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REVIEW: Redline Blu-Ray


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Errinundra
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Joined: 14 Jun 2008
Posts: 6509
Location: Melbourne, Oz
PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 11:12 pm Reply with quote
Zac wrote:
...Probably the most entertaining anime movie in the last 10 years or so, maybe longer...


You have got to be kidding me. I think it was one of the most boring films I've ever seen, full stop. I've mentioned this elsewhere a couple of times but I saw this at the cinema as part of the Reel Anime Festival back in 2010. In theory, seeing it on the big screen with a high volume, quality sound system should have been perfect to appreciate it. Despite all the noise and colour I constantly found my attention wandering. The guy next to me snored continuosly. After the movie, the woman behind admitted to her boyfriend that she had also fallen asleep. (Perhaps it was something the cimema complex put in the air conditioning.)

First and foremost, everything about the film, save the animation, is just plain silly. Plot and characterisation are not only given cursory attention but the mafia plot along with the character and design of JP detract significantly from any pleasure that may be had elsewhere in the film. I note that JP is rarely shown in any promotional material (it's almost always Sonoshee) and, where he is, his cockatoo display hairdo is obscured. Sonoshee is more appealing, both visually and behaviour-wise, but she isn't unique enough to save things. Luckily, the film doesn't take itself seriously, so it doesn't add the insult of pretension to the injury of idiocy.

Worst of all, the film is visually dull. I know it's a big call but I reckon Takeshi Koike's technical skills way exceed his artistic skills. All the noise, action and colour somehow fail to make what's happening interesting. I remember in the commentary to Paprika, Satoshi Kon explained that in any frame it was very important to organise the lighting so that the viewer is engaged. For all the wow in Redline there is a sameness about the imagery that left me and the people around me in the cinema disengaged.

My rating for this is so-so. To quote Shakespeare, Redline is a "tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing."

I am constantly surprised how much ANN boosts this very ordinary film. It understandably sunk without a trace in Japan. Really it's just a glorified sports anime - in this case, car racing.
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GWOtaku



Joined: 19 Jul 2003
Posts: 678
PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 11:15 pm Reply with quote
It's that part in the middle in between the Yellowline and Redline that gets viewers to actually feel something about JP and Sonoshee and to care about what happens later, as Zac says. Mileage will vary, of course. But when that content has a point and a purpose and a clear, tangible reason for existing, that most certainly isn't aimless. Before the restaurant scene & beyond we don't know these people or have much of a sense about what drives them...to drive.

I mean, the implication of this sentiment seems to be that Redline would be a better film if it had been near-nonstop awesomeness the entire time with no moments taken for anything else. That would be fun to watch, no doubt, but there's no way the payoff of the end would be at all the same. And you're left with an emptier product whereas what we have is anything but disposable.

No, it's just fine as it is.
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Vracer111



Joined: 28 Jan 2010
Posts: 194
PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 11:32 pm Reply with quote
@ nechronius...it was the creators intent to make it a fun movie that doesn't take itself too seriously, and that is what makes it icing on the cake! What part of an epic Action/Comedy/Romance taking place in a Sci-Fi/Fantasy environment with no humans is not absurd? [There are humanoids but no humans from earth save for maybe one, but that is not made clear; but does it really matter at all?] JP's hair staying intact the whole movie (nearly...)? Absurd! The Super Boins 'shtick'? Absurd! Colonel Volton's solution for dealing with Funky Boy? Absurd!! The whole movie is absurd...and yet... it... is... AWESOME! Razz

P.S.

I can understand people not liking Redline for stylistic or overall content reasons, but the "boring" or "drags on" comments truly boggle my mind. If Redline was that boring you'd think that Evangelion 2.22 would be 'lights out' for its slooooweeerrr comparative pace and endless yapping, but I don't think this is the case for some strange reason... Shocked Anime dazed


Last edited by Vracer111 on Wed Jan 18, 2012 12:01 am; edited 1 time in total
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Timeenforceranubis



Joined: 06 Mar 2010
Posts: 171
PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 11:59 pm Reply with quote
I watched REDLINE a while back and, to be honest, I didn't much care for it. It looks amazing, sure, but everything else just didn't stand up.

My thing about science-fiction is: The worldbuilding is a big part of what makes me to care about a work of science-fiction. Without it, there's little context. Sure, it keeps the story simple, but at the cost of immersion, and I felt like the whole movie was trying to make me care, despite the fact that it refuses to build its world. I never thought I'd use this phrase to seriously describe something, but it insists upon itself.

