Metropolis

Metropolis looks promising and exciting. I had the completely false notion before watching it that it was along the lines of Akira and Ghost in the Shell. It's considerably more cartoony than that, and yet it never seems to harbour any clear style, going from Astroboy cuteness to full-on anime. I don't think it's the masterpiece it has largely been hyped at, but it's far from a bad film either. It's definitely watchable and enjoyable, but it lacks a right-on identity. It tries to be a lot of things at once, and thus misses most of those marks.

The city is almost a character in itself; there are so many places we see in it, it's clear a lot of vision was behind this movie. The plot is a little too loose, though. It involves a cruel despot - Duke Red of the Marduks - seizing power in the midst of a rebellion by the oppressed lower class, who don't appreciate robots taking their jobs. Japanese detective Shunshaku Ban and his nephew Kenichi stumble into this plot and before long, Kenichi is on the run with a power-mad and robot-hating Marduk, Rock, out to get him and the girl robot Tima, whom Kenichi and his uncle save from a mad scientist's burning lab. There is a lot of dialogue and slow pan scenes that make everything more drawn-out than it really has to.

I can't decide what to make of this movie's vision. I can't tell what kind of artistic direction it was trying to take, cutesy or realistic. It often fuses the two, and not always to a pleasing result, sadly. The dialogue is often very stiff, too, and explains way too much to the audience than necessary. Three times in the film, we are told that robots can't leave their zones. Admittedly, a lot of the bad dialogue can be traced to the dubbing. The Japanese dialogue and the English dub quite differentiate on more than one occasion (this is evidenced by the English subtitles, even with the dub selected). Even if you're Russian, I would skip the Russian language track, as they didn't even bother to drown out the English dub before pasting it on top. Very sloppy work, as far as I'm concerned. But back to the film.

It has to be said that there are a lot of problems with the direction. The leader of the human rebellion talks about their poor living conditions. Then why not show it? A coup happens, and instead of an epic animated scene, we are shown a lot of old World War photos with a lot of special effects to give the impression of something happening. Instead of showing us what it really means to live in Metropolis, we're told everything. The viewer is a tourist, not an inhabitant of the film, which makes it feel very vague. The story's well thought-out, but the audience aren't drawn into it as well as they could have been. It doesn't make sense how the characters keep running into each other in this supposedly huge city, either, and it doesn't seem to terribly matter when characters are shot at. Another grave plot error is that the movie doesn't take a stand with or against robots, as to whether they're supposed to have personality or not. There is a 'tragic' death scene where a robot detective is shot, but because he has no personality, I can't tell if I'm supposed to feel sad or not.

Don't get me wrong, this movie has its good moments, but most of those occur in the last thirty minutes of the film, when Shunsaku Ban finally takes matters into his own hands, and stopping Duke Red becomes a matter of life and death... until Tima fulfils her "true destiny". The resolve is as vague as the character approach, but hey, it wasn't an astounding movie to begin with. Metropolis isn't astounding. It's a good film, but far from wonderful. An interesting cinematic experiment, it still needed its plot tightened up, because it all feels unnecessarily long. Most of all, though, it needed a clear artistic direction.

Awesome movie, great visuals and color. Plot and dialogue aren't the best, but if you want the coolest looking anime ever, this is it. Totally worth the [...] bucks or whatever I paid for it.

actually, i couldn't get what i wanted bacause a seller misunderstood what i wanted. however, he dealt with this problem well. i appreciate him and hopefully this nvever happen again.

Metropolis is one of the more interesting animes I have seen, and I was very pleased that it was made.
I've gotten tired of all the self important and slow moving animes(Jin Roh), or the female friendly, melodramatic animes(take your pick) that have seemed to dominate the scene in recent times.
Not to say that Metropolis is some kind of manly gorefest(Ninja Scroll). However, despite it's childish looks(the film is designed after Tezuka's art style), the film has a mature feel to it, and never dips into melodrama.
The animation is genuinely beautiful, with a mix of 2D and 3D. The 3D looks a little dated, but still looks nice overall. The style may throw some people off. It basically has an Astro Boy look to it.
The story is well done, with a screenplay by Akira's Katsuhiro Otomo. It's basically the "man vs. robot" theme we have seen many times before, but it's executed quite well here. The characters are interesting and relatable, and the world is quite beautiful and fleshed out.
It also has a moving ending, which was quite unique, due to the odd choice of music played throughout the climax(you'll see).
Metropolis is one of the last animes that really impressed me, and I would recommend it to anyone who loves animation with a mature story, and not a bunch of melodrama and flash.

