Cowboy BeBop and other Anime...

Frankychan · April 6, 2003, 20:00

Ok, here's the scoop...

I just finished watching Cowboy BeBop: The Movie yesterday and sort-of enjoyed it. It wasn't as good as the regular show. Additionally, it followed the direction many anime movies have....slow throughout most of the movie until the climax. I personally enjoyed this tempo because it was a change of pace from the normal Hollywood adrenaline rush.

What I didn't like was the fact that you don't really know when the movie actually takes place. Is it a stand-alone or is it during a break in the episodes? This is what made me only "sort-of" enjoy this movie.

Anyway, if you guys have seen this movie or others, can you tell me what you think....or recommend me some good anime movies?

monolith94 · April 6, 2003, 20:29

Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, but ABOVE ALL OTHERS Metropolis.

Felch · April 6, 2003, 20:35

I saw Princess Mononoke and Akira, and felt that the final sequence where the vincinity is totally anihilated but miraculusly the main characters all pretty much survive got kind of tiresome. The same thing happens at the end of virtually every Japanese RPG I've played, and it gets old the millionth time it happens.

Is this some residual end of the world obsession Japanese people have had since we bombed Hiroshima and Nagasaki?

Skanky Burns · April 6, 2003, 20:38

I saw Metropolis the other day, it was enjoyable.

I haven't seen enough anime to give it a relative score though.

The Mad Monk · April 6, 2003, 20:39

Hmmm...were any of the characters dead?

Frankychan · April 6, 2003, 20:55

I watched Metropolis and thought it was alright. The animation is quasi-60's which was different. Also saw Princess Mononoke and thought it was pretty cool.

I'm looking for an anime movie with a very evil villain....but haven't found one yet. (although 'evil' is subjective )

Wraith · April 6, 2003, 21:10

Been reading my Anime Apolyton threads?

--"Is it a stand-alone or is it during a break in the episodes?"

Between episode 22 and 23.

--"or recommend me some good anime movies?"

What kind of movies do you like? There's quite a range, you know.

Overall, I'd suggest anything by Miyazaki, Porco Rosso in particular. Jin-Roh (or any other Oshii works). Perfect Blue, Akira and Ghost in the Shell are other big name titles in the US. Grave of the Fireflies would be another good choice.

Hmm. I think most of the other US released movies are series continuations or retellings. Escaflone, End of Evangelion, Cowboy Bebop, Ah My Goddess, the Tenchi movies and so on.

--"Is this some residual end of the world obsession Japanese people have had since we bombed Hiroshima and Nagasaki?"

That is part of it, yes. It's also a kind of action movie thing. Try some other genres and you won't see that. Grave of the Fireflies, for instance.

--"I'm looking for an anime movie with a very evil villain....but haven't found one yet."

You may not find many. Anime in general has less starkly good/evil separations. You might want to try Ah, My Goddess, since Celestine is trying to destroy the world, but he's not really evil.
Tenchi: Manatsu no Eve might work. Yuzuha is pretty evil. Or Tenchi Muyo in Love. Kain is about as decidedly evil as they get.

Edit:

While there's an anime thread going, I may as well mention that Azumanga Daioh has been licensed in Australia by Madman. They almost always license the English dubs from US companies, so I bet we hear about a US license this con season, probalby at Anime Expo this summer.

And Pioneer USA should be officially announcing their Haibane Renmei license this week.

Wraith
"Now let's be good little children, and settle down okay? Little brats."
-- Kiyone ("Tenchi Muyo in Love")

NeOmega · April 6, 2003, 21:41

Quote:

Is this some residual end of the world obsession Japanese people have had since we bombed Hiroshima and Nagasaki?

Barefoot Gen.... One of the best. All about Hiroshima.... no real miraculous saves in that one.

Ninja Scroll, Princess Mononoke was cool. Akira ok a few times.

Jin Roh, Ghost in the Shell, kinda boring.

I don't really like Cowboy Bebop the TV series, or Outlaw Star much.

I really dislike Dragonball Z :ducks for cover: G Gundam, but love Gundam MS 008th .

NEVER Watch "A wind called Amnesia" IT SUCKS!

Jon Miller · April 6, 2003, 21:46

I like Bebop

and some of the movies I have seen (like Ghost in the Shell)

Dragonball Z looks extremely stupid

Gundam Wing (something) wasn't great either

silent mobius wasn't that great also

(seen a number of movies I don't remember the names of, were ok)

Jon Miller

Frankychan · April 6, 2003, 21:54

Thanks Wraith. Yes I do read your anime threads but sometimes I get overburdened with info.

My friend recommended one of his movies....but he's a pervert.

monolith94 · April 6, 2003, 22:01

Metropolis is my personal favorite movie of 2002.

