Lupin III: The First

Lupin III is a franchise that I see go under far too many people's radar's, the impact it's had on anime is quite revolutionary and one of its most recent entries have truly become a game changer. After decades upon decades of anime studios trying and failing to make stylish 3D anime, along comes TMS studios with 2019's Lupin III: The First, a stunning entry into the franchise which proves it is indeed possible to nail 3D anime to the point where it almost rivals big budget studios like Disney and Dreamworks.

So much love and detail went into the animation of this film, there's tiny ... little details hidden in the background throughout the film which gives it that extra bit of life a film like this needs, the animation of so fluent and beautiful to watch It's almost like art. The only complaint I have with the animation is that at times it makes the dubbed voices look mismatched with the characters mouth movement, with 2D animation it is completely unnoticeable, but with 3D animation as smooth and fluent as this it's quite noticeable at certain parts of the film, however this is only with extensive focus on it, if it's ignored it will not ruin your watching experience in the slightest and i can't really downgrade the film for having animation that is simply 'too good for the dub' (I must add both the dub and sub for the film are spectacular so pick whichever one you prefer, I personally prefer to watch Lupin dubbed as Tony Oliver, Richard Epcar and Doug Erholtz will always be the top dogs when it comes to Lupin III in my eyes).

The story reminds me of something you'd see in a Spielberg movie such as Indiana Jones, a great comparison to this film would be his 2011 film 'The Adventures of Tintin (which is an excellent movie in its own right). The story is full of mystery, action and suspense and is honestly a truly exciting adventure you'll want to experience again and again.

I can't discuss Lupin III without talking about Yuji Ohno's flawless score for the film, Ohno has composed utterly beautiful jazz score's for Lupin iii since it's humble beginnings back in the 1970's, and to this day he still manages to create scores that are full of life and truly express the mood and aesthetic Lupin has, his work in this film is by far one of his best as well as his new version of the classic Lupin theme.

Something small I greatly enjoyed was the films opening title's which really get you ready for the thrilling adventure you're about to go on, resembling an opening similar to a Bond film (which correlates nicely with the two having similar spy espionage conventions.

Overall Lupin III: The First is a masterpiece of anime and has truly changed my gold standard when it comes to animation within the industry, it's a film that should be watched by all as there's something for everyone to enjoy within the adventures of Lupin and the gang.

Very fun time for any fan of Lupin III. Despite the name, I recommend watching a least some of the older series first, and maybe castle of cagliostro, as this film spends no time introducting the characters. It's beautiful to look at, the CGI animation is spectacular and should be the golden standard for how anime is translated to 3D. The music is fantastic, containing a mix of original scores and remixes of familiar lupin tracks. The story isn't the best the series has to offer, but that's okay as again, it's still a lot of fun. Don't skip out on this one.

The pacing is whack, either too fast or too slow, the storyline is as cliched and predictable as it gets and the characters have about as much depth as a bowl of cereal. I watched the dub because I'm an idiot, and the actor for Laetitia is actually godawful, not communicating any emotions other than slightly nervous. Everyone else was okay, though the characters they were playing could not be more one note.

There are some good aspects though. As someone who despises anime and the art style of most of them, I loved the art style of this, it was absolutely wonderful, not Pixar ... level, but still very good. The music isn't the most memorable, but I have to give points for its unique jazz style that really works well with the aesthetic. Finally, while I wasn't a fan of the film, I can't say it was boring. The action was decent, there were some good jokes in there and the dialogue was actually quite competent.

In conclusion, while it's not something I would recommend anytime soon, its a fine way to kill a few hours. I just wish it had lived up to the high hopes I had for it.