end with Zog using the blue energy to revive Astro was a great surprise and a nice touch.
- The animation is, of course, really beautiful. I can't wait to see it again and dig through all of the details I missed the first time around. The scene of Astro flying through the clouds was breathtaking. I'd go on but it all sort of goes without saying in a movie like this. However, what really stood out to me was the opening "Our Friends The Robots" animation, with it's flat, graphic style. Did this not remind anyone else of the imagery found in Tezuka's "Tales of a Street Corner"? That can't be a coincidence!
- Nicolas Cage as Dr. Tenma worked well for me. I know his performance has gotten some flack, but I thought it was fine. When Tenma brings Astro back to their home and does his overcompensating father routine, that slightly creepy/crazy twist to the performance was just perfect. That moment is exactly why I think Nic Cage was the right choice for the role.
- President Stone was so evil! I was totally blown away by this character. I admit that in the previews, I didn't buy it. I had thought Donald Sutherland's voice just was just too warm and friendly, not nearly villainous enough. I was wrong. Everything he said just made him into a bigger scumbag, and he saw it all as positive qualities. He was so bad, and proud of it!
- Nathan Lane was great as Hamegg, both as a friendly character and as his usual dastardly self. I was disappointed at first that he was depicted as being rather plump instead of his traditional skinny appearance, but now that I think about it, he looked more jolly and friendly in the movie, which makes his turn against Astro more surprising and effective. I don't think it would have worked with a skinny Hamegg. He might have appeared too sinister right away.
- Cora and the other kids were actually pretty cool. I know Cora was meant to be a new character, but I see her as the movie's interpretation of the character Kathy, who met Astro at a similar point in the story. One thing I really liked about the kids was that they had very unique faces.
- The music was amazing. I can still hear it in my mind as I type this. I miss the old Astro Boy theme but what we have here is pure gold.
- The Robot Revolutionary Front. These guys were hilarious. They quickly became my favorite characters... and then they mentioned about ninjas. I got a personal kick out of that for obvious reasons. Wonder if I had something to do with it being in there?
- And of course, we have Astro himself. I think they found the perfect balance between the traditional goody-two shoes Astro and the expectations of modern audiences. The part when he says goodbye to Dr. Elefun really stuck with me. Such a beautifully sad moment.
I could go on. There are a lot of little moments and touches and details that I enjoyed.
But, that all said, it wasn't perfect, and there was one thing that really bothered me about the film. It was very fast paced. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but in a movie with so many emotional components, I feel that it would have really helped to just take a breather at some key scenes and let the emotions gestate for a beat before moving on.
- Early in the film there is a scene where Toby and Tenma's holographic projection share a perfectly awkward moment in the car. It was just a second or two, but it worked well and helped to say everything we needed to know about how those characters felt at that time. There could have been a few more moments like that throughout the film.
- We don't really get to see Tenma's transition from losing his son to deciding to build a robot. It just abruptly goes to unrolling the blueprints. I would have liked to have seen more of his state of mind at that juncture in the film, and for the actually building of the robot to have been a longer, more laborious looking procedure. It could have been a montage or something, but still, it would have been great to see more of this as I feel the film just jumped to the completed Astro too fast. All we really get of that is when it's said that Tenma hasn't slept for days.
- The alien invasion at the end was pretty random! I have no problem with that as such, since aliens are awesome, but I still feel that there was a beat missing, especially since this happens directly after the climax with the Peacekeeper. Perhaps the film could jumped to an in-session press conference happening a few days later, featuring new president Logan talking about what the future holds for the now-grounded Metro City, acknowledging Astro for saving the day, and ushering in a new era for robot civil rights. And then this could have been interrupted by the alien invasion. Not to say that I could have done a better job, but still, there was a missed opportunity to flesh out the story, add some closure, and give the movie-going audience a chance to gain some emotional resonance before throwing the space-tentacle monster at us.
That all said, this is a long movie already. Especially considering it's a kids' movie. Where would you fit any of this stuff in? I don't know. There's a lot of content in there already, so maybe what I suggested isn't possible. But I just like movies that pace themselves and let the events unfold over a what seems like significant amount of time.
Aside from that, there are some silly things I have to wonder about.
- When Toby gets vaporized, all that's left is his hat. But the rest of his clothes are gone. How did his hat remain unscathed? I guess it was a thicker material.
- And if Toby's clothes got destroyed, then I guess Dr. Tenma must have rushed out and bought exactly the same clothes all over again, because when I was 13 I most certainly did not own two sets of the exact same outfit. That's kind of weird.
- It's made into a big deal that Astro can hear the window washing robots, but everyone could communicate with Orrin just fine. I don't remember the movie presenting any distinction between the robots who can talk to humans and robots who only speak robot language.
But none of these things detract from the movie in a major way. It is what it is, and I enjoyed it very much. It's a wonderful film for kids and fans alike. No matter what the critics say, and no matter what the box office numbers wind up as, the cast and crew of this movie should be very proud of themselves for pulling it off.
So, that's my review. Please use the comments feature to tell me what you think about what I had to say, or have any questions. And stay tuned, I'll be giving everyone a chance to post their own reviews very soon!
