Without
question, METROPOLIS ($28) is one of the most visually spectacular
animes ever produced. The images are sometimes dizzyingly beautiful to
look at, making this film a treat for any fan of anime or animation in
general. Thematically similar to the 1927 Fritz Lang classic of the same
name, this METROPOLIS features characters whose designs and motivations
clearly come from the world of anime. Set in the future, METROPOLIS
is the story of a multi-tiered society, whose distinctions are drawn along
class lines. Just as the inhabitants of this Metropolis are celebrating
the completion of the Ziggurat- a superb tower that will serve as the
city’s crowning achievement, a detective from outside the city comes in
search of a scientist whose work has gone beyond the boundaries of the
law.
However,
as it turns out, the scientist has been hired by Duke Red, one of the
city’s most powerful men, to build a super robot named Tima that looks
exactly like Duke’s dead daughter. When the Duke’s adopted son Rock learns
of the Robot, he kills the scientist and tries to destroy Tima. However,
Tima is rescued by Kenichi, the nephew of the detective that came to the
sprawling Metropolis in search of the outlaw scientist. Soon the two are
on the run from Rock, who will stop at nothing to destroy Tima. Unfortunately,
things don’t become any better for Kenichi and Tima when the two uncover
the true reason why the Duke had a robot created in the image of his daughter.
Columbia
TriStar Home Entertainment has made METROPOLIS available on DVD
in a 1.85:1 wide screen presentation that has been enhanced for 16:9 displays.
This is truly an excellent presentation of such a complexly beautiful
animated film. The image is as crisp and detailed as the animation can
be when transcribed to a video format. On a large wide screen display,
METROPOLIS is indeed an impressive looking DVD. The element used
to for the transfer is free from flaws, with a bit of noticeable grain
being the only reminder that METROPOLIS originated on film. Colors
are rich and vividly rendered with no signs of chroma noise or smearing.
Blacks are pure and the picture has very clean contrast. Image depth is
hard to quantify in animation, but the mixing of computer images with
traditional cell animation tends to give a flatter appearance to the 2D
images that are laid over 3D backgrounds. The cleanly authored dual layer
DVD does not display any overt signs of digital compression artifacts.
The
METROPOLIS features a goodly amount of soundtrack options. Two
versions of the original Japanese language track are present on the DVD
in 5.1 channel flavors of Dolby Digital and DTS. An English language dub
is also provided in the Dolby Digital 5.1 channel format. All of the digital
soundtrack options offer impressive sound; purists will stick with the
Japanese language, while those wanting to take in the film’s rich visuals,
without have to read subtitles will gravitate towards the English dub.
The
Japanese language tracks are superbly mixed, taking full advantage of
the discrete capabilities of the digital formats. Sounds emanate from
every channel and move effortlessly around the beautifully cohesive soundstage.
Voices are recorded with a full natural timbre, although judging the intelligibility
of the Japanese language is beyond by ability. The bass channel provides
the track with a very solid bottom that can give one’s subwoofer a respectable
workout. Music is beautifully integrated into the sound mix and is reproduced
with excellent fidelity. The DTS track has a warmer, richer sound than
its Dolby Digital counterpart, but the standard bearer sounds quite wonderful,
so don’t think you are being shortchanged if your system doesn’t offer
DTS. A French Dolby Surround soundtrack is also encoded onto the DVD,
as are English subtitles in two different translations. Other subtitle
options include French, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Korean, and Thai.
Full
motion video, animation and sound serve to enhance the DVD’s nicely designed
interactive menus. Through the menus on disc one, access is provided to
the standard scene selection and set up features, as well as a portion
of the supplement materials. Actually, disc one only contains a theatrical
trailer and bonus trailers. Disc two of the set is something of a novelty,
since it is the first three-inch DVD released into the market. Since the
smaller size lessens the disc’s capacity, this three-inch DVD is actually
dual layered to contain all of the supplemental material.
Starting
things off on disc two is the thirty-three minute Animax Special:
The Making of Metropolis. The program is a Japanese language equivalent
of the typical "making-of" featurettes that accompany many DVDs.
English subtitles are provided for the narration and interview segments,
which explain how METROPOLIS went from comic book form to motion
picture. Eight minutes of additional interviews have also been included
on the DVD and feature additional insights from the movie’s director and
screenwriter. A Photo Gallery has been included on the DVD
that is actually a still file of character and production design drawings.
The History of Metropolis is a text supplement that looks
at the work from its initial inception in print as a comic to its development
as a motion picture. Animation Comparisons utilize the multi-angle
feature to allow one to view animated segments from the film in various
stages of completion. Filmographies for the film’s director and story
creator close out disc two’s supplements.
METROPOLIS
is certainly one of the most visually arresting animes ever produced.
Columbia TriStar has produced a DVD that fully captures the beauty of
this animated film, as well as offering its equally stunning soundtrack
with amazing clarity. If you are an animation fan, Japanese or otherwise,
METROPOLIS is a film you will want to check out on DVD.