Jon Miller · April 6, 2003, 22:05

one movie had to do with a train

another was Macross or soemthing

another had to do with female space pirates

can anyone tell me what the names were and remind me what they were about

actually, one of my good freinds is into anime (he hasn't watched any but Bebop, but he likes it and is looking up anime online)

Jon Miller

SnowFire · April 6, 2003, 23:37

Normally I like to see things for myself before judging them, but my roommate saw CB: The movie first and has insured I'll never watch it (although I'll admit I looked over his shoulder occasionally to get a feel for the art). Let me also preface this by saying that my roommate is an absolute nut for CB (it's his favorite anime series) and is also a movie fanatic. However, he felt rather strongly that despite the bigger budget for nice animation, it totally defied the things that made CB a good show. Part of the charm of CB was precisely what Felch X was complaining about: the heroes are not out to save the city/world/solar system, they're random mercenaries doing comparatively small fry jobs. The rare times they do save a bunch of people (like with the crazy eco-terrorists who were turning people into monkeys, I forget the details) they never get paid or get any recognition. There's loving homage to Noir & Western traditions, but it's still its own show. And they occasionally show shots of females not wearing tons of clothing, but it's not too excessive or intrusive.
The movie pumps all these carefully moderated elements up, and destroys itself in the process. The movie makes no sense with the rest of the CB story: after this movie, the CB team should be hailed as planet-saving heroes who can have all the money they could ever want, so no more starving in the ship. The fan service goes to ridiculous levels. And even standing as a movie on its own merits (ignoring possible betrayals to the series), it crosses the line from "homage" to "rips off." A really sucky villian doesn't help either.
Yes, I restate again that I haven't seen the movie myself, but pretend like my roommate is here posting.

Zero · April 7, 2003, 00:40

How come no one mentioned EoE???

WHERE DA HELL IS KASS!!!???????

Wraith · April 7, 2003, 07:49

--"one movie had to do with a train"

If most of the characters were cats, it was Night on the Galactic Railroad. Otherwise it was probably Galaxy Express 999.

--"another was Macross or soemthing"

That kind of answers itself

Macross: Do You Remember Love?

--"another had to do with female space pirates"

Queen Emereldas, in which case that first one was probably Galaxy Express 999. They're by the same creator.

--"How come no one mentioned EoE?"

I did...

Wraith
"If you're talking about forgetfulness, I won't lose to you."
-- Osaka ("Azumanga Daioh")

Alinestra Covelia · April 7, 2003, 10:35

Frankychan, if you're after an anime with a clear villain and dastardly plots aplenty, try Laputa: The Castle in the Sky (by Studio Ghibli, directed by Miyazaki). I know Wraith is going to recoil with horror, but I liked the film a lot.

Amongst Miyazaki's output, Laputa is one of the more standard "black and white good vs evil" films.

monolith94 · April 7, 2003, 11:08

Wraith, you are an amazing resource. I just felt you ought to know.

""Metropolis" is not a simple-minded animated cartoon, but a surprisingly thoughtful and challenging adventure that looks into the nature of life and love, the role of workers, the rights (if any) of machines, the pain of a father's rejection, and the fascist zeal that lies behind Ziggurat. This is not a remake of the 1926 classic, but a wild elaboration. If you have never seen a Japanese anime, start here. If you love them, "Metropolis" proves you are right."

- Roger Ebert

Richard Bruns · April 7, 2003, 12:28

The Cowboy Bebop movie is what got me started watching anime. The school´s anime club was watching it on the big TV in the lobby with the sound way too loud, so as an RA I had to tell them to turn it down. By the time I located the person with the remote control, the movie had hooked me, so I stayed to watch it. The combination of visual style, music, narrative pacing, and assumption of audience intelligence was quite refreshing, though I assume the movie is only mediocre by anime standards.

The Cowboy Bebop series is still the best anime I´ve ever seen, so I can´t offer many recommendations. Gundam Wing is almost as good, though. It has a similar style. The only problem is that they absolutely refuse to let main characters stay dead. After seeing Lady Une and Trowa appear to bite the dust, I assumed that I had finally found a series with the guts to kill people off, but they both came back miraculously. Bah. The glorification of battle also gets annoying after a while too; I assume that´s some kind of holdover from the samurai culture.

DaShi · April 7, 2003, 12:53

The glorification of battle was the main theme of Gundam 0080 (sp?) right?

I'm very much looking forward to seeing the Cowboy Bebop movie. Hopefully, it will have a wider theatre release.

DinoDoc · April 7, 2003, 13:27

Voltron!

Wraith · April 7, 2003, 20:22

--"I know Wraith is going to recoil with horror, but I liked the film a lot."

