Appleseed Blu-ray offers solid video and great audio in this fan-pleasing Blu-ray release
Set in a post-apocalyptic 2131 A.D.A.D., girl mercenary Deunen Knute finds herself spirited away from the badlands to the gleaming utopian city of Olympus. There she's reunited with her ex-b.f. Briareos, now half-man, half-cyborg. Deunen learns from new handler Hitomi that Olympus' serenity is founded on the use of bioroids, genetically engineered clones who hold key positions in the city's government. Hitomi herself is one. Superpowerful computer Gaia monitors all, through the mediation of seven Yoda-esque elders. When a shadowy faction opposed to the bioroids' civic control start blowing stuff up, Deunen and Briareos team up to protect the city.
When the original trailer for Appleseed emerged in 2004, my jaw nearly hit the floor. Combining a new method of computer generated animation that incorporated a cel-shaded appearance, the film looked absolutely stunning. As you can imagine, the anticipation for the eventual DVD release on American shores was nearly unbearable (patience has never been a strength of mine), but nearly one year after the Japanese theatrical release, I finally had my hands on a copy of the visual feast. The natural question at this point is whether or not the unabated excitement was worth it, to which I'll simply reply yes—and no. According to animation standards in 2004 (or even 2005), Appleseed offered an eye-popping presentation full of fluid fight sequences. However, viewed five years later it's amazing how tame the once-sparkling visuals look, demonstrating how rapidly computer generated animation advanced over the years. I'll touch on the animation to a greater extent during the course of this review, but fans that haven't seen the film in the past five years should be aware the old hourglass is rarely forgiving.
This is a perfect example of the odd shading that sometimes occurs in the shadow rendering.
Set 120 years in the future, Earth has been ravaged by a longstanding global war that left most cities a mere shell of rubble and debris. Deunan Knute is a freedom fighter with an undisclosed faction, who suddenly finds herself in the heart of a utopian city after being rescued during a random skirmish. This city known as Olympus is a sparkling new metropolis made up of normal humans that coexist with human/clone hybrids known as Bioroids. The clones were created with the DNA of Deunan's ancestors in an attempt to create a race that would reject the violent sins of humanity. Designed with a fail-safe to prevent reproduction and drastically shorten their lifespan, these Bioroids share a mutual distrust with their human counterparts, extending into all areas of government leadership. Thankfully, an artificial intelligence system known as Gaia is able to observe and monitor this fragile relationship by working in tandem with a non-partial group known as the Council of Elders. Deunan comes to find out her importance in this delicate balance, when she learns of a long-kept secret known as Appleseed, which holds the key to unlocking Bioroid reproductive capabilities and extending the lifespan of the cloned species. With the help of her half-cyborg partner Briareos, she embarks on a journey of discovery that may bring about the destruction of human or Bioroid life forever.
The pacing and storyline of Appleseed has always been a bit problematic for me, since it often involves long convoluted stretches of dialog, and seems a touch too ambitious in scope. I'm always one for intriguing sci-fi tales where humanity is on the verge of collapse, but there's simply too much going on in the film to ever feel an actual connection to the characters. The only role I halfway gravitated toward is Hitomi, but that's simply a result of her need for a Bioroid life expansion (which marks a critical turning point in the film). On the flipside, the relationship between Deunan and Briareos is cast aside in favor of the central plot, the villains are paper-thin cut outs of a generic bad guy role, and as much as I enjoyed the battle scenes, they often felt self-serving and unnecessary in the overall plot. It's not so much a matter of the film failing to generate an entertaining story, but the deficiencies can be summed up by simply pointing to the missing element of heart. For all of the flash and pizzazz bestowed on the film, there's something entirely artificial at the core of the plot—which becomes increasingly problematic with each subsequent viewing.
Regardless of any complaints related to the under-the-surface elements of the film, what you see before your eyes is nothing short of remarkable. Going back in time to 2005, Appleseed stood as one of the most impressive examples of computer generated animation since Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within. Naturally, the visuals pale in comparison with some of the more recent entries courtesy of Pixar (or even Appleseed: Ex Machina for that matter), but despite the occasional unnatural movement, tentacle hair, or eyes that stare into distance, we're left with a world full of amazing depth and personality. Without a doubt the best sequences in the film are the epic battles between the ESWAT units and various baddies along the way (including a closing sequence with huge walking fortresses), but the shots of the cityscapes are often just as stunning. I'm less enthusiastic about the character animation, thanks in part to weak shadow rendering and the unnatural character elements mentioned earlier, but those nitpicks hardly seem important when mixed in with the entire package.