I didn't like the way REDLINE presented speed, either. I feel like the action's default speed was so fast that the only way to depict things accelerating beyond that was to make things more ridiculous.

As DRWii pointed out, the race spoiler[does come to a dead stop right in the middle.] I didn't care for the ending either, spoiler[particularly because it just ends. No epilogue, no nothing.]

The movie seemed rushed to me and, toward the end, was downright boring. By the time the aforementioned massive radioactive beast-weapon showed up and started its rampage, I felt like the movie had started phoning it in. I felt detached.

All-in-all, it felt like I was watching a movie. It felt like I was on the outside, looking into a world that just wants me to watch and care, but not get involved, if that makes any sense.
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Great Rumbler



Joined: 03 Oct 2006
Posts: 326
Location: Oklahoma
PostPosted: Wed Jan 18, 2012 12:06 am Reply with quote
Oneeyedjacks wrote:
The only minus I would give Redline is that were NEVER going to see anything like it in anime ever again.


I kept thinking the whole thing throughout when I was watching.

The last time I saw an anime movie with this much flare and pure excitement in every frame was Steamboy, and that was over 7 years ago.
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Bonham



Joined: 20 Nov 2010
Posts: 419
Location: NYC
PostPosted: Wed Jan 18, 2012 12:23 am Reply with quote
Zac wrote:
The truth is, of course, that anime never really was “like” Redline – this is a new creation, something that doubtlessly draws from the past but reimagines and refines all of its influences so spectacularly that stone-cold newcomers to this particular art form could sit down and have their mind blown.

[expletive] sold.

Tremendous review. Only anime movies have really interested and delivered over the last few years. If Redline lives up to its hype to me, then I'm cool with the film being the format where anime can really express itself.
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DRWii



Joined: 16 May 2007
Posts: 636
PostPosted: Wed Jan 18, 2012 12:25 am Reply with quote
Vracer111 wrote:
If Redline was that boring you'd think that Evangelion 2.22 would be 'lights out' for its slooooweeerrr comparative pace and endless yapping, but I don't think this is the case for some strange reason... Shocked Anime dazed

I actually thought "Eva 2.22" went too fast, of all things. At least, that's the closest I can get to describing how I felt. The re-imaging of the events of the series were much more "epic" and Eva-esque than before, but I didn't really feel that epicness like I did during the final scenes of the first movie. The pacing was the only thing I could think of to blame; the movie probably would have been better if they had spaced the same material over a 5-10 minute-ish longer running time.
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Takamachi Ryoko



Joined: 27 Apr 2008
Posts: 332
Location: 東京, 日本
PostPosted: Wed Jan 18, 2012 12:50 am Reply with quote
Quote:
...Probably the most entertaining anime movie in the last 10 years or so, maybe longer...


That's exaggerated, Redline was good but it wasn't that special. First and foremost, I don't see anything original in the plot, a big deadly race and some evil organization pop up out of nowhere, bringing more messes at the end of it. JP is just another typical guy wanting to live every man's dream, he may fit so well with the setting but there isn't anything deep about him (or the whole movie itself). Let alone the big hole at the end. Everything about the movie went over the top, but for a racing genre like this, it's suitable. It was all pure mindless fun.

Speaking of the 10 years, it was released within the 10 years of Spirited Away, 5 Centimeters, Summer Wars and such so NO
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Zac
ANN Executive Editor


Joined: 05 Jan 2002
Posts: 7912
Location: Anime News Network Technodrome
PostPosted: Wed Jan 18, 2012 12:59 am Reply with quote
Takamachi Ryoko wrote:
Quote:
...Probably the most entertaining anime movie in the last 10 years or so, maybe longer...


That's exaggerated, Redline was good but it wasn't that special. First and foremost, I don't see anything original in the plot, a big deadly race and some evil organization pop up out of nowhere, bringing more messes at the end of it. JP is just another typical guy wanting to live every man's dream, he may fit so well with the setting but there isn't anything deep about him (or the whole movie itself). Let alone the big hole at the end. Everything about the movie went over the top, but for a racing genre like this, it's suitable. It was all pure mindless fun.

Speaking of the 10 years, it was released within the 10 years of Spirited Away, 5 Centimeters, Summer Wars and such so NO


Ah, the ol' "your subjective opinion is wrong because I don't agree with it, here is how you should feel about this thing you like" argument. I love these. Like there's only one right way to feel about a film.

