Appleseed (AS) tells the story of Deunan and Briaeros, mates on the battlefield. The story revolves around battles, mechas, utopian philosophy and some romance. You will also know about Bioroids, which are cloned humans, but with distinct identities.
--> Animation: (10/10)
Really, earning a 10 from me is tough, but Appleseed really amazed me in terms of sheer graphic quality. It's a perfect blend of traditional animation, coupled with very well made CG. The backgrounds and environments are extremely detailed and well done. The same quality can be found in the character designs. Just see how detailed Deunan's hair is, or how the general mechas are done. At one point, you see Deunan resting on a bed. As she drops, you can even see the bed sheets crumpling in very realistic ways. Or the various water and nature scenes, specially rain. They are truly magnificent. AS's animation really deserves applause.
--> Sound: (8/10)
Not much to say here, since the music score of AS is not really that varied. The action scenes have their BGM and I can say these were well selected. They really highlight the action. Dramatic scenes too have their appropriate music, and here too, it's ok. Not much to say, nothing bad, nothing absolutely noticeable. Character voices are well done. However, Deunan's voice is kind of too "feminine". Ok, I know she's a girl, but still, after seeing her fight? I'd put a graver voice on her. xD
--> Story: (9/10)
The story too is really awesome. The plot is consistent, and has lots of twists and turns, until you are told of the final secret, which you really don't expect. The plots flow smoothly, giving details as they flow, and not just flood you at the end. It's an interesting story, very sc-fi like, peppered with a good dose of action. You won't be bored watching it. Maybe at the beginning, when there is quite a lot of talking, but it does not last long. It's a nice story about humans, bioroids, how an utopia functions, how humans can be intolerant, and how the desire for total utopia can be bad. It has some subtle philosophy too, mind you! Overall, I liked.
--> Characters: (7/10)
Maybe, this is the only point AS deceived me a bit. The characters themselves are interesting to follow, and learn about. Their stories and backgrounds are very plausible. But what I didn't appreciate is Deunan and Briaeros hogging all the screen time. They are present in almost every scene! What about the side characters? In my opinion, they didn't get developed enough. We could have been given more details about their lives and backgrounds. Consider Hitomi. At the end, we still don't know much about her. About her life after work, her relationships and stuff, even if she's the secondary female lead! Even the main characters Deunan and Briaeros didn't get that much of elaboration. The developers of AS should have included a bit more of character elaboration.
--> Enjoyment: (8/10)
It's not really a light film to just sit there and enjoy. Barely any humor in it. The enjoyment comes from the great storyline and the well-made action scenes. I, personally, really enjoyed it. AS also has a good rewatch value. I have rewatched it 3 times, just for the battle scenes and the story.
--> Outro (Overall: 8/10):
AS makes a good story, combined with well-made animation and ok-type characters. Therefore, it makes a good watch. Go check it out, you will probably not regret it.
