|
Redline
Anime Review
Every once in a while, something comes out that's so innovative, so revolutionary, so over-the-top unbelieveable, it changes anime forever, or creates such a statement that we remember it forever. "Birth" was such a film (from 1984!), with a wildly different visual style that ultimately influenced all of anime, and changed the entire industry.
That is the case with this film, Redline -- seven years in the making, with a thoroughly different take on what "anime" is supposed to look like. If you can imagine a mix of what the Japanese could have done with the "Heavy Metal Movie", combined with Cowboy Bebop, with a little Jack Kirby thrown in for good measure, that'll give you a good idea of what awaits you.
Now imagine that visual style with a storyline that's Speed Racer on crack, the Star Wars Pod Race done *right*, and a cool-as-can-be, retro-styled, Elvis-like hero who can't ever seem to come in first, and you've got the set-up for a hyper-kinetic, nail-biting, edge-of-your-seat explosion of awesomeness that hasn't been matched since,... well... It's been a looong time. Needless to say, *this* is something that MUST be experienced.
The story behind the film is as fascinating as the film itself. It's the effort of a seven-year-long production, that utilized 100,000 hand-made drawings, and it's the directorial debut of Takeshi Koike, who I suspect we'll be seeing more of.
Set to come out under the Manga label on DVD and Bluray in January, it's currently making the rounds in independent theaters - so look it up and run out and see it on a big screen! Totally, totally worth it. Insanely great.
Reviewed by Brian Cirulnick, December 2011
Below: Scenes from Redline.
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