Without
question, METROPOLIS ($28) is one of the most visually spectacular
animes ever produced. The images are sometimes dizzyingly beautiful to
look at, making this film a treat for any fan of anime or animation in
general. Thematically similar to the 1927 Fritz Lang classic of the same
name, this METROPOLIS features characters whose designs and motivations
clearly come from the world of anime. Set in the future, METROPOLIS
is the story of a multi-tiered society, whose distinctions are drawn along
class lines. Just as the inhabitants of this Metropolis are celebrating
the completion of the Ziggurat- a superb tower that will serve as the
city’s crowning achievement, a detective from outside the city comes in
search of a scientist whose work has gone beyond the boundaries of the
law.
However,
as it turns out, the scientist has been hired by Duke Red, one of the
city’s most powerful men, to build a super robot named Tima that looks
exactly like Duke’s dead daughter. When the Duke’s adopted son Rock learns
of the Robot, he kills the scientist and tries to destroy Tima. However,
Tima is rescued by Kenichi, the nephew of the detective that came to the
sprawling Metropolis in search of the outlaw scientist. Soon the two are
on the run from Rock, who will stop at nothing to destroy Tima. Unfortunately,
things don’t become any better for Kenichi and Tima when the two uncover
the true reason why the Duke had a robot created in the image of his daughter.
Columbia
TriStar Home Entertainment has made METROPOLIS available on DVD
in a 1.85:1 wide screen presentation that has been enhanced for 16:9 displays.
This is truly an excellent presentation of such a complexly beautiful
animated film. The image is as crisp and detailed as the animation can
be when transcribed to a video format. On a large wide screen display,
METROPOLIS is indeed an impressive looking DVD. The element used
to for the transfer is free from flaws, with a bit of noticeable grain
being the only reminder that METROPOLIS originated on film. Colors
are rich and vividly rendered with no signs of chroma noise or smearing.
Blacks are pure and the picture has very clean contrast. Image depth is
hard to quantify in animation, but the mixing of computer images with
traditional cell animation tends to give a flatter appearance to the 2D
images that are laid over 3D backgrounds. The cleanly authored dual layer
DVD does not display any overt signs of digital compression artifacts.
The
METROPOLIS features a goodly amount of soundtrack options. Two
versions of the original Japanese language track are present on the DVD
in 5.1 channel flavors of Dolby Digital and DTS. An English language dub
is also provided in the Dolby Digital 5.1 channel format. All of the digital
soundtrack options offer impressive sound; purists will stick with the
Japanese language, while those wanting to take in the film’s rich visuals,
without have to read subtitles will gravitate towards the English dub.
The
Japanese language tracks are superbly mixed, taking full advantage of
the discrete capabilities of the digital formats. Sounds emanate from
every channel and move effortlessly around the beautifully cohesive soundstage.
Voices are recorded with a full natural timbre, although judging the intelligibility
of the Japanese language is beyond by ability. The bass channel provides
the track with a very solid bottom that can give one’s subwoofer a respectable
workout. Music is beautifully integrated into the sound mix and is reproduced
with excellent fidelity. The DTS track has a warmer, richer sound than
its Dolby Digital counterpart, but the standard bearer sounds quite wonderful,
so don’t think you are being shortchanged if your system doesn’t offer
DTS. A French Dolby Surround soundtrack is also encoded onto the DVD,
as are English subtitles in two different translations. Other subtitle
options include French, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Korean, and Thai.
Full
motion video, animation and sound serve to enhance the DVD’s nicely designed
interactive menus. Through the menus on disc one, access is provided to
the standard scene selection and set up features, as well as a portion
of the supplement materials. Actually, disc one only contains a theatrical
trailer and bonus trailers. Disc two of the set is something of a novelty,
since it is the first three-inch DVD released into the market. Since the
smaller size lessens the disc’s capacity, this three-inch DVD is actually
dual layered to contain all of the supplemental material.
Starting
things off on disc two is the thirty-three minute Animax Special:
The Making of Metropolis. The program is a Japanese language equivalent
of the typical "making-of" featurettes that accompany many DVDs.
English subtitles are provided for the narration and interview segments,
which explain how METROPOLIS went from comic book form to motion
picture. Eight minutes of additional interviews have also been included
on the DVD and feature additional insights from the movie’s director and
screenwriter. A Photo Gallery has been included on the DVD
that is actually a still file of character and production design drawings.
The History of Metropolis is a text supplement that looks
at the work from its initial inception in print as a comic to its development
as a motion picture. Animation Comparisons utilize the multi-angle
feature to allow one to view animated segments from the film in various
stages of completion. Filmographies for the film’s director and story
creator close out disc two’s supplements.
METROPOLIS
is certainly one of the most visually arresting animes ever produced.
Columbia TriStar has produced a DVD that fully captures the beauty of
this animated film, as well as offering its equally stunning soundtrack
with amazing clarity. If you are an animation fan, Japanese or otherwise,
METROPOLIS is a film you will want to check out on DVD.
