This month marks the release of Appleseed, a movie adaptation of a Shirow Masamune Magnga. I own part of this series, and so I was looking forward to this release. However, I had my reservations. This release of the story was done using CG animation instead of the traditional sketch style. I was hoping that this wouldn’t end up sinking the story. However, this was exactly what happened.

Appleseed takes place in one of those bleak futures where everyone has nuked everyone else, and so there are a few remaining “Utopian” cities untouched by the ravages of war. Deunan Knute is a legendary soldier who simply fights for survival in one of the areas of wreckage surrounding Olympus, the Utopia of the Bioroids. Bioroids are clones that have all the strengths of humans, but their emotions are suppressed, and their reproductive systems have been deactivated. Because of this, their cells do not reproduce normally, and they have to have “Life Extension Treatments” in order to refresh their bodies and keep the threat of instant aging away. If a Bioroid misses a treatment, he or she will age at an alarming rate until his or her death. However, not all like this setup. When a terrorist attack destroys the Bioroid labs, the possibility for Life Extention is eliminated, and the Bioroids are doomed. Only one thing can save them- the Appleseed- a small bit of data that can be used to restore the reproductive system of the Bioroids. Deunan is sent to retrieve this “Appleseed,” but she wonders if it’s truly the right thing to do.

Appleseed is a beautiful film, no doubt about that, but that beauty seems to have overshadowed the story itself. Shirow Masamune is the creator of Ghost in the Shell, one of the best Anime titles I’ve ever watched. However, this movie was made into more of an action title instead of the tale it originally was. I believe that when Anime is given the beautiful veneer of a CG animation, it loses its heart, and the graphics sort of drown out the story itself. I would suggest it to anyone who’s looking for a good action film, but if you’re expecting something like Shirow Masamune’s other works, this isn’t the film.

Once again, feel free to post comments. Until next time…