Metropolis does not go beyond the average sci fi movie, but it's enjoyable. And there's something about the style that I like. It's strange story and climax makes me want to see it again.

Metropolis is based off of Osamu Tezuka's manga of the same name, and the film is directed by long-time Mushi Productions staff member Rintaro. The script was written by Katsuhiro Otomo, who was the creator of Akira.

Metropolis blends traditional cel animation with 3D animation, and the filmmakers did a fantastic job at melding the two animation styles. This is a case where the combination of the two animation styles really helped to define the futuristic world that is portrayed in the film. Also, when I watched the film, I could tell that Fritz Lang's classic science fiction film Metropolis had an influence on this film.

The DVD pressing I watched of Metropolis came with a second 3" DVD that contained all the special features. The first special feature on the 3" DVD is a photo gallery, which includes model sheets, a 33-minute special about the making of Metropolis, filmographies for Rintaro and Osamu Tezuka, a text-only history of Metropolis, animation comparisons, and an eight-minute interview with Rintaro and Katsuhiro Otomo.

Metropolis is a very well-done film, and you can tell that the animators went to great lengths to preserve Osamu Tezuka's original character designs. The soundtrack for the film (which sounds a lot like New Orleans jazz) really helps evoke a certain ambience to the film. While the city itself may look futuristic, the score and the character design evoke the "Roaring Twenties." And I think this melding of the past with the future really adds a layer to this film.

The audience who would have the greatest appreciation for the film would be older teenagers and adults. This film should really be in the DVD library of almost any anime fan.

I recently did a review for this film that I had to delete. I hadn't seen the movie in years when I wrote it. After praising "Metropolis" as "one of the most visually beautiful movies ever made in the entire history of cinema. Period. Much more impressive than Fritz Lang's "Metropolis" which is the mother of all sci-fi eyeball dazzling visual extravaganzas" - I went back and watched it.

I guess the CGI and traditional animation combo really impressed me a few years ago. Lol. First off so many films have come along since that are much more impressive and secondly, while comparing this "Metropolis" to Fritz Lang's is unavoidable and not entirely without merit, it's still wrongheaded to imply the cartoon is simply superior. Wrong because it isn't superior and because the animation style of a 21st century cartoon and the visual effects of a sci-fi classic made in the 1920s are apples and oranges.

I originally said this and still agree: All sci-fi film portraits of future civilizations are compared, especially those set in all encompassing, vast, cityscapes. So, of coarse, upon seeing this film most will recall Lang's vision, which is obviously an influence here -an inspiration for central plot elements maybe more than visual style, but also "Blade Runner" and "Akira".

But there is a serious problem with the animation that has been pointed out by many reviews, just as it was when I watched the movie with friends. That of coarse is the character design. I attempted to appreciate them as perhaps throwbacks to an old 1920s style, perhaps in fitting with some of the Art Deco architectural elements as well as the terribly annoying Dixieland jazz playing throughout the movie. But they are too goofy with their round noses (well one is a giant beak), huge eyes, bulbous feet, and one dimentional appearance.

And guess what? Unfortunately the story is muddled and characters underdeveloped. Heh, how often is that the case? I'm tellin' ya brother. When it all comes together you have GOLD --You have cinematic magic-- a new classic on your hands. But when it doesn't, it just doesn't, and you can't pretend otherwise. I do dig the political intrigue and drama involved in the portrait of a corrupt plutocracy and the chaos and disaster that ensues. It's a wild, cheesy, bumpy ride.

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So, after seeing this "Metropolis" again, I liked it less. It's even more cheesy and annoying than I first recalled and the CGI infused picture less impressive. Oh, and I couldn't stand Duke Red's adopted son, Rock, at all. One of the least sympathetic little pricks I have ever seen in a movie.

While anyone can harp about the character designs not matching up with the background, its more important to apreciate what this anime did deliver, and that would be overall aesthetic quality. I my self actualy wanted a more expanded version of Metropolis even after I finished watching it, which is more than I could say for most movies. Im aware that the manga does exist and is problaly better, but in many cases the graphic novel or novel in general is always prefered by audiences who have actualy read them. For example there are many discreptincy's between Jurassic Park and Micheal Crichton's Novel, including The Lost world. were the books as good as the movies? at least in this case not quite. The only redeming factor of the movie was the sheer aesthetic value and suspense, I have never seen anything so realistic, especialy considering how increadibly limited CG technology was back in the early 90's. Anyways if you like quality work metropolis is for you. Finaly I would like to point out that the character designs are made to look like Osamu Tezuka's characters, while he himself never wanted this particular work to become an anime for reasons unknown I still think it was a good idea to get it out there.

