Preface:
Mardock Scramble is a very interesting trilogy of movies. Set in the cyberpunk styled future city of Mardock, Mardock Scramble follows Rune Balot, a teenage prostitute whose small and insignificant life is given new meaning after she gets wrapped up in a complex of despair, misery and destruction orchestrated by a man named Shell. After scraping for so long and being left in the street like gutter trash, Rune is picked up by Shell, an immensely wealthy and charismatic young man. Rune seeks nothing but some small inkling of love- but ends up another pawn in Shell's sick game of lies and murder.
After a night out, Shell rapes Rune, locks her in his car, and then proceeds to light it on fire. It explodes, killing her in the process. As Shell has a mental condition that required him to have a memory chip implanted in his brain, he can remove it at will and erase his memories, and thus the evidence, of his crimes.
However, Dr. Easter, a scientist working for the government under a new, borderline illegal law called "Scramble-09" retrieves Rune’s body and revives her, using this new technology associated with the Scramble-09 law . Though Rune isn't completely restored, she is alive, with a new body, and revenge on the mind. So, in order to prove the usefulness of the Scramble-09 law and technology, Rune has to submit to being part of an investigation of Shell, since she's the only witness they've been able to retrieve.
Along with the shapeshifting Artificial Intelligence in the shape of a mouse, Oeufcoque, and Dr. Easter- Rune has to dig up the lost memories of Shell, and help prosecute him, then she's free to go. But through the process, Rune finds a whole lot more than she ever asked for.
Artwork and Animation: 10
I enjoyed the cyberpunk/futuristic setting, which was this really fantastical city with a prismatic rainbow of light and colors, an incredible cityscape design, with lots of overhead shots to give it immense depth of both color and scope. Many scenes, particularly those set in the Paradise Labs and the Blue Egg Casino, feature a literal rainbow color in the background imagery- greens, purples, blues, reds, and yellows- with the vibrantly colored and exceptionally detailed characters taking the focus in the front.
How the scenes are framed are excellent- there are no impossible "anime" angles, and everything is shot as if watching a movie. The overlay of action panels, each with their own animation on top of each other, and the sweeps and pans make for a great cinematographic experience. The increasing closeups (particularly during the casino sequence) really give a claustrophobic feel to the intense mental/psychological action, much in the same way 12 Angry Men does.
One scene in particular, in the Paradise Lab, a glass knife falls down and sticks into a table after passing through these force fields that protect Dr. God and Boiled. As it settles, it shows Boiled in the reflection of the blade. A rain of blood pours down, bouncing and deflecting off the spherical fields surrounding them, crackling like electricity as Boiled steps closer. It's as if the entire Paradise Lab was underwater, the blood raining from the multicolored ocean in the sky above- complete with sharks swimming and feeding as though they were birds.
The 3D CGI in this is also among the best I've seen. Full photorealism on the cars- I could tell year, makes and models easily- they looked as though someone had inserted a 1986 Porsche 911 convertible, late model Fiat 500, Alfa Guilietta, or a late 2000s Nissan Armada into the movies, among other cars.
Everything flows mercurially, with no drop in quality throughout any of the 3 hours of runtime. There are some really cool fast-motion shots as well. The lighting in the movies is also quite awesome- drawing the eye to the action onscreen, while also highlighting the intricate backgrounds. The city backdrops and scapes are breathtaking, and everything has a very 'dreamy' feel to it, particularly with the prismatic rainbow of colors and design of some of the more fantastical characters.
A rare visual treat, truly.
Sound and Voice Acting: 8
Mardock Scramble was licensed by Sentai Filmworks- and they put together a very awesome cast with Hilary Haag as Rune, Andy McNavin as Oeufcoque, Leraldo Anzaldua as Shell, and David Matranga as Dr. Easter. Ms. Haag sounds appropriately fragile and timid, but volatile as Rune, and David Matranga's Dr. Easter comes off like a grown up, less socially awkward version of Okabe from Steins Gate, which is essentially his character. Ouefcoque's calm, nearly robotic, but warm voice is nailed by Mr. McNavin, and the volatile, crazed Shell sounds absolutely deranged.
The soundtrack is also quite good- with a lot of industrial sounding techno that fits the cyberpunk world perfectly. This,combined with some traditional orchestral pieces, and the crowning jewel of Amazing Grace. Performed by Honda Minako, it alternates between Japanese and English with a very ethereal sound, and plays in Rune's more emotionally raw moments with an effective, touching air.
Story and Characters: 8, 9
While the story follows a fairly typical journey to discover one's self, and to overcome a difficult past wrought with tragedy, Mardock Scramble takes these common plot elements and weaves them into a more intellectual and metaphysical tale of revenge, redemption, and the ability to live on beyond the difficulties of one's past- no matter how bleak.
Every character has their trauma. Rune's tortured past with her sexual abuse as a young child at the hands of her father, her early teens as a prostitute, then subsequent murder at the hands of Shell. Shell's past is equally as grim, though it's the focus of the story, so I can't say too much. Boiled, an assassin employed by Shell and Oeufcoque, also have analogous histories, much like those of Shell and Rune.
Rune's journey as a character starts from this broken, cracked egg of a character, spilled out everywhere- running into the streets. At the beginning, this is hardly metaphorical- she's very literally cracked and then put back together by Dr. Easter. True to her name, Rune Balot (Balot being an Asian/Pacific Island delicacy which is a fertilized duck egg, complete with a fetus) is born into an egg, and given a new life.
Oeufcoque and Boiled, who had previously been partnered prior to Rune Balot's entry into the story, also experience antithetical development of their own- with Boiled seeking to retrieve Oeufcoque and "use" (term Oeufcoque calls his 'employment' under a human being, as he's a "tool") him again, but for his own selfish gain. Conversely, Oeufcoque, who, once freed of Boiled, sought to make himself useful as a tool for good in helping Rune, and not return to aiding the destructive and hateful deeds of Boiled.
Enjoyment: 10
The casino scenes in the 2nd and 3rd movies were some of the most intense mental game scenes I've seen in anime. Very gripping, with nearly tangible tension. Imagine, if you will- the James Bond "Casino Royale" scenes mixed with the movie "21", but with twice the pressure and payout. It really felt like watching a high stakes card table in person.
There are quite a few symbolic and metaphorical elements to Mardock Scramble, and much of it wrapped up in the names. As mentioned above, Rune Balot is in reference to an egg. Her life is a fragile, delicate fetus protected by Oeufcoque (the French word for eggshell). The egg motif is present throughout the entire series, actually. Dimsdale Boiled, the secondary antagonist also bears symbolism- as he's an egg that's not yet cracked, but thoroughly 'cooked'. There's also Humpty Dumpty references, and where a large chunk of the second and third films take place- a casino called the Blue Egg.
With her second life given by Oeufcoque and Dr. Easter's intervention, and through the progression of the story, dealing with Shell and coming to terms with her own past, Rune's development as a person really breaks out of the "Shell" she had been in. She is born out as a new person, free of the anguish and grief of her earlier days.
Through the dialogue at the casino about conquering one's past, suffering and being alone in the dark- we really get an idea of the changed person Rune has become, through struggling with her desire for closure versus her thirst for revenge with Shell, her family, and her own will to live.
Overall: 9
There's a lot of dialogue to go with the "girls with guns" action that takes