Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust |
 | Summary:Tenebrous, elegantly designed fantasy/horror re-make follows a skillful vampire hunter as he tracks down an antediluvian lord in order to recover a pulchritudinous damsel. It's unremittingly stylish atmosphere, surprisingly in-depth plot & meticulously rendered animation pleases enthusiasts of the original; anime masses alike in store for a well-crafted, vibrant adrenaline rush. |
| Title Aka: | Vampire Hunter D: 2000 |
| Company/Distributors: | Mad House;Asahi Sonorama;Urban Vision Entertainment Inc. |
| Year: | 2000 |
| Length: | 105 Minutes |
| Rating: |  |
| Genres: | Action, Horror, Fantasy |
| Format: | Feature Film |
| MPAA Rating: | R |
| Comments: | N/A |
"Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust" (2000):
Well, you've downloaded & watched the trailers, checked out "Urban Vision's" little less than comprehensive site and loaded youself with enough "Vampire Hunter D" apparel to last you till the sun came up. Alas, your time has now arrived anime fans! You need look no further. Ninja Scroll director "Yoshiaki Kawajiri's" re-make of "Toyoo Ashida's" cult classic has finally arrived. Thankfully for all anime fans as well as everyone else, "Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust" lives up to it's hype; and much more. The film is of course based upon the original novel by "Hideyuki Kikuchi", and the original character illustrations by "Yoshitaka Amano"; who's both meticulous style & elegant touch was lent to the first attempt by director Ashida to render the elusive vampire hunter to the animated big-screen. Unfortunately, that effort proved to be somewhat futile, as the first Vampire Hunter D was little more than a genre picture with some dated technical designs (Not to mention the fact that the story & characters were less intellectual than pieces of cardboard). At the beginning of the 21st century however, that bunch of talent is replaced & the material revisited by anime Veterans Yoshiaki Kawajiri & "Yutaka Minowa", among other anime artists. The new film, "Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust" bears a small resemblence to Kawajiri's 1993 film "Ninja Scroll". Similar in the way it crafted the forces of good against evil in a stylistic, unconventional fashion. Kawajiri has both the talent & skill to bring the cimmerian cloaked hunter to animated life; but this quasi re-make is neither a monumental testament to the horror genre or a finger exercise. If anything, the new movie more or less follows the similar arche of the 1985 film; in which a comely damsel of sorts is abducted by an elusive & evil vampire. "D", the hunter of course is the one intended to save "Doris"; the woman warrior in the original film. However, the original movie carried with it, the sort of mindless nature which accompanies late night sci-fi serials; without the kind of inspiration "Leiji Matsumoto" or even "John Ford" or "Lucas" might have appreciated. Much like Western-influenced directors such as the legendary Ford and sci-fi guru Lucas, Kawajiri is the sort of film maker who lets his active imagination run wild. As he proceeds to craft the newly envisioned world of D, Kawajiri utilizes dark murky environments; not only that but also lush greens, vibrant deserts & 'ghost-town' inspired technological wastelands. The likes of which were visited by veteran anime artists in "Galaxy Express 999", "The Cockpit" & his films "Wicked City" & Ninja Scroll. The visual result of the film is something which is a cross between vintage westerns & modern stylistic sci-fi/fantasy pictures. Like the darkest corners of "Salvidor Dali's" imagination seen on paintings, merged with a kind of elegant vibrance customary only to Kawajiri. The film opens with a stylish & vibrant sequence (The likes of which are among the most beautiful of the film). With night's elusive wind, the daughter of the wealthy "Elbourne family", "Charlotte" is abducted by the mysterious "Meier Link"; a vampire lord who is head of the "Barbarois" (A band of demons & evil sorcerer like creatures lurking about the dead wastelands of the night). The movie then proceeds into one of those tedious displays of sub-text outlining the occurenes of the "Dunpeal" (D's kind, half-human & half-vampire), and their history involving intermingling with bounty hunters. O.k., so it's not the most impressive storyline arche in the universe, but animation directors "Hiroshio Hamasaki", "Hisashi Abe" and "Yutaka Minowa" (Who also does the character designs in the movie) keep the plot of the movie fast-paced and steady. A factor which far outweighs the film's minor flaws. Kawajiri is known also as a patient director who knows how to animate action, and the action in this film is no exception. Being that it's very cleverly executed and rendered. There's also a sort of elegant grace to the action which allows the audience to follow the motions, rather than over-exploit them as in so many other films (One of the many problems of Ashida's first VHD movie). As a storyline arche "Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust" makes little mistakes, and Kawajiri's screenplay is elegantly brought about into real-time