This article was originally published on the Funimation Blog on April 17, 2020. One of the most beloved Aniplex shows of the past decade is undoubtedly Blue Exorcist . Based on Kazue Kato’s monthly manga, the first season of Blue Exorcist — directed by Tensai Okamura, written by Ryota Yamaguchi and animated by A-1 Pictures — ran for 25 episodes and an Ova in 2011, as well as a follow-up movie the next year. Related: Sympathy for the Devil — Celebrating Blue Exorcist's Long Run The series follows delinquent Rin Okumura as he learns he and his more studious twin brother Yukio are the sons of Satan and a human woman, although Rin is the only one who inherited Satan’s powers. Of course, Yukio is an Exorcist with the Order of the True Cross, charged by the Vatican with exterminating demons and curtailing their Earthly influence. Upon its release, Blue Exorcist was an instant hit...
- 1/13/2024
- by Tom Speelman
- Crunchyroll
In the late 1990s, Bandai Entertainment and the Japanese animation studio Sunrise approached young director Shinichirō Watanabe to make a sci-fi action show (mostly so they could sell spaceship toys). Watanabe took that directive and led the creation of "Cowboy Bebop."
This 26-episode show followed down-on-their-luck bounty hunters in the year 2071, when mankind has colonized the solar system and left behind a ruined Earth. It brought Western and noir storytelling together into its sci-fi setting, fused with an existential mood and jazzy music composed by Yoko Kanno.
"Cowboy Bebop" first aired in Japan 25 years ago, from 1998 to 1999, and Bandai Entertainment soon imported it stateside, where it debuted on Cartoon Network block Adult Swim in 2001. If anything, it's become an even bigger (and more enduring) hit in the U.S. than in its homeland. A big reason for this popularity was because the English dub was excellent: The characters speaking the...
This 26-episode show followed down-on-their-luck bounty hunters in the year 2071, when mankind has colonized the solar system and left behind a ruined Earth. It brought Western and noir storytelling together into its sci-fi setting, fused with an existential mood and jazzy music composed by Yoko Kanno.
"Cowboy Bebop" first aired in Japan 25 years ago, from 1998 to 1999, and Bandai Entertainment soon imported it stateside, where it debuted on Cartoon Network block Adult Swim in 2001. If anything, it's become an even bigger (and more enduring) hit in the U.S. than in its homeland. A big reason for this popularity was because the English dub was excellent: The characters speaking the...
- 11/21/2023
- by Devin Meenan
- Slash Film
Fire Emblem fans have plenty of reasons to be excited about the recently-released Fire Emblem Engage. Not only is it the latest entry into the famous strategy franchise, but it’s really a return to form for Fire Emblem after the series experimented with a few different ideas. It also features a massive roster of characters voiced by some pretty notable actors.
Seriously, Engage’s voice cast is impressive. It’s one thing to boast a roster of named and notable characters quite so large, and it’s quite another to give most of those characters their own name and voice. While you may only recognize the names of a few Fire Emblem voice actors on paper, you’ll almost certainly recognize many of them the moment you hear them in-game.
So whether you can’t quite place why that name is so familiar, or you just want a little...
Seriously, Engage’s voice cast is impressive. It’s one thing to boast a roster of named and notable characters quite so large, and it’s quite another to give most of those characters their own name and voice. While you may only recognize the names of a few Fire Emblem voice actors on paper, you’ll almost certainly recognize many of them the moment you hear them in-game.
So whether you can’t quite place why that name is so familiar, or you just want a little...
- 1/20/2023
- by Matthew Byrd
- Den of Geek
"Beauty and the Beast" truly is a tale as old as time, and has been retold in countless ways, like the Ron Perlman and Linda Hamilton TV series of the same name, the Fran Drescher comedy "The Beautician and the Beast," the teen rom-drama "Beastly," or even in an episode of "Hello Kitty's Furry Tale Theater." Recently, legendary Japanese filmmaker Mamoru Hosoda delivered "Belle," a magnificent animated sci-fi fantasy film that thrusts the tale out of the world of old and into the techno future.