Apparently everyone else loved it... but I hated it... (Well hate is strong... I didn't HATE it per se...)

Most of the reviews seem to rely heavily on the historical significance of this anime. No doubting that the original artist, and the fact that this was one of the earliest anime films to make significant use of 3D makes for a powerful history but the history doesn't make this piece timeless... the story should make this work timeless... and to be honest this story and story telling is far from timeless IMHO.

I had really high expectations for this one based on the reviews here... apparently I'm not with the crowd on this one...

The 3D looks really dated in Metropolis. Compare that to the still fresh 3D look in Blue Submarine No.6 (which was done 3 years before Metropolis, now 10 years old) and you can't help but be disappointed in the look of the film.

That and I guess I really don't like the stylization of the characters... the cover demonstrates a more contemporary style for characters... but characters in the entire film have a very VERY retro look... it is a bit misleading.

The pacing of this film really disappointed me, it was very predictable... I actually fell asleep for a few minutes at one point while watching this... and you could tell some sequences served very little purpose other than trying to increase the pace of the film without using much substance... (Honestly who couldn't see them crashing on that pedi-cab as soon as you realized what they were on??? really weak... )

The love story flounders too... I didn't feel the least bit emotional when tragedy struck at the end. Good love stories rip your heart out when one part of the pair is torn away from the other... In this case... it was like, "OK... what is next?"

The concept is cliche'.
The story telling lacks anything that grips you.
The protagonist and antagonist don't play against each other well. Or at least don't demonstrate suitable contrast to be meaningful or impact-full.

Over all this was a really disappointing purchase.

The packaging is questionable too:
The cardboard case the DVDs come in has a clear plastic frame on the inside that the disks sit on. Under the disk is the funky thing they stick in cds and dvds that triggers an alarm if someone walks out of the store without paying... I normally have no issue with this alarm device because I remove them from items I purchase... however... it is UNDER the plastic so their is no way to remove them withouth destroying the package, AND, they completely ruin, what would otherwise be a fine looking case interior. :(

And what is with the little bitty second disk?

This might sound a bit harsh amidst all these positive reviews... but...

I had hoped to be moved by this, but I didn't feel a thing.

It's in my collection but not a favorite.

I wouldn't buy it again if I lost my copy.

In the winter of 1921 poet Hirato Renkicki, the first Japanese Futurist, distributed the first Japanese Futurist Manifesto to the people in Hibiya Park. To him the city had become a motor and the core of the city was dynamo-electric. The city was a system and the people were part of the system. This had become a very common idea, not only in Asia but also in Europe. This was not the first time Japan had been exposed to futurism but it was the first to take on a Japanese feel. It almost became anti-human, seeing flesh as weak and full of decay. This was before Fritz Lang's Metropolis and the ideas produced by it would fuel Japan's development and culture, from the war with the US to the Postwar era.
The manga Metropolis, and the movie based on it, is a protest against such thinking. The city is for the people, the people are not there for the city. The heart of the city should be the human heart, with all the flaws and merits that goes with it. This is NOT just a copy of another film, with the message of labor or the tragic romance, depending on which version you happened to have seen, but it does share some of the same ideas. But these ideas traveled a different pathway and should be judged and enjoyed without comparing them to others. In the Lang version the female robot is hated. In this version the female robot is not hated, not by everyone, and there is a chance that mankind and the robots and the machines may yet learn how to live in a society made for everybody and everything.
A must for any anime or sci-fi library.

This is my favorite film of all time, so I was wondering what people who gave it one star would have to say. The two most prominent complaints were an outdated style of animation and overdone storyline. There is a simple and reasonable explanation. This is based of elements from Metropolis by Fritz Lang and Osamu Tezuka's Metropolis manga. The animation style mimics his artwork, giving it a retro feel. Any other type would change the film's purpose and feel so drasticly that it would not be the same film at all. It is shocking to see characters drawn so inocently in the situations they encounter in this movie. The overdone storyline? THIS IS A REMAKE. A loose one, but still. You shouldn't expect anything too original, but this film delivers a storyline that is similar to many others, but better. This is a brilliant film with no flaws.