Sayonara.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Ninjatron Reviews the Astro Boy Movie
Fred Schodt lays the Smackdown on the NYTimes
I had planned to not link to any external reviews of the Astro Boy movie, mostly because there would be just too many to cover, but I am going to link to this one by the New York Times. Not because it's any good (it isn't), but because manga translator and Tezuka associate Frederik L. Schodt has used the comments section there to set them straight and brings to light a very interesting point about the international nature of the film.
Here's what he had to say.
Astro Boy says OK!Very good points, huh? Continue reading "Fred Schodt lays the Smackdown on the NYTimes"...
As the English translator of the manga series, and the author of a book about Astro Boy (The Astro Boy Essays: Osamu Tezuka, Mighty Atom, and the Manga/Anime Revolution), I went to watch the film last night with a certain trepidation. I am a great admirer of the original character and story, but I had also heard some grumbling from other fans about possible liberties taken in this new interpretation. I decided, however, to watch the film as entertainment, and to refrain from trying to intellectually analyze or deconstruct it or even compare it with other animated films. In so far as possible for someone my age, I also to tried to view the film from the perspective of the presumed core target audience, with the mind of a modern nine or ten year old child. In doing so, I found that I was never bored, but often moved. An adult friend from Finland, who knew little about Astro Boy, said she was moved to tears. So my conclusion is as follows: this film may not win an Oscar, but it works, and it is great fun.
There is another enjoyable aspect of this film, and that is the international nature of its production. Almost from the beginning, the plan to produce it faced great obstacles, not the least of which was the pressure to satisfy long-time fans of the character in both Japan and the United States, as well as the interests of the original rights-holders in Japan, for Astro Boy is the equivalent of a national icon there. Testifying to this difficulty, nearly ten years ago Sony Pictures and Columbia attempted to create an Astro Boy feature film for the U.S. market, but after years of work and anticipation by Astro Boy fans around the world the project collapsed. This time, the production is by a Chinese company (Imagi) based in both Hong Kong and Hollywood, the director (David M Bowers) is British, and there has been considerable input from the son (Macoto) of Astro Boy's creator, the late Osamu Tezuka. In China, where foreign films (and especially Japanese films) often face tough sledding, there also appears to have been enough national pride involved to grant this title co-production status with other Chinese films, allowing it equal access in the special month of October to the huge domestic market where Astro Boy--as one of the first Japanese manga ever published there--already has a considerable following. Osamu Tezuka created Astro Boy to be an emissary of peace, and in this new film he continues to function as one.
– Frederik L. Schodt , San Francisco
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Speed Racer Spoiler-Free Review
I'm kind of struggling to find the right words to describe the Speed Racer movie. I guess the easiest thing I could say about it is that I have never been so happy to get a headache. Speed Racer is some of the most fun I've ever had at the movies.
With it's bright colors, rich details, and incredibly fast racing sequences, the live action Speed Racer movie is not a film that everyone is going to enjoy, or even be able to handle. Motion sickness did kick in for me towards the end of the film. But I had a smile on my face nearly the entire time, and when I wasn't smiling I was gasping in amazement at the incredible visuals. It really looks and feels like no other movie that has come before it. Perhaps this new visual style is an acquired taste, as it has been criticized since the first images were revealed, but I was blown away by it. Speed Racer succeeds in bringing an animated property to life better than anything else, and you simply can't fault a movie for succeeding in being exactly what it wanted to be. The story is structured uniquely as well, with many flashbacks and events not necessarily unfolding linearly.
The cast was pretty much spot on, with everyone looking and acting exactly like their anime counterparts. John Goodman, in particular, was born to play Pops Racer. And Christina Ricci is totally adorable as Trixie. Speed himself is well played by Emile Hirsch as the ultimate do-gooder. And you gotta love Sprittle and Chim-Chim. They were pretty annoying at times, but they were worth a few laughs and kids really liked them. All of these characters really emphasized the family aspect of the movie, and made it more than just a display in special effects. And of course, you've got the original anime bad-ass in Racer X, who is just as cool, if not more so, than he was on the TV show.
Another thing that warrants some attention is the music. The score weaves in the classic soundtrack from the cartoon in both subtle and dramatic fashion over the course of the film. It was exceptionally well done and will fill fans with great memories of the TV series.
This is a movie that really goes all out in being what it is without trying to make sense of adapting the source material into typical Hollywood context. It's clearly set in it's own alternate reality where cars can look and move the way they do and it's not weird at all for the Racer family to name their son "Speed" and have a pet chimpanzee. It just got everything right without either taking itself too seriously or mocking the original show. You either get it or you don't. Speed Racer fans will love it. Speed Racer is much better as a Speed Racer movie than, say, a movie like Transformers is about Transformers. In my opinion, most of the negative press surrounding Speed Racer centers more around critics attempting to write witty headlines like "Speed Racer Crashes" or "Speed Racer Runs Out of Gas" than actually giving the film a chance. Those who do give it a chance will likely find a movie with a lot of heart, warm nostalgic feelings, amazing visuals, and most of all, tons of fun. I have a lot of pity for anyone who doesn't.
So, yeah, Speed Racer is a wild ride, and the rapid paced, crazy camera angles a did give me a headache. But it was the best headache I ever had. Watching this movie was an absolute blast.
Go see Speed Racer!