You're thinking of Chegitz. I recommended all the Miyazaki movies.

--"Wraith, you are an amazing resource. I just felt you ought to know."

Heh. Maybe I really should ask to have my title changed to Otaking.

--"The only problem is that they absolutely refuse to let main characters stay dead."

Yeah, and zombies are highly over-rated fighters. You'll never find a maid again, for one thing. Even the home-built robot ones really hate...

Oh... wait...

But yeah, you're right. The "I'm not dead yet" problem. The good stuff can stay away from it pretty easy, but it is one of the irritating cliches. I loved how Nadesico handled it, though.

--"The glorification of battle also gets annoying after a while too; I assume that´s some kind of holdover from the samurai culture."

More that samurai culture was an outgrowth of the same thing this is an outgrowth of. It's rather interesting, but only Japan has raised things like swordsmanship to the high spiritual level they place it at. This is reflected in their version of Buddhism, Zen Buddhism. It includes the belief that you can obtain satori, spiritual perfection, through a path of spiritual forging, saishen tanren. This was linked with the martial arts, and developed into bushido.
This isn't limited to martial arts, though. Almost anything can become saishen tanren if you master it. Traditional ways include things from archery and swordsmanship to tea making and flower arranging.

--"The glorification of battle was the main theme of Gundam 0080 (sp?) right?"

Glorification? Probably not. I haven't seen this particular Gundam series, but they tend to try to portray the harsh side of war more than glorify it.

--"Voltron!"

GoLion!

Wraith
"Let's Gekiga in!"
-- Gekiganger crew ("Nadeisco")

Wraith · April 7, 2003, 20:54

That was weird. Took the post, but didn't bump the thread up the list.

Wraith
"No, no, no, not MORONIC, BIONIC!"
-- General Chelsonia ("Prefectural Earth Defense Force")

GePap · April 7, 2003, 21:03

ROBOTECH!

Actually, having seen Metropolis twice, I did not like it that much. For example, the motivation of the higher ups, like Count Red is not that well explained. Fine, he wants to rule, but why? Just personal greed and hubris? That makes him a little too "regular". The actions of the President, his advicer, the General and the revolutionary are all sort of muddled. I think that whole President, revolution storyline arc could have been done away with: there is enough action and drama with Count Red's son chasing them down and then the finale.

spiritof1202 · April 7, 2003, 21:08

Metropolis was formulaic...

I can't believe I'm agreeing with GePap so much...

Tuberski · April 7, 2003, 21:11

I have only ever watched one anime movie:

"Vampire Hunter something something"

ACK!

chequita guevara · April 7, 2003, 23:06

Quote:

Originally posted by Wraith
--"I know Wraith is going to recoil with horror, but I liked the film a lot."

You're thinking of Chegitz. I recommended all the Miyazaki movies.

Actually, I haven't seen it. Since my move to the cultural wasteland known as Jacksonville, my anime watching days have pretty much ended.

At least I can still get manga.

Speaking of Coybow Bebop Salon.com had a review of it. Salon's got great reviews, and I've pretty much found them to be bang on.

monolith94 · April 7, 2003, 23:18

metropolis was formulaic??? WTF??? Yeah - crime and punishment was formulaic too because all it is is this story of redemption - TIRED! And don't even get me started on the clichéd nature of ALL of Nabokov's works!

Seriously, it's HOW you use the format of the story and what you say in it that is important. There are no original stories. It thrilled me from first frame to last.

monolith94 · April 7, 2003, 23:48

Salon has horrendous movie reviews - they are the definition of the modern jump-on-the elitist bandwagon mentality, without nary a thought given to movie quality.

Wraith · April 8, 2003, 07:43

--"ROBOTECH!"

At least watch Macross instead.

--""Vampire Hunter something something""

D or D: Bloodlust. They're pretty mediocre at best, although I do like the way they make it seem like D is talking to his sword in the first one.

The best anime vampire stuff I've seen so far is the Vampire Princess Miyu OVA.

--"Actually, I haven't seen it"

Too bad. I thought it was one of the ones you didn't like, but I must be mixing it up with something else.

--"Salon's got great reviews,"

Maybe, but their page layout sucks rocks. Never seem to manage to get a full article of theirs, but it's not really a big loss.

Wraith
"Who dares enter the sacred and awesome presence of the everlasting know-it-all, Yogurt!"
-- Yogurt ("Spaceballs")

GePap · April 8, 2003, 11:27

Nah..I rgew up on Robotech, and it came before Macross anyway.

Metropolis had multile storyliens, and while the main one, of the boy and girls running through the city with the uncle investigating was good, the other one, the one of the politics above was not fully flehsed out and felt stale, added on.