The story takes place in the not-so-distant future where the internet has evolved into a legitimate virtual reality called U, where avatars are created by users' scanned biometric information. A teenager named Suzu creates an avatar named Belle who becomes a pop superstar, but everything changes when her virtual concert is interrupted by the seemingly undefeatable fighter The Dragon (or "The Beast"), who she quickly becomes infatuated with.
The story takes place in the not-so-distant future where the internet has evolved into a legitimate virtual reality called U, where avatars are created by users' scanned biometric information. A teenager named Suzu creates an avatar named Belle who becomes a pop superstar, but everything changes when her virtual concert is interrupted by the seemingly undefeatable fighter The Dragon (or "The Beast"), who she quickly becomes infatuated with.
- 8/12/2022
- by BJ Colangelo
- Slash Film
There are some show themes you don't skip. The 12-string twang of The Shadowy Men's intro to "The Kids in the Hall." The hot sax and nasty bass running through "Night Court." And the freeform horns and smoky, chaotic transitions of "Cowboy Bebop." From its release in 1998 to its live-action adaptation in 2021, "Cowboy Bebop" has enjoyed a formidable legacy as one of the greatest anime series of all time, and certainly oneof the most influential. Why? When /Film spoke with the English voice cast of the animated series, Wendee Lee (who voices Faye Valentine) put it like this:
"It's really a lot of...
The post The Hidden Meaning in the Cowboy Bebop Anime's Opening Credits appeared first on /Film.
"It's really a lot of...
The post The Hidden Meaning in the Cowboy Bebop Anime's Opening Credits appeared first on /Film.
- 3/15/2022
- by Anya Stanley
- Slash Film
Chace Crawford (The Boys), Manny Jacinto (Nine Perfect Strangers), Hunter Schafer (Euphoria) and newcomer Kylie McNeill will lead the English-language voice cast for Mamoru Hosoda’s Gkids awards contender Belle, which is scheduled for release alongside the original Japanese-language version in U.S. theaters (including select Imax screens) on January 14, with exclusive Imax previews in select markets beginning January 12.
Others lending their voices to the new dub include Paul Castro Jr., David Chen, Jessica Dicicco, Brandon Engman, Martha Harms, Jessica Gee George, Barbara Goodson, Bentley Griffin, Andrew Kishino, Wendee Lee, Ben Lepley, Noelle McGrath, Julie Nathanson, Aaron Phillips, Ellyn Stern, Frank Todaro, Kiff VandenHeuvel, Cristina Vee Valenzuela, Tom Bromhead, John Bentley, Tiana Camacho, SungWon Cho, Courtney Chu, Larissa Gallagher, Heather Gonzalez, Xanthe Huynh, Anjali Kunapaneni, LilyPichu, Kyle McCarley, Julie Nathanson, Zeno Robinson, Stephanie Sheh, Michael Sinterniklaas, Rachel Slotky and Laura Stahl.
Hosoda’s’s...
Others lending their voices to the new dub include Paul Castro Jr., David Chen, Jessica Dicicco, Brandon Engman, Martha Harms, Jessica Gee George, Barbara Goodson, Bentley Griffin, Andrew Kishino, Wendee Lee, Ben Lepley, Noelle McGrath, Julie Nathanson, Aaron Phillips, Ellyn Stern, Frank Todaro, Kiff VandenHeuvel, Cristina Vee Valenzuela, Tom Bromhead, John Bentley, Tiana Camacho, SungWon Cho, Courtney Chu, Larissa Gallagher, Heather Gonzalez, Xanthe Huynh, Anjali Kunapaneni, LilyPichu, Kyle McCarley, Julie Nathanson, Zeno Robinson, Stephanie Sheh, Michael Sinterniklaas, Rachel Slotky and Laura Stahl.
Hosoda’s’s...
- 12/9/2021
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Features the voices of: Crispin Freeman, Wendee Lee, Michelle Ruff, Stephanie Sheh, Johnny Yong Bosch | Written by Fumihiko Shimo | Directed by Tatsuya Ishihara, Yasuhiro Takemoto
A flaw with the Haruhi Suzumiya series lies in its massive fantastical elements. The stories could get really grand, insane and the characters just had to roll with whatever was thrown their way. The animated series never had a sense of real dramatic pay-off. Don’t get me wrong, the storylines are fun to watch but those moments of drama when they did happen captured human emotion brilliantly and you can’t help but wish for more of it. Well, that’s what the movie taps into and excels in turning a story known largely for its comedy into something much more grounded.
