Film: Cowboy Bebop: The Movie
Release date: 13th October 2003
Certificate: 12
Running time: 110 mins
Director: Shinichirô Watanabe
Starring: Kôichi Yamadera, Unshô Ishizuka , Megumi Hayashibara, Aoi Tada
Genre: Anime
Studio: Sony
Format: DVD
Country: Japan/USA
Cowboy Bebop is a critically acclaimed and influential anime that ran for 26 episodes in 1998. Due to the mass popularity of the programme outside of Japan, it was almost inevitable that it would receive a movie release. This is exactly what happened with Cowboy Bebop: Tengoku No Tobira being released in Japan in 2001, before a subsequent release in the US, with the more succinct title Cowboy Bebop: The Movie, in 2002.
Like the show, the movie follows the crew of the Bebop: Spike, Faye, Jet, Ed and Ein, who are a rag-tag crew of bounty hunters. Spike is laid-back and lazy, but also an excellent thief and martial artist; Faye is hot tempered femme fatale with a gambling addiction, as well as an excellent pilot; Jet is a gruff but kindly former cop and the owner of the Bebop; Ed is a teenage computer genius and master hacker; and Ein is Ed’s dog.
The plot of the movie centres on a deadly virus which is being released in the capital city on Mars, with the government issuing a 300 million woolong reward for the capture of whoever is behind it. As always, low on money and food, the crew of the Bebop jump at the chance to cash in on the reward, but soon find they have some serious competition, especially in Electra, an agent sent out by the creators of the virus. The crew also discover the mystery surrounding the man responsible, Vincent Volaju, goes deeper than they ever imagined...
When making a movie adaptation of a successful television series, there are many potential pitfalls - it has to be faithful enough to the show to appease fans, particularly in relation to anime or sci-fi fans who are renowned for their dedication, while not being incomprehensible to people coming to it for the first time. Another major difficulty is to make a story that stands alone as a feature and does not merely feels like an extended episode of the show.
Luckily, the movie’s director (and show creator) Shinichirô Watanabe manages to sidestep these potential stumbling blocks well, as viewers need no prior knowledge of the show to enjoy this full-length feature. This is not to worry any die-hard fans of the show (and there are many), though, as enough of the humour and spirit of the show has been retained.
Also, as any Bebop fan will know, one of the key elements of the show was the music, and it is no different here, as after a typically humourous and smart-alecky pre-credit sequence, we get a great jazzy opening credit sequence which is enhanced by the cool blue rotoscope-like animation and good use of split screens, which can often seem pretentious or forcibly ‘hip’ but fits perfectly in place here. Fans will also be pleased to know that all the original music was done by Yoko Kanno, who also gave the series its cool jazz soundtrack and was a key element of its appeal.
Unlike the show, whose main villain was Vicious, the villain here is the dark and mysterious Vincent Volaju. This brooding and complex villain is probably not as profound and philosophical as the writers would like you to think, but equally, it is good to see a villain who is more than merely one note. The character also works well as a good counter to the laconic and wise-cracking Spike, who remains one of the ultimate ‘badass’ characters in the world of anime - the fight scenes between the two are truly quite exceptional.
One of the other great things here is while we still get plenty of time with the five major characters of the show (Spike, Faye, Jet, Ed, Ein), the new characters (Vincent, Electra, Rashida) are well developed and are given time to breathe. Also while there are many animes that provide great action, it is rare to find one with great dialogue, which, like the series, this does - the script is razor sharp, and has the wit and humour of a classic film noir.
The animation is also expertly handled, with the CGI and more traditional animation techniques working well together.
If people only want straight ahead action from their anime they may find themselves disappointed, as there is certainly quite a slow build to the film, and it often has a dream-like quality throughout, although this is central to the story. Stick with it, though, as we build to an epic showdown between Spike and Vincent, and a heart-breaking conclusion where we glimpse the rarely seen more sombre side of Spike’s personality.
Cowboy Bebop will probably go down as one of the all-time great anime shows - it was voted the greatest of all time by magazine Anime Insider - and while the movie never quite reaches the heights of the show, it is still a very good film. The crew are as entertaining as ever, in particular the irrepressible Spike, the animation is great, the dialogue is witty, the story is compelling, and just like the show, it is the very epitome of cool. Whether you’re a diehard fan of the series, or completely new to it, there is enough for all to enjoy.
No comments:
Post a Comment