Metropolis is an astounding artistic achievement that exemplifies the incredible power of animation at its best. High atop the impossibly vast city of Metropolis--with its towering columns, intricately woven golden pipes, and myriad staircases--the beak-nosed tyrant, Duke Red, has constructed an awesome weapon known as the Ziggurat. Within this colossal skyscraper stands an empty throne; a throne the maniacal Duke plans to fill with the android clone of his deceased daughter. He's hired genius robot designer, Dr. Laughton, to create the synthetic human masterpiece, Tima (voiced by Rebecca Forstadt, Minmei from Robotech). Duke Red's unappreciated adoptive son, Rock (head of a gang of robot-hunting vigilantes called the Marduk), vows to destroy the lovely curly-haired machine and prevent his father from giving control of the Ziggurat--and therefore the entire world--to a "mechanical puppet." Amidst the ensuing mayhem of explosions and flames, Tima is lost. She is rescued by Detective Shunsaku Ban's Astro Boy look-alike nephew, Kenichi (voiced by Brianne Siddall, Jim Hawking from Outlaw Star). Through the sprawling, neon-tinged streets of the many-zoned Metropolis, Kenichi and Tima flee the relentless gunfire of the insanely jealous Marduk leader, as countless innocent robots are slaughtered before their large, sparkling eyes. It all culminates in an unforgettable climax of emotion and chaos that ranks among the greatest scenes in cinematic history.
Osamu Tezuka's Metropolis comes to you in a lavishly illustrated folding cardboard case (rather than the more convenient standard plastic keep case). Included along with the movie disc is a miniature DVD with special features, including a gallery of model sheets, animation comparisons, filmographies, interviews with Rintaro and Katsuhiro Otomo, and the `Making of Metropolis' Animax special. No DVD collection should be without this enthralling tour de force of animated brilliance!

THE MOST MOVING ANIMATED MOVIE I HAVE SEEN IN MY 30 YEARS.

BEAUTIFUL!!!!

The first thing I'd like to do is just clear up a few things that negative reviews have been hooked on and maybe shed a bit of clarity on what is being shown in the movie.

-Origins : It comes from a manga written by Osamu Tezuka, the founder of anime, and is loosely based on that. It borrows themes from the black and white movie "Metropolis" as well but when you watch it, its best just to let the movie unfold itself instead of you forcing it to fit any particular mold.
-The animation : There are a lot of different animation choices moving around here. you have the deco-style buildings which jut across the skyline of metropolis, the astro-boy style human beings with large eyes and exagerated features (eyes, arms, noses), and then the cyberpunk innards of the city, as well as the much more "real" and dirty areas beneath the city. the humans are MEANT to stand out against the deco, everything isn't supposed to fit neatly together in a single style. in the movie this is shown in the plot; the elite humans (duke red, the president, etc), common people, the robots, and the city all are at odds with each other. Its not supposed to be hyper-realistic, the styles chosen are deliberate and invoke specific contrasts.
-Plot : At times things trip and fall, but I think part of the incongruity is on purpose. The chaos and sort of non-sequiter plot lines are actually just intended to encase the story of 1)humanity's fear of the 'other' 2)Tima and Kenichi. Except for Tima, the other characters just kind of putter out (aside from Luke, or Rock in the U.S. version) but her story was fantastically strong when placed within the struggle of humanity (with its own inner turmoil) and the servants they created.

In conclusion, this movie is just saturated in AMAZING visuals and great jazzy music (I couldn't think of a more appropriate use of "I cant stop loving you" by Ray Charles at the end), and it contains a story of a search for a 'self' within the fantastical world of Metropolis. Characters broaden and shrink the scope of where they place themselves here, yet everyone lands in own unique niche. But for the staleness of character development/bogged plot I drop half a star.

4.5/5 - A must see, for movie fans with open eyes.

I was first attracted to buying this DVD while watching the "Previews" section added onto the last disk of the 2004 Astro Boy anime DVD series I bought from Amazon this year. When I saw the animation quality of Metropolis, I wanted to see more.

In a nutshell, here's how this film plays out, in parallel to Astro Boy, under Osamu Tezuka's direction:

The Duke loses his daughter, Tinma; just like Dr. Tenma loses his son Tobio in Astro Boy. Both men have robots built to replace their lost children, except in Metropolis, Duke's adopted son, Rock, detains the Duke and his robot daughter from meeting each other; whereas Astro meets his father from the moment he's born. Rock does this simply because Tinma, the Duke's robot daughter, is to rule on the throne of the earth as a robot, over humans and robots. Sounds allot like Astro Boy to me whose job is to bring peace between humans and robots as a mighty peace ruler. Rock feels only a human should sit on the throne of the earth; with that human being his adopted father, who Rock loves dearly we learn.