Presented in 1080p utilizing the VC-1 codec (at an average bitrate of 19Mbps), Appleseed demonstrates the type of upgrade we've grown accustomed to on a digital animation transition to high-definition, though my final impressions are dampened somewhat by the noticeable presence of jaggies and aliasing in the source material. Before anyone cries foul and blames these digital anomalies on Sentai Filmworks, I should make it abundantly clear that the problems found throughout the film are likely present in the original animation, rather than something introduced in the replication of this transfer. Unlike film to digital transfers, a straight digital to digital copy should in most cases yield an identical product to what was originally created. This is clearly not a transfer taken from a prior standard definition copy, so although we're introduced to noticeable inconsistencies (primarily in distance shots of the cityscapes), I'd suspect this is the best we can expect short of a complete digital overhaul. This may deter some Appleseed fans from double-dipping on the Blu-ray edition without the promise of perfection, but in my opinion the upgrades in other categories more than make up for the digital flaws.
The first attribute you'll notice out of the gate is the increased detail during Deunan's fight with the unnamed cyborgs at the beginning of the film. Looking back on my prior DVD edition, this shadow-heavy sequence always appeared overly murky and a touch on the soft side. Thanks to the resolution gains on Blu-ray, there's a heightened precision on textures in both the foreground and background, lending a razor sharp precision to all but a handful of sequences. The other profound upgrade on this release is a boost in the richness of the overall color spectrum. Gone are the sterile tones that plagued prior versions, and in their place are vibrant hues that almost venture into oversaturated territory at times. As you can tell from the screenshots, the atmosphere within Olympus City is a colorful utopia that contrasts with the dreary destruction of the outside world, making this Blu-ray the ideal candidate for reproducing such bold tones.
In the end, your appreciation for the visual upgrade on the Blu-ray edition of Appleseed will hinge on your sensitivity to digital anomalies in the animation. This is a clear step up over prior DVD versions, offering excellent clarity and color vibrancy, but I'm well aware some fans will be disappointed by the flawed aspects of the production. So long as you temper your expectations accordingly, there's a lot to like here.
Most fans will surely cry foul at the lack of a lossless upgrade on this release, and for good reason. Certain films emerge as ideal candidates for the best possible audio presentation, and anything less is often viewed as a major disappointment. I won't try to tell you I'm not bothered by the lack of lossless surround options, but anyone willing to write off this release over that sole element may want to reconsider. Getting down to the nuts and bolts of the audio tracks contained on this edition, we have a newly recorded dub by Sentai Filmworks presented in DTS 5.1 and Dolby Digital 5.1. The prior dub is still included as well, but there's no DTS option available for fans of the prior voice-work (by Geneon). On the original Japanese side of the coin, we're given the option of DTS 5.1 and Dolby Digital 5.1, which offer equal proficiency to the DTS and Dolby Digital redubbed mixes. In the case of both the Japanese and dubbed options the obvious choice is the DTS mix, which offers a tremendous upgrade over the Dolby Digital option. Pick any action sequence throughout the film, switch back and forth between the two tracks, and you'll instantly notice a profound difference. Surround separation is vastly improved, clarity is excellent, and volume balance is spot on. The only real complaint I have with either DTS mix, is a slight lack of robust design that may have been remedied through the inclusion of a lossless mix. Simply listening to the opening theme song, you'll notice weakness in bass response and a subtle lack of rich depth. It's impossible to accurately assess what could have been possible with a lossless upgrade, but I'd imagine it would have led to marginal improvements within the overall sound design.
The Birth of 3D Live Anime(480p, Dolby Digital 2.0, 35:54 min, Japanese with English subtitles): Key figures in the original Japanese production comment on elements in Shirow's original story that they felt translated well to the newly-developed animation style called 3DCG. Eventually, the feature moves into an in-depth analysis of the animation process utilized for the film, including the stop-motion work that incorporates real actors in body suits.
The only other supplements included on the disc are the original commentary track with Shinji Aramaki (Director) and Fumihiko Sori (Producer), as well as a text-based staff profile section where you can read brief biographies on the primary members of the film's production crew.
Appleseed is the type of film that was meant to be viewed in the best technical format possible. I've always enjoyed the animation style and the visuals, but naturally the DVD lacked the vibrant punch made possible by the resolution upgrade on Blu-ray. That's not to say everything turned into roses and sunshine on this edition (thanks in large part to problems in the source material), and I'm still bewildered by the lack of a lossless audio option to accompany the visual upgrade, but most fans will find this release a worthwhile step in the right direction. Regarding the plotline of the film, I've discovered diminishing returns with every subsequent viewing since 2005, so I'd recommend this new edition only to die-hard Appleseed fans, or those looking for nothing more than a visual spectacle. All others should consider a rental first.
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