The premise of the movie is self-explanatory given what the title is. Haruhi disappears. Literally, Kyon wakes up on a cold December...
A flaw with the Haruhi Suzumiya series lies in its massive fantastical elements. The stories could get really grand, insane and the characters just had to roll with whatever was thrown their way. The animated series never had a sense of real dramatic pay-off. Don’t get me wrong, the storylines are fun to watch but those moments of drama when they did happen captured human emotion brilliantly and you can’t help but wish for more of it. Well, that’s what the movie taps into and excels in turning a story known largely for its comedy into something much more grounded.
The premise of the movie is self-explanatory given what the title is. Haruhi disappears. Literally, Kyon wakes up on a cold December...
- 12/30/2020
- by Xenia Grounds
- Nerdly
When you’re a kid, you imagine a lot of things. We fantasise about epic adventures around things like time travel and supernatural beings like ghosts, espers, aliens. However, most of us grow out of these fantasies because we learn to live with everyday reality bound by the laws of physics. This is an anime that is about all of these eccentric fantasies and brings them to life in hilarious and joyous ways.
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya centres around Kyon. On the surface, Kyon is a pretty average high school student (minus the fact that we never learn his real name. Kyon is a nickname). Life for him gets a lot more interesting after he meets Haruhi Suzumiya. Haruhi is far from your typical girl. To quote her directly, “I’m not interested in ordinary people but if any of you are aliens, time travellers or espers, please come see me.
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya centres around Kyon. On the surface, Kyon is a pretty average high school student (minus the fact that we never learn his real name. Kyon is a nickname). Life for him gets a lot more interesting after he meets Haruhi Suzumiya. Haruhi is far from your typical girl. To quote her directly, “I’m not interested in ordinary people but if any of you are aliens, time travellers or espers, please come see me.
- 12/9/2020
- by Xenia Grounds
- Nerdly
The UK’s biggest and best celebration of pop. culture, McM London Comic Con returns to ExCel London on 23-25 May for a long weekend packed with special guests, sci-fi, movies, videogames, comic books, eSports, online video, anime and cosplay. Here’s a taste of what will be on show.
Special Guests
Special guests meeting fans, presenting panels and signing autographs at the show include: Orphan Black star Dylan Bruce (Arrow, 24: Conspiracy, Unstoppable). Falling Skies’ Drew Roy (Secretariat, Hannah Montana), Connor Jessup (Blackbird), Seychelle Gabriel (The Spirit) and Luciana Carro (Battlestar Galactica). Game Of Thrones’ James Cosmo (Braveheart, Highlander), Julian Glover (Star Wars, Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade) and Josef Altin (Eastern Promises). Nikita, Kick-Ass and How I Met Your Mother star Lyndsy Fonseca. Once Upon A Time’s Meghan Ory (Intelligence) and Beverley Elliott (Unforgiven). Henry Winkler, famous for playing iconic character The Fonz on Happy Days.
Special Guests
Special guests meeting fans, presenting panels and signing autographs at the show include: Orphan Black star Dylan Bruce (Arrow, 24: Conspiracy, Unstoppable). Falling Skies’ Drew Roy (Secretariat, Hannah Montana), Connor Jessup (Blackbird), Seychelle Gabriel (The Spirit) and Luciana Carro (Battlestar Galactica). Game Of Thrones’ James Cosmo (Braveheart, Highlander), Julian Glover (Star Wars, Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade) and Josef Altin (Eastern Promises). Nikita, Kick-Ass and How I Met Your Mother star Lyndsy Fonseca. Once Upon A Time’s Meghan Ory (Intelligence) and Beverley Elliott (Unforgiven). Henry Winkler, famous for playing iconic character The Fonz on Happy Days.
