Ranked #943

Metropolis

Metropolis has a complex story plot. There are several characters and events going on to keep up with. The story focuses more on the characters than the events which is kind of a downfall since this can cause some to get lost on the way. Overall the story is very unique and interesting. The best part out of the whole movie was the ending. I could watch the ending a thousand times.

The character development in Metropolis was appealing. The characters brought the movie alive; they are all one of a kind. Each of them had their own unique looks, styles, and distinctive personalities.

Metropolis is best known for its beautiful CGI; complete eye candy. The character animation didn’t blend in that well with the other CGI structures, but the strange daring mixture pulled me more into the movie.

I’ve seen Metropolis only in English dialogue, which I thought was great. Each of the voice actors portrayed the characters very well. The soundtrack to Metropolis was amazing. I really loved the music through out the movie, especially the ending song.

I would recommend watching Metropolis; it is a true delight.
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Madhouse Studios you’ve done it again. This art studio’s art always amazes me. For this movie they use a mix a cells and digital that looks drop dead gorgeous. There is a lot attention to detail and also very colorful. Must say, I love Mr. Tezuakes character designs.

This film is adaptation of one of Mr. Tezuaka’s earlier sci-fi work (before Astro Boy) Metropolis. There are some great interviews with the director talking about Mr. Tezuaka on the feature disc.

The music for this movie is awesome, does a good job of setting the mood, while also being diverse and enjoyable. One of my favorite songs is the opening music; it’s this great New Orleans jazz with leading saxophone.
The story is well pasted and has some social commentary with the use of robots.

Great movie guys, go buy this one. Has tons of great extra features.
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The reason I first wanted to watch this movie, was because I had first seen a fantastic AMV that really made the anime look like it would be really good. Time passes, and I cannot find it anywhere on the internet. More time passes, and I cannot find it at the Blockbuster near by. A lot more time passes, and I go to a different Blockbuster, and wouldn't you know? There it was! So, when I got home, I sat down and prepared myself for a good movie, but you know what I got? Something very mediocre instead :/.

Metropolis for me, was very mediocre for numerous reasons, first lets start with the story. The story itself, was very difficult to follow. There are many sub-plots and all of those are trying to coexist peacefully, but that doesn't happen. You have the whole robot thing, and the whole rebellion thing, and Tima and Kenichi's relationship going on, and the whole father-son relationship, and Tima's struggle to figure out who she is; with all of that the director really needed to have all the sub-plots flow together smoothly, but it didn't. It seems like the only time you really feel like the story is going smoothly and together is at the end.

Another thing that REALLY bugged me was the music. You can tell the director of music really loves Jazz, because that's all there is in the movie. Don't get me wrong, I love me some Jazz, but it seemed the director just put anything he wanted anywhere. Yeah, there was maybe one song that fit well with its ironic tone in a random scene, but even at the end, the most dramatic part of the movie, the music seemed very anti-climatic, and drew my attention away from the scene.

The next contributing factor is the time period/scenery. Hey, the city was pretty cool and the idea was pretty unique for it, but in the movie, you barely get ANY info on the city, or the blimp like thing they introduce at the very beginning. I still don't even know what it was used for. :?. And the whole moving from level to level thing was never really explained either. The time period is also very confusing, because by the looks of some of the clothes, it seems some of them are in the 40's or something, yet they're in a city with robots? Weird, weird, weird.

Personally, I thought the only thing that redeemed the movie was its main character. The main girl, Tima, is interesting because she's very unique and she represents purity/innocence in the movie, and I liked that. She had a certain quality about her that made her appealing, for me at least; something that kept me guessing. Other than that, the other characters aren't really that interesting or different.

