First things first, this is a typical Kawajiri film, as you may or may not know, Kawajiri is like a Japanese Frank Miller, meaning all his work share a distinctive feel to them, and follow a similar path story-wise. Some people call this auto-plagiarism, and bash it. However if you are like me, and have really liked his work, from Ninjascroll, to the Animatrix short, from "wicked city" to "vampire hunter D bloodlust", "lens-man", "Cyber city Oedo", etc etc. Then the mere prospect of watching some part of the highlander myth animated in this fashion will have your blood boiling. If you haven't guessed it yet, I really liked the film.
Lets start reviewing it part by part.
Story: It fits in the Highlander myth, this is not about any known Mcleod, so you may think of it as an alternative story-line. Everything is a little clichéd though, still beats the crap out of any Highlander sequel so far.
Setting: The movie takes place in a post-apocalyptic world, very kawajirish, it has this "Fist of the north star" feeling to it, huge bad guys, wrecked urban landscapes, silent heroes, you know the drill.
Character design: Again typical kawajiri film, busty women, sharp factions, impossibly muscular males, you may love it or hate it, I really like it. This is no Inuyasha, boy....
Animation: Very Good, some less than stellar CG shots, and "matrix moments", if you can deal with that there are really well choreographed fights to be seen. Specially gorgeous are the fights that take place in the past.
Sound: Mostly OK, some voice overs could have been better, the movie comes in English just like Vampire Hunter D Bloodlust. There are some great accents to be heard when the Highlanders speak, however some secondary characters could have used better actors.
Music: Gorgeous, really symphonic gives the feeling of epic and greatness to the whole movie.
So if your love for highlander allows you to overlook some small flaws, and some kawajirisms you'll really like the movie.
Lets start reviewing it part by part.
Story: It fits in the Highlander myth, this is not about any known Mcleod, so you may think of it as an alternative story-line. Everything is a little clichéd though, still beats the crap out of any Highlander sequel so far.
Setting: The movie takes place in a post-apocalyptic world, very kawajirish, it has this "Fist of the north star" feeling to it, huge bad guys, wrecked urban landscapes, silent heroes, you know the drill.
Character design: Again typical kawajiri film, busty women, sharp factions, impossibly muscular males, you may love it or hate it, I really like it. This is no Inuyasha, boy....
Animation: Very Good, some less than stellar CG shots, and "matrix moments", if you can deal with that there are really well choreographed fights to be seen. Specially gorgeous are the fights that take place in the past.
Sound: Mostly OK, some voice overs could have been better, the movie comes in English just like Vampire Hunter D Bloodlust. There are some great accents to be heard when the Highlanders speak, however some secondary characters could have used better actors.
Music: Gorgeous, really symphonic gives the feeling of epic and greatness to the whole movie.
So if your love for highlander allows you to overlook some small flaws, and some kawajirisms you'll really like the movie.