- 5/14/2014
- by Phil Wheat
- Nerdly
Title: Snow Queen Directed by: Vladlen Barbe, Maksim Sveshnikov Starring: Doug Erholtz, Wendee Lee, Marianne Miller, Cindy Robinson, Christopher Smith, Jessica Straus, Kirk Thornton Running time: 80 minutes, Unrated (PG), VOD on October 10, 2013 and in Theaters on October 11, 2013 Orm the troll narrates the story of the Snow Queen. The Snow Queen has set out to capture and destroy all artists – painters, musicians and wizards in order to keep mankind’s morale low enough to control and manipulate. Her last target was Master Vegard, a man who made magic mirrors, and unbeknownst to her, had two children who still pose a threat. She sends Orm to find [ Read More ]
The post Snow Queen Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
The post Snow Queen Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
- 9/30/2013
- by juliana
- ShockYa
Welcome to December and the official start of holiday shopping madness. Last week’s featured Blu-Ray, Men In Black 3, is still making a showing on the Blu-Ray sales charts. If the promise of Josh Brolin impersonating Tommy Lee Jones didn’t make you run out to buy it, then check out our Blu-Ray review of the film. Brave is still going strong too, and I predict it’ll have enough salespower to stay at the top of the charts until after the holidays.
This week, all Blu-Rays everywhere will cower as The Dark Knight Rises, Finding Nemo will change the way you look at your goldfish and Star Trek: The Next Generation‘s second season boldly goes on every nerd’s holiday wish list.
Ready for this week’s top releases? Then engage.
The Dark Knight Rises
Release Date: December 4th, 2012
Starring: Christian Bale, Tom Hardy, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman,...
This week, all Blu-Rays everywhere will cower as The Dark Knight Rises, Finding Nemo will change the way you look at your goldfish and Star Trek: The Next Generation‘s second season boldly goes on every nerd’s holiday wish list.
Ready for this week’s top releases? Then engage.
The Dark Knight Rises
Release Date: December 4th, 2012
Starring: Christian Bale, Tom Hardy, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman,...
- 12/3/2012
- by C.P. Howells
- We Got This Covered
Resident Evil: Damnation
Voice cast: Matthew Mercer, Courtenay Taylor, Robin Sachs, Carolyn Lawrence, Wendee Lee, Salli Saffioti, Dave Wittenberg, Val Tasso, Patrick Harlan, Dave Wittenburg | Written by Shotaro Suga | Directed by Makoto Kamiya
Written by Ghost in the Shell: Solid State Society and Resident Evil: Degeneration screenwriter Shotaro Suga and directed by his Resident Evil: Degeneration compatriot Makoto Kamiya Resident Evil: Damnation is the second CG animated feature in the Resident Evil series. Unlike their live-action counterparts, both animated features are considered canon to the franchise and take place in and around events seen in the video games.
Taking place between Resident Evil 5 and 6 (and after the 3Ds game Revelations), Resident Evil: Damnation follows United States Special Agent Leon S. Kennedy as he sneaks into a small Eastern European country to verify rumors that Bio Organic Weapons (B.O.W.s) are being used in war. Right after his infiltration,...
Voice cast: Matthew Mercer, Courtenay Taylor, Robin Sachs, Carolyn Lawrence, Wendee Lee, Salli Saffioti, Dave Wittenberg, Val Tasso, Patrick Harlan, Dave Wittenburg | Written by Shotaro Suga | Directed by Makoto Kamiya
Written by Ghost in the Shell: Solid State Society and Resident Evil: Degeneration screenwriter Shotaro Suga and directed by his Resident Evil: Degeneration compatriot Makoto Kamiya Resident Evil: Damnation is the second CG animated feature in the Resident Evil series. Unlike their live-action counterparts, both animated features are considered canon to the franchise and take place in and around events seen in the video games.
Taking place between Resident Evil 5 and 6 (and after the 3Ds game Revelations), Resident Evil: Damnation follows United States Special Agent Leon S. Kennedy as he sneaks into a small Eastern European country to verify rumors that Bio Organic Weapons (B.O.W.s) are being used in war. Right after his infiltration,...