Altogether, I give this movie a 5. For me, it was built up to be something it wasn't, people going as far as saying this was a "classic", but really? I think anime can do much better than that. If someone were to ask if I would recommend this to them, I would say definitely "No, its probably just going to be a disappointing waist of time". If you want something better and similar, I say go for "Origins, Spirits of the Past". Personally, I would think that has a way higher chance of being something you'll enjoy, depending on what you like.
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Watching this movie, my heart soared. Not only is it a great film. It is the best anime film of all time. Yes, this is slight better than any Miyazaki film, adapted from the godfather of manga, Osamu Tezuaka. Possibly remembered for creating Kimba the White Lion, and Astro Boy. It is a great film for its complex and engaging story. Set against the backdrop of the futuristic 20th century, Metropolis is a city-state that is divided between the rich and poor, human and robots, imagination and science. The Story of Metropolis might have been adapted from Fritz Lang's silent film of the same name. But this is one level higher. Its tragic and heartwarming characters give elevation to this film. If I were to disect one frame from this film, I would be still be left breathless. In fact this review doesn't even do the film any justice. You must see this movie. read more

I really enjoyed this anime and would have given it a 10 but for one thing. The first thing you read in "review tips and guidelines" starts out "Don't steal anyone else's work...". I keep reading where "Metropolis" was adapted from a manga of the same name that is a load of BS. The reason "Metroplis" is so good is it's an anime copy, plot point for plot point, of Fritz Lang's classic silent picture "Metropolis" Nowhere absolutely nowhere is this mentioned. If you're going to adapt someone else's work you should at least give them credit.

Metropolis is one of the few anime titles fortunate enough to make it into the mainstream. Along with Ghost in the Shell and the works of Miyazaki, this is one of the films that it is cool for cultured people to like.

And like it they do. As of this writing, the movie has 60 critical review on Rottentomatoes.com, with a 91% approval rating. Roger Ebert gave it four out of four stars, and called it "One of the best animated films I have ever seen".

For all this acclaim, the movie nearly didn't get made at all. Osamu Tezuka felt that his original manga was deeply flawed and far from his best work, and only after his death could the film be made.

If Tezuka through some working of magic or science was given the opportunity to see this film made against his wishes, even he would have to admit that it does his art justice. The original character designs are given fluid animation and backed by impressive and well-integrated CGI. The movie is simply gorgeous, and a viewer watching only for the eyecandy certainly won't be disappointed.

However, simple spectacle is not enough to carry a film for many of us, and this is where nuanced characterization and good storytelling come in. The central story, about a boy and an android girl on the run from the antagonist, is one with potential. Unfortunately, the supposed 'main' characters are hardly fleshed out at all, and the audience is given little reason to care about their fate. The obligatory 'android learning how to become human' moments never happen, or any other development of the two leads for that matter.

The setting and supporting cast are considerably more interesting. Over the course of the movie, the city undergoes considerable change, as social forces and malevolent schemes ultimately lead to upheaval and chaos. And the antagonists have a decent amount of personal issues and character development - more than the leads, in fact. However, the simple truth is none of this is enough to carry the film in lieu of an interesting central story.

And then, in the final ten minutes, the stakes are suddenly raised, and attention is suddenly riveted to the screen. The final scenes are moving - even devastatingly so.

However, despite its excellent finale and interesting setting, this film's core is empty. The eyecandy makes it worth a watch, but it fails as a dramatic piece.

tl;dr - Good visuals, setting, and bad guys. Unfortunately, two incredibly boring lead characters waste almost all the potential the movie had. The ending is good, though.

Of course, this is very much a minority view, and you'll probably see the movie anyways. I'd just recommend that you rent before you splurge on the super-deluxe box set. read more

This is one of my favorite animated films and I'm a proud owner of the DVD. Metropolis doesn't slow down and is interesting from beginning to end and is accompanied by incredible animation. The character designs by Osamu Tezuka look GREAT in the colorful digital animation of this film, released in 2001. The stylistic look of the film is addicting and fascinating, creating a spectacular setting that you can really indulge yourself on.

The plot is fairly easy to follow and the characters are easy to like. It's a good sci-fi story with its own elements of social commentary. I rarely end up liking stories involving robots, but I have a soft spot for their oldschool portrayal in this film. I'll admit, though, the plot isn't as solid as could be, but it still has a very solid foundation and nice pacing to it.

Metropolis is an enjoyable film with eye-popping animation that I have no doubt anyone who starts this visual adventure of a masterpiece will watch all the way to the end, and will probably appreciate it. read more