Rock first kills the doctor who created Tinma, as well as tries to kill Tinma before she awakens, via his attack on the robot factory, but Tinma survives and is aided by a boy who is working alongside a character that looks just like Daddy Mustache in the Astro Boy series. This Daddy Mustache "look alike" is a detective sent from Tokyo to investigate the whole affair.

In the end, Osamua introduces a different twist from the Astro Boy premise. Where with Astro Boy, he shows the king of robots bridging the gap between humans and robots, in this film he shows what happens when that does not happen, with Tinma assuming the throne and the desire to destroy all humans. Rock, who you might think is bad in the beginning, is really one of the good guys and gives his life to save all of humanity. Lots of pathos in the end and a certain level of violence in this film in terms of some characters being killed along the way.

The story is very good and more or less asks the question; "what if robots or IA did take control of the world and tried to destroy mankind. How would mankind survive." We've seen this plot played out in films like Robo cop, The Terminator and as recent as I-Robot; so the idea isn't new in filmaking. Well, mankind does survive, but I won't tell you how or I'll spoil the explosive ending for you if you purchase this film and watch it.

The animation alone is well worth the price of admission and it still has a good story plot, though not new. It does come with a small DVD disk with lots of feature behind the scene stuff, but its all in Japanese with no english translation. This was a let down, which is why I gave this four stars. The packaging is great. No problems with the disks. Delivery was timely. No complaints.

Just a quick note, before I get to the review: The packaging is a fold-out style case with a regular DVD (left; main features) and a mini-DVD (right; special features). I'm not sure why the studio opted for the mini-DVD for special features, rather than a standard DVD... I was a bit surprised. I'm hoping it won't cause issues, as I've never used a mini-DVD before in any of my players (including the DVD-changer). But generally all the packaging and discs are attractive and functional.

I'll include a review of the content (audio/video/features) once I get around to watching it in the next day or two. But I've heard very good things, so I'll give it a 5-star rating.

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Addendum (5-6-07):
Okay, finished watching it. The visuals were interesting, video quality and audio quality were good. The ending was typical of an anime, not entirely satisfying. I don't know if that's good/bad/other. Generally, if you like anime, and good visuals you'll like this movie. Granted, the plot was perhaps a bit slow in places, and not entirely satisfying (ending). But still, it's a decent flick. HAven't watched the special features yet, but I assume tehy'll be decent and on par with other movie/anime special features. So, overall, I'd say it's worth purchasing.

Okay this is an okay movie, but only because of the story which was borrowed. The animation isn't that good. Lets not forget the German movie maker Fritz Lang orginally created this whole idea back in 1927. Lang's black and white silent movie (except for music) was far ahead of it's time. Considering he introduced a female robot that was humanistic in a industrialized society of workers that worked like robots his ideas were quite innovative. Just go look at the original 1927 Metropolis movie. I don't have any trouble recognizing the remake of a good thing, I just don't like the idea of reviewers acting like Osamu Tezuka's 1949 manga was the original storyline. He either obviously shamelessly borrowed the idea from Fritz Lang or people are just not giving credit as they should to the original Metropolis creator Fritz Lang.

being a fan of the original metropolis, i decided to check this one out. i found it pretty disappointing, the reviewer who noted the incongruity of "i can't stop loving you" accompanying the finale describes only one moment out of this film of bad ideas. no new interpretations of what it is to be human, to be a member of society... simply the old standby: boy meets cute robot, then everything goes promptly to hell. do yourself a favor and check out the original silent metropolis. the reason this movie borrows so heavily is because it was ahead of its time.

This is one of the few movies that I have turned off after only minutes of watching. Excuse me... I'm sorry... I did fast forward through it a bit.

Really, what can I say about this movie. This is NOT anime by the way. There may be some elements of anime in there but this is closer to an old kids cartoon (don't insult Disney by comparing these characters to Disney's) by the way the characters are drawn (the backgrounds are the only inspired artwork here). It's like the animators just wanted to get this horrid movie over with as quickly as possible so they drew the simplest characters that they could get away with. It's quite insulting after reading how "cutting edge" the animation is. If you mean by slitting my wrists then I can understand.