- 9/22/2012
- by Phil
- Nerdly
For Immediate Release
Anime Festival Orlando 12 Announces Additional Guest
Orlando, Fl (June 20, 2011) – Anime Festival Orlando 12 has announced an additional guest for this year’s event. Afo already had a guest list full of talented fan favorites confirmed for the show whose work has impacted the anime community. Recently, though, they were able expand their guest line-up. Afo is proud to welcome Johnny Yong Bosch.
Currently, Johnny is working on Transformers: War for Cybertron2 where he will be reprising his role as the voice of the beloved Bumblebee. His body of work includes hugely popular titles such as Bleach (as Ichigo Kurosaki), Devil May Cry 4 (as Nero), Trigun (as Vash the Stampede) and Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers (as Adam Park, the “Black Ranger”).
Already confirmed guests for AFO12 are Quinton Flynn (Reno, Final Fantasy VII), Jason David Frank (Tommy Oliver the “Green Ranger,” Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers), Reuben Langdon (Dante, Devil May Cry 3 & 4), Dan Southworth (Virgil,...
Anime Festival Orlando 12 Announces Additional Guest
Orlando, Fl (June 20, 2011) – Anime Festival Orlando 12 has announced an additional guest for this year’s event. Afo already had a guest list full of talented fan favorites confirmed for the show whose work has impacted the anime community. Recently, though, they were able expand their guest line-up. Afo is proud to welcome Johnny Yong Bosch.
Currently, Johnny is working on Transformers: War for Cybertron2 where he will be reprising his role as the voice of the beloved Bumblebee. His body of work includes hugely popular titles such as Bleach (as Ichigo Kurosaki), Devil May Cry 4 (as Nero), Trigun (as Vash the Stampede) and Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers (as Adam Park, the “Black Ranger”).
Already confirmed guests for AFO12 are Quinton Flynn (Reno, Final Fantasy VII), Jason David Frank (Tommy Oliver the “Green Ranger,” Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers), Reuben Langdon (Dante, Devil May Cry 3 & 4), Dan Southworth (Virgil,...
- 6/22/2011
- by Jason Moore
- ScifiMafia
At a weapons testing facility, a scientist named Dr. Wendy Lee suffers a seizure. As House's team attempt to diagnose their new patient, Wilson arrives to announce that House owes him $$50, having lost a bet on a boxing match. When House claims that the fight was fixed, Wilson gives him 24 hours to prove it, or to pay up. House tracks the boxer down at a cafe, but the despondent fighter denies that he threw the match, putting his loss down to a simple lack of skill. Noticing an oddity in the boxer's pupils, House concludes that he has Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, but Wilson refutes the claim. Meanwhile, Wendy's boyfriend Caesar arrives at the hospital, claiming that her old boyfriend may have poisoned her. When tests for toxic exposure prove negative, House's team break into Wendy's apartment. Discovering a number of empty booze bottles, they accuse Wendy of suffering (more)...
- 5/10/2011
- by By Morgan Jeffery
- Digital Spy
Press Release:
Orlando, Fl (February 7, 2011) – Pre-Registration for Anime Festival Orlando 12 is now live and offering a special price of $40.00 for a 3 day membership lasting only until March 31, 2011. Anime Festival Orlando (Afo), Florida’s Favorite Japanese Animation Convention, is being held August 5-7, 2011 at the Wyndham Orlando Resort on International Drive.
Pre-Registered Attendees checking into the Wyndham Orlando Resort on Thursday August 4, 2011 or earlier will receive exclusive access to Special Events on Thursday night. Details are available on the Afo 12 website.
Anime Festival Orlando 12 is pleased to announce Wendee Lee, Reuben Langdon, Dan Southworth, Dr. Jason Narvy and Jason David Frank as honored guests.
About Anime Festival Orlando
Afo is a three day festival of all things related to the Japanese animation and pop culture. Started in 2000, Anime Festival Orlando is run by fans for fans and has earned the title of “Florida’s Favorite Anime Convention” as well as being...
