In
the distant future Earth's last city, Olympus, was born out of a
global war on the backs of Bioroids, artificial clones who comprise
half Olympus' population. Under a supercomputer's watchful eye,
humanity's last survivors enjoy a blissful piece – on the surface,
that is. Human militaristic “terrorists” are seeking to restore
their power and butt heads with the government's ESWAT forces under
the command of highly decorated soldier Deunan Knute and her
mostly-machine boyfriend Briareos. Retrieving the elusive “Appleseed”
will end the conflict, and only Deunan knows its secret.
Based
on a manga by Masamune Shirow (best-known for Ghost
in the Shell), Appleseed
(2004) is a prime slice of smart and exciting science fiction anime.
Director Shinji Aramaki, with writers Haruka Handa and Tsutomu
Kamishiro, deftly guides us with clarity through an esoteric but
fully sensical plot punctuated with some very adrenaline-pumping and
cleverly staged and framed action sequences. It's also an
adult-oriented animated film not afraid to get metaphorically
political: a fully human/quarter-human couple, vindictive outcast
robots and, most prominently, an independent but identity-tormented
woman protagonist are among the very resonant allegories it puts
front and centre. Its futuristic city setting is also realised in
exquisitely minute detail.
My
only gripe? I wish the score were slightly less derivative. But
despite that, John Woo may well have been right in calling it “A
stunning visual achievement – it's a new milestone for CG
animation.” This is one very tasty Appleseed
indeed.
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