portrayed by animated characters. So not only does this re-make play like a vintage animé film, it also paces itself like a true classic Hollywood western. Kawajiri himself is steeped into the differentias of the anime realm, he knows how to please fans' embullience with the film's dialogue wit & clever action. Which succeed in not overpowering the film, they embody it & aid the story. In the beginning of the film, the Elbourne family hires a group of vagabond mercenaries known as the "Marcus Brothers"; though they are really simply a group of individuals who travel in a cross-seeped, massive motor vehicle. The creativity used in rendering them as hunters is quite clever. In the opening action sequences, their weapons entail mass destruction to their antagonists; the Marcus brothers group "Borgoff", "Kyle" & "Nolt" utilize cross shaped gleams, fixated into gigantic search lights (which I found clever if not a bit unoriginal; there is another character who has an unusual method of doing away with his enemies by taking a semi-lethal injection). The story has many twists & turns for being a relatively straight-forward genre picture. I enjoyed how Kawajiri utilized his characters to the advantage of the plot, much like he did in Ninja Scroll. Here is a director with a great vision to create, who has full confidence in the material at hand; but who also doesn't allow it to seep into pointless displays of exposition. Kawajiri advocates much of his expression into the second & third acts, as not to overpower everything which came before it. He is known for this layered style of film making, which blows out in the beautiful climaxes. As a character, "D" is a vampire hunter with many complex emotions, even though he may be as coarse & lifeless as a winter melon. Kawajiri has fun juggling the dialogue around, experimenting and applying his clever form of execution to the original vision of the VHD art. The only female member of the Marcus Brothers' group is none other than the shapely "Leila", she is a head strong warrior who carries an instinctive sensitivity to "D"; but she is conveyed as a tragic woman who seeks comfort in others like D, knows they cannot give it & accepts the life she is given. It reminded me of the way Kawajiri first juggled a character relationship so well in Ninja Scroll. But that film & Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust are different movies. And while Ninja Scroll felt more concentrated and grittily sweeped, Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust is a more accomplished film which carries more confidence in it's environment. It's characters are sane & temperate, and they do serve the plot; but the plot concerns them as characters & not something else (Which is one of the main reasons why I enjoy Kawajiri's films, despite their often excessive content). Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust is also a film for the masses, and while it does utilize style and violence to it's advantage; those qualities do not overpower it's story of a tragic love story & a vampire hunter who knows neither pain or human emotion. And yet we obtain inclings of emotion from D here; he's presented as a fully rounded human character with mixed layers. Kawajiri gives D and the other characters a purpose for executing the plot. There are twists and turns which keep us guessing, but in the end they all leave us satisfied rather than lost. "Andrew Philot" does a good job as "D", lending a gruff yet sophisticated & handsome voice. Much of the humor is supplyed by D's companion "Left Hand", voiced by "Who's Line Is It Anyway's" Mike McShane; among many others like Cowboy Bebop & Ninja Scroll's own Wendee Lee, who always execute a great dubbing job. As an anime, this film is one of the first to be successfully theatrically released in the states to much avail; along with Rintaro's "Metropolis" & the "Oshii"-inspired effort "Jin-Roh". As a theatrical anime blockbuster, the movie delivers nicely but as a movie it surprises us with it's clever emotion & unusually elegant artwork. The very end of the film also leaves much to be appreciated, as Kawajiri's accomplished screenplay brings about a just ending which fills some of the voids left by the original version. Containing one of the greatest lines of dialogue in anime history since "Keiko Nobumoto's" glorious ending dialogue in Watanabe's Cowboy Bebop. As for the line itself, well, it's a treat for anime fans to hear by the end but I won't attempt to spoil it. You'll just have to see the film first like everyone else. Unlike many hardcore anime fans though. If you haven't seen the movie by now, it's perhaps fortunate that you didn't have to wait 2 years for it. The original verison while crude & plain, has been embraced by it's plethora of ardents. And while the new film "Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust" is no "Princess Mononoke", it's definatly no "Blood: The Last Vampire" either. I predict that in the years to come, this wil be the definitive version which fans will remember the most. Unlike them, I just remember the very last line of dialogue spoken by "Left Hand". I suppose "D's" last line comes in a close second. Click Here To See Overview! |