Orlando, Fl (February 7, 2011) – Pre-Registration for Anime Festival Orlando 12 is now live and offering a special price of $40.00 for a 3 day membership lasting only until March 31, 2011. Anime Festival Orlando (Afo), Florida’s Favorite Japanese Animation Convention, is being held August 5-7, 2011 at the Wyndham Orlando Resort on International Drive.
Pre-Registered Attendees checking into the Wyndham Orlando Resort on Thursday August 4, 2011 or earlier will receive exclusive access to Special Events on Thursday night. Details are available on the Afo 12 website.
Anime Festival Orlando 12 is pleased to announce Wendee Lee, Reuben Langdon, Dan Southworth, Dr. Jason Narvy and Jason David Frank as honored guests.
About Anime Festival Orlando
Afo is a three day festival of all things related to the Japanese animation and pop culture. Started in 2000, Anime Festival Orlando is run by fans for fans and has earned the title of “Florida’s Favorite Anime Convention” as well as being...
- 2/9/2011
- by Jason Moore
- ScifiMafia
Octuplet mom Nadya Suleman says she's "excited" about filming a reality show featuring her life with 14 children. Suleman -- who attracted worldwide attention after giving birth to octuplets on January 26 -- has signed a deal with British production company Eyeworks, which will produce the reality TV series, People magazine reports. "I'm really excited about moving forward with this," Suleman said. Her attorney, Jeff Czech, calls the series a "quasi-reality" show, explaining that instead of having cameras around 24 hours a day, film crews will only document select occasions, such as birthdays and other special events. Czech tells People that Suleman doesn't want her series to resemble the much-publicized "Jon & Kate Plus 8," the Tlc reality show featuring Jon and Kate Gosselin and their eight kids. "She's been watching them a bit lately and thinks it's boring," Czech says. Suleman also finalized a deal this week with ghostwriter Wendy Lee -- who recently...
- 5/31/2009
- by TheInsider
- TheInsider.com
Officially bowing Aug. 30 at the Big Apple Anime Fest 2002 -- but sneaking in Aug. 11 for Los Angeles fans at the American Cinematheque's third annual fest of fantasy/sci-fi/horror films -- "Cowboy Bebop: The Movie" is an expanded version of the Cartoon Network hit and should find target-audience acceptance when it's released by TriStar Pictures in January.
Set on Mars in the year 2071 and residing firmly in the practice of recent Japanese animation that takes a less-than-positive attitude toward the future but stops short of being pessimistic, "Cowboy" finds interesting angles and visual details to complement its overall design.
Relying on evocative cityscape and planetscape backgrounds and coming to life most memorably in the action sequences, the film is serious in its approach. But those not dazzled by its handful of all-too-human principal characters may feel -- like with a lot of anime -- that's there's plenty of neat things to look at but little to hold onto in the way of original drama, comedy and storytelling coherence.
The picture's fast-moving two hours still manages to be confusing. (One major issue that only occurs late in the movie is how similar the lead hero and main villain sound.) The film, originally in Japanese with subtitles, has been revoiced in English. The sound effects (nonenveloping) and musical choices (contrasty TV commercial fodder) will underwhelm some, but those previously tuned in with the TV series will be happy to see the team of bounty hunters back in action.
Working together but often critical of each other and usually finding stuff to quarrel over, the heroes in question are slacker Spike Spiegel (voiced by Steven Jay Blum), grouchy Jet Black (Beau Billingslea), maverick Faye Valentine (Wendee Lee) and their Welsh corgi, who doesn't speak and acts like such a regular canine that some of the team don't seem to be aware he's a "data dog." These four fly around in the Bebop and stumble into a plot to bring down the Martian government.
A seemingly invulnerable creep named Vincent (Daran Norris) sets off a biological weapon in a large tanker-truck explosion on a freeway. Faye is about to nab him when this deadly event occurs, and she and Spike compete to finish the job. The mystery deepens to include a large pharmaceutical company's experimentation in applying nanotechnology to warfare and a fetching company enforcer, Elektra Ovirowa (Jennifer Hale), who is instructed to terminate Vincent.