Another one of the movie's cheap tricks is the use of jazz music. Okay now, jazz has it's place... but as the opening music to a "cutting edge" anime film then it is nauseating. No, I shouldn't just generalize jazz this way but it's as if the film makers had no other music to choose from but "Hey we got this free jazz CD in the mail! Let's throw that in the movie!!" Yet another scam.

I'm guessing this is one of those obligatory movies that had to be made because some big name here and a big name over there owed some other big name a favor and had to make a movie. This is just a bad film all around, not just bad anime. I am pretty intuitive and I rarely just give up on movies after a few minutes of watching. So please trust me that I am being as fair as I can! Don't be fooled by the Cowboy Bebop preview as I was (by the way... no inappropriate Jazz or long views of the simplistic characters in the preview... hmmm I wonder why!)

You may enjoy this movie. I heard the entire plot and character development are extremely boring but if you are willing to give it a try you can find my copy of Metropolis in the dumpster outside of my apartment. Better hurry! I think the garbage man comes tonight!

Personally, I don't know about the 1927 version made by Fritz Lang, but Ozamu Tezuka's adaptation of Metropolis seems to be quite outstanding.

You want breathtaking visuals? Metropolis has 'em. While it's nothing that you've probably never seen, the CGI used in this film does its job well, and the animation itself is beautiful. Even the DVD cover art, featuring 3 poster designs. The other reviews argue against a confusing plot, but the storyline presented here-about a futuristic city where humans and robots share an uneasy coexistence-is well organized and stays on course without skipping a beat. The one flaw found here is that the characters could've been developed better. The only character that seems to develop is the robot girl Tima, as she learns the ways of the world and as she searches for her true identity.

Also, Tezuka's kiddy character designs take a little getting used to. Big eyes and short mouths are a staple of anime and some can surely handle the big noses of characters like Duke Red. But many of them have overgrown forearms and shins that make them look like Popeye or MegaMan rejects.

Near the movie's end, they play Ray Charles' "I Can't Stop Loving You" just as the world of Metropolis comes crashing down (quite literally). While this part seems kind of weird, it doesn't really spoil anything. On the contrary, the song is consistent with what the main character, Kenichi, feels for Tima in his futile attempt to rescue her from a horrible fate. Truly a classic tale re-imagined, Metropolis is an anime film that's worth its weight in gold (or screws). The DVD itself could've gotten a perfect score, but I didn't get to view the extras.

I recommened viewing or renting this before you buy it. This is one of those anime movies you either love or hate because they try packing so much into so little time. If you believe the director succeeds, then it is indeed a wonderful experience worthy of several repeat viewings. If believe he tried to do too much and failed (like me), it is merely OK, not worth actually buying.

Animation -- This is a confused melange between detailed disneyesque Japanimation and computer generated modern styles. The blending isn't well orchestrated in my opinion, but the details are rich and numerous. If you haven't seem much anime, it will blow you away, but if you have then you will have seen better.

Plot -- Simplistic. If you enjoy symbolism, it may be very moving. Little character developement, not much action, and an ending I didn't like. It was written a long time ago and adapted into an anime movie, losing quite a bit in the carry-over.

Audio -- Like jazz? If you do then you'll love it; if you don't you'll find it uninspired and sometimes inappropriate.

Metropolis is something of a slow-starter. Despite the fact that I was totally blown away by the impressive visuals from the beginning, I had a difficult time getting through the first ten minutes or so. There was a lot of political talk regarding robot labor and what-not, all of which I found to be very boring.

The pace and the story picks up after the murder of Dr. Laughton. Tima awakens and is saved by Kenichi, Rock finds out and wastes no time in trying to kill them every step of the way. The chase spans Metropolis' colorful city streets as well as the dark, dank sewers underneath. Tima and Kenichi are given ample opportunities to bond and develop feelings for each other while on the run, and yet even so I could not feel for them as much as I was supposed to. I believe this can be attributed to the fact that character development was lacking for most part.

Among all the characters, I felt the most for Pero and Fifi, both of who are robots who don't get too much screentime. Pero is hired by Shunsaku and Kenichi to accompany them around the city, and Fifi helps Tima and Kenichi get away from Rock. The only human character I found interesting enough to feel anything for was Rock. Evil bastard that he is, he gave me the impression that he grew up with all the wrong values and I could actually understand what propelled him. All the others seemed to be there just to move the plot along -- Kenichi is there to help Tima evade her pursuers for a time, Shunsaku serendipitously appears to save whoever needs to be saved, etc.