"Most entertaining" is different from "best" or "deepest" or "most emotionally resounding" or any other category, but I liked Redline as a work of entertainment more than all of the films you mentioned (and I'd watch it a zillion more times before snoring through 5cm per Second ever again).
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Great Rumbler



Joined: 03 Oct 2006
Posts: 326
Location: Oklahoma
PostPosted: Wed Jan 18, 2012 1:14 am Reply with quote
I had a goofy grin plastered across my face for nearly 102 minutes, that alone says all that needs to said regarded how I felt about Redline.
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enurtsol



Joined: 01 May 2007
Posts: 14744
PostPosted: Wed Jan 18, 2012 1:21 am Reply with quote
So, something that does well in this moe economy. Laughing
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nightjuan



Joined: 22 Jan 2008
Posts: 1473
PostPosted: Wed Jan 18, 2012 1:26 am Reply with quote
I agree that Redline is an excellent sci-fi action film with great production values as well as a good story that's essentially nothing more and nothing less than what the material itself requires. This contributes to making it not only highly entertaining but also easy to enjoy, even for many people who aren't necessarily interested in contemporary anime at all. So, even though I'm slightly less positive about certain relatively minor aspects of the writing, such as how a couple of secondary characters were ultimately treated, I still think the gist of Zac's review is quite reasonable.
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Vracer111



Joined: 28 Jan 2010
Posts: 194
PostPosted: Wed Jan 18, 2012 1:46 am Reply with quote
@DRWii (first paragraph below)

My introduction to Evangelion is through the 're-birth' movies, so have no experience with the series. Have been thinking of getting the series, but only after the movies are completed. Really like Evangelion 2.22 and it was my favorite anime Blu-Ray until Redline came along. But to me, Evangelion 2.22 is just a great movie. Redline on the other hand is an instant classic/near masterpiece that takes anime in a different direction...a direction I would love to see more of (but we know that is not going to happen sadly.)

I really enjoy the OVA that spawned Redline [Trava Fist Planet] for it's genius comedic timing but Redline is the overall better title being less experimental and more refined. The combination of artistry, music, story direction, and character designs/mannerisms is what makes it for me and puts Redline in the same realm of enjoyability as the movie Tron Legacy - one of my favorite films that Redline has more in common with than the Speed Racer movie ( that despite the cheesiness and horrible Blu-Ray audio track I happen to love as well.)

Now the Bugatti Veyron may not be a car enthusiast's favorite car, but no-one can say that a 4,100lb car that goes 0-180mph faster than most cars reach 60mph and that tops out at over 250mph isn't something special or is not a masterpiece of engineering. Redline is anime's Bugatti Veyron... absurdity, insanity, technical perfection, and extreme excitement all rolled into one thing.


Last edited by Vracer111 on Wed Jan 18, 2012 1:57 am; edited 2 times in total
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vermilionone



Joined: 21 Feb 2009
Posts: 45
PostPosted: Wed Jan 18, 2012 1:54 am Reply with quote
Takamachi Ryoko wrote:
Quote:
...Probably the most entertaining anime movie in the last 10 years or so, maybe longer...


That's exaggerated, Redline was good but it wasn't that special. First and foremost, I don't see anything original in the plot, a big deadly race and some evil organization pop up out of nowhere, bringing more messes at the end of it. JP is just another typical guy wanting to live every man's dream, he may fit so well with the setting but there isn't anything deep about him (or the whole movie itself). Let alone the big hole at the end. Everything about the movie went over the top, but for a racing genre like this, it's suitable. It was all pure mindless fun.

Speaking of the 10 years, it was released within the 10 years of Spirited Away, 5 Centimeters, Summer Wars and such so NO


I disagree! Spirited Away is engaging and fun, as is Summer Wars, but 5cm is slow, touching, and heartbreaking. I don't necessarily place "watching a movie that inspired me to crack open a bottle of scotch and spend the next few days contemplating my relationships to everyone I thought of as a friend for life when I was young" in the entertaining category. It's certainly valuable, and "entertaining" if you're talking about the anachronistic usage of the word which suggests an entwining of artist and audience (if I may paraphrase Michael Chabon) but it's not entertaining in the modern "go to a theater with friends and enjoy yourselves" sense. I went to and came from a theatrical screening of Redline with friends piled inside a customized Mustang and going down a lot of very straight roads very, very fast though, so I might be coming from a different cultural perspective.
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maxxjulie



Joined: 09 Mar 2005
Posts: 192
PostPosted: Wed Jan 18, 2012 2:12 am Reply with quote
the anime itself is great pretty adrenaline pumping mindless fun. never bored for a minute while watching it. i highly recommend the bluray because the dvd won't pop like it does in hd.
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