Along with such down-to-earth sequences of surprising resonance as Spike's visit to a "Moroccan Street" informant and over-the-top confrontations like that between Vincent and two pursuers on a monorail train, "Cowboy" has enough style, wit and speculative ideas that an adult can be reasonably entertained, while many younger viewers will undoubtedly have no problem resolving its minor inconsistencies -- and probably happily have nightmares afterward.
COWBOY BEBOP: THE MOVIE
Sony Pictures Entertainment
TriStar Pictures presents
Sunrise, Bones, Bandai Visual
Credits:
Director: Shinichiro Watanabe
Screenwriter: Keiko Nobumoto
Producers: Masuo Ueda, Masahiko Minami, Minoru Takanashi
Executive producers: Takayuki Yoshii, Ryohei Tsunoda
Character designer/animation director: Toshihiro Kawamoto
Mechanical designer: Kimitoshi Yamane
Editor: Shuichi Kakesu
Music: Yoko Kanno
Voices:
Spike Spiegel: Steven Jay Blum
Jet Black: Beau Billingslea
Faye Valentine: Wendee Lee
Vincent: Daran Norris
Elektra Ovirowa: Jennifer Hale
Running time -- 113 minutes
No MPAA rating...
Set on Mars in the year 2071 and residing firmly in the practice of recent Japanese animation that takes a less-than-positive attitude toward the future but stops short of being pessimistic, "Cowboy" finds interesting angles and visual details to complement its overall design.
Relying on evocative cityscape and planetscape backgrounds and coming to life most memorably in the action sequences, the film is serious in its approach. But those not dazzled by its handful of all-too-human principal characters may feel -- like with a lot of anime -- that's there's plenty of neat things to look at but little to hold onto in the way of original drama, comedy and storytelling coherence.
The picture's fast-moving two hours still manages to be confusing. (One major issue that only occurs late in the movie is how similar the lead hero and main villain sound.) The film, originally in Japanese with subtitles, has been revoiced in English. The sound effects (nonenveloping) and musical choices (contrasty TV commercial fodder) will underwhelm some, but those previously tuned in with the TV series will be happy to see the team of bounty hunters back in action.
Working together but often critical of each other and usually finding stuff to quarrel over, the heroes in question are slacker Spike Spiegel (voiced by Steven Jay Blum), grouchy Jet Black (Beau Billingslea), maverick Faye Valentine (Wendee Lee) and their Welsh corgi, who doesn't speak and acts like such a regular canine that some of the team don't seem to be aware he's a "data dog." These four fly around in the Bebop and stumble into a plot to bring down the Martian government.
A seemingly invulnerable creep named Vincent (Daran Norris) sets off a biological weapon in a large tanker-truck explosion on a freeway. Faye is about to nab him when this deadly event occurs, and she and Spike compete to finish the job. The mystery deepens to include a large pharmaceutical company's experimentation in applying nanotechnology to warfare and a fetching company enforcer, Elektra Ovirowa (Jennifer Hale), who is instructed to terminate Vincent.
Along with such down-to-earth sequences of surprising resonance as Spike's visit to a "Moroccan Street" informant and over-the-top confrontations like that between Vincent and two pursuers on a monorail train, "Cowboy" has enough style, wit and speculative ideas that an adult can be reasonably entertained, while many younger viewers will undoubtedly have no problem resolving its minor inconsistencies -- and probably happily have nightmares afterward.
COWBOY BEBOP: THE MOVIE
Sony Pictures Entertainment
TriStar Pictures presents
Sunrise, Bones, Bandai Visual
Credits:
Director: Shinichiro Watanabe
Screenwriter: Keiko Nobumoto
Producers: Masuo Ueda, Masahiko Minami, Minoru Takanashi
Executive producers: Takayuki Yoshii, Ryohei Tsunoda
Character designer/animation director: Toshihiro Kawamoto
Mechanical designer: Kimitoshi Yamane
Editor: Shuichi Kakesu
Music: Yoko Kanno
Voices:
Spike Spiegel: Steven Jay Blum
Jet Black: Beau Billingslea
Faye Valentine: Wendee Lee
Vincent: Daran Norris
Elektra Ovirowa: Jennifer Hale
Running time -- 113 minutes
No MPAA rating...
- 8/22/2002
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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