The audio-visual aspect is where this movie truly shines. I was awestruck by the superbly rendered 3D backdrops -- from the sprawling cityscape to the insides of the Ziggurat. More remarkable was the fact that the two-dimensional characters manage to blend in flawlessly with the whole scenario. Watching Metropolis in full DTS mode entreated me to a stunning earful as well. The music, as well as the sound effects and dialogues, were so crisp and clear that it was like I was in the middle of Metropolis myself. I almost had shivers when they started playing the 50's hit "I Can't Stop Loving You" amidst the destruction and havoc in the last part, it was sheer irony and yet the song depicted the prevailing sentiments perfectly. The English dubbing is nicely done as well.

Metropolis is altogether a good film, but as I've mentioned earlier, the characters seemed to exist solely for the story's convenience and I found it difficult to like them. There was just something missing, something that holds me back from extolling its greatness. It was well worth watching though and I don't regret picking it up.

The best Anime is completely origonal, and to say that this is anything less is an understatement. This is not Gundam or powerball Z. It is however a deep emotional story that a US Studio would never even think about producing. The closest thing is probably the Matrix series.

I have to say that this probably one of the most unusual and haunting pieces of film-making I've seen, animated or otherwise...a film whose emotional impact is indelibile, a compelling, deeply disturbing film which is impossible to forget and from which it is impossible to look away.
The convoluted plot is difficult to follow and and even harder to describe. It takes place in a dystopian future, where a new "Ziggurat" has been completed as a symbol of human ingenuity and and scientific progress (the "Ziggurat" is actually a complex metaphor for the ill-fated Tower of Babel).
As the film begins, a celebration is being held in honor of the Ziggurat's completion. In the midst of the celebration, however, a robot is killed by the adopted son of party leader Duke Red. Later it is revealed that Duke Red is using the assitance of a mad scientist named Laughton to create a robot girl who will compensate for his dead daughter and rule the world from a throne atop the Ziggurat.
Soon after, a detective comes to Metropolis from Japan, along with his son, to investigate the whereabouts of the shady doctor Laughton. Escorted by a robot guide, they travel below the city and discover the secrets behind Duke Red's sinister project.
Duke Red's malevolent son, however, is envious of the robot girl, and destroys the complex, which burns to the ground. The detective's son and the robot girl escape, which provides a few toughing scenes where they try to communicate. They are briefly separated, during which time the robot girl is doggedly by Duke Red's deranged son who wants to prevent her from assuming the throne. She, of course, knows nothing of this.
The movie culminates in a remarkable confrontation between all of the central characters in the story...when the robot girl Tima is finally connected to the throne, she connects to the supercomputer and becomes a malevolent weapon.
The detective's son Kenichi rescues her, though she is now partially destroyed and half-conscious. They tussle on the balustrades while Duke Red's son destroy's the Ziggurat by pressing the self-destruct button and Ray Charles "Can't stop loving you" plays in the background in a scene reminiscent of the ending of "Dr. Strangelove". Kenichi tries to reconnect to the the robot girl, and their is a momentary flicker of recognition in her eyes as "remembers" their first encounter before he lets go of her sleeve and she falls to the ruins below.
The plot is compelling enough, but is the beauteous images in this movie which make it worth watching. Hovering somewhere between hallucinatory fantasy and reality, they compel us to keep watching and connect with our deepest emotions.

Para todos aquellos que hablan espaýol, dejenme contarles un poco. Basicamente trata la historia de una ciudad llamada Metropolis, donde hay gente con deseos de conquistar al mundo. La historia se centra basicamente en 5 personajes : el detective Shunsaku Ban, su sobrino Kenichi, el ambicioso Duque Rojo (Red Duke), su hijo adoptivo Rock y el personaje central que es la robot (aunque ella no lo sepa) Tima. La grafica es una mezcla curiosa. El diseýo de los personajes es muy estilo anime mas clasico (no como Dragon Ball) mezclado en ocasiones con fondos 3D y pedazos de pelicula real, como un fondo donde se ve una pecera (y es una pecera tal cual como la de un acuario de la vida real). Sin duda recomiendo este anime.

The animation blew me away. and the story had amazing science fiction to it

I'm not very good at wording things but I would like to comment on Metropolis.

I'll let the other reviews speak for the storyline and plot. I did like it and will watch it again. What I would like to do is comment on the negative views of the character animation.

The characters do have a somewhat Astro-Boy appearance but the smoothness of movement far surpasses that of Astro Boy. It is certainly leagues beyond the likes of Yu-GI-Oh, Digimon, Pokemon, or any American Saturday morning cartoon or "cheap 80's drawing."

What you do have is a very old style of character design with excellent motion and color which I think is beautiful especially because of it's old look. I think it works well with the computer animation. For some reason the 1939 animated film Gulliver's Travel comes to mind. The movement is not perfect but it is very well done.

The film is NOT for you if you think anything less than Skrek or Toy Story is archaic or behind the times and not worth watching. This film is NOT for you if you hold opinions like the characters "look like they were from "a freakin Rodger Rabbit" or a dull and boring character design that went out with the 30's.

This film IS for you if you do appreciate the dying art form of great cell animation like Gulliver's Travels, Disney's Snow White, old Popeye or the old Warner Bros. cartoons.

I think it is sad that hand drawn animation is a dying art form. Disney has decided not to do anything from now on unless it is completely computerized and it seems we will be stuck with either really bad stuff like Yu-Gi-Oh and Pokemon or completely hands off computer animation. It is sad that there will be no more great hand drawn stuff like Disney's Pinnochio.

If you think that Metropolis is an animated remake of the classic, you would be half right. There is the futuristic city that was conceived out of neo-gothic visions of the 1940's. There is the revolt of the robots after their female super-robot becomes sentient. There is the crazy robot builder and the businessman politician who seeks to control the city. There is the above ground/below ground caste system, but this vision by Rintaro is marred by several things.

In a futuristic city (just called Metropolis), a leader of industry, known as Duke Red (self appointed royalty, I'm sure) has created a magnificent set of buildings known as the Ziggeraut. The only problem is that no one knows what it does. Duke has an "adopted son" named Rock, who is in charge of the Marduks, an anti-robot security force, not unlike the Blade Runners of Ridley Scott's vision. He learns that his father has created a robot called Tima who will take over the whole city of Metropolis. Tima is a creation of Dr. Laughton, a "mad scientist" who draws Tima off a picture of his own daughter and Rock, in his Anti-robot crazes kills the doctor who helping scheme this insidious idea. Rock believes that Duke Red should take over the throne. At the same time, a private investigator arrives from Japan and with the aid of a robot friend, saves Tima before Rock can burn her to death. This leads to a chase throughout the divided city, where the PI's nephew Kenichi and Tima meet an underground movement that plans a revolt to take back the city from the "Thinkers"--referencing the 1927 movie. At the same time, when it is known that Tima is still functioning, Duke Red initates a coup-de-tat and takes control of the city and plans to seat Tima in the seat of power.

The animation and detail of the city is nearly flawless. The neo-gothic city is shown in minute detail and vibrant colors, from the New York inspired skyscrapers to the flying machines that dot the cityscape. The underground is also given great care and the the city core power unit is very well done. The music, while unusual, works for me. Especially the end scene when Rock, who has some type of psychological father-son issues, sets off a chain of events that destroys the ziggeraut is accompanied masterfully by Ray Charles' "I can't stop loving you". Well done.

However, the character animation is weak and shows that Japanese animators may not have improved from the old "astro-boy" days. The male characters are mostly frumpy and exagerrated (like Red's nose) and seem out of place with the hyper-real city skyline. The story is also confusing to some degree and plot holes are never revealed. Why is the Detective looking for the Doctor? Why does Duke Red want Tima as the figurehead of the Zigguraut? What does an EM disruptor have to do with the plot of the movie? There are other things, but there is only so much space.

The writing is also uninvolving. I was never attached to any one character and they really did not have much to say. Even though this film had the touches of Akira (Otomo scripted the movie), it falls flat with it's script. The script and whole plotline is also very shallow in concept and meaning, as opposed to Akira and "Ghost in the Shell"--one of the best movies ever that discusses the "at what point do robots become human?" story that is also discussed in movies like AI and Blade Runner.

For a first time anime watcher, this may enough fare to pursue other titles, but for the experienced Manga fan, Metropolis is too much style with nearly no substance.....Rating: C+

This movie has an spectacular animation. no doubt in it and besides, they have obviously used all of their imagination in it. but in my opinion, using too much imagination and try to make something different has made some scenes very ridicolous. for example, All of the labor robots in the movie are ridiculous. and fire fighter robots, oh my god! for a few seconds I felt that I'm a fool watchin 3 years old kids cartoon! character design and development is crude too! With all the respect I think japanese people better not include themselves in other communities for saying that we are humans too! we know that they are humans not animals! but what's the point that we saw in every japanese movie a jap hero or detective between whites? they better make movies like akira in only japanese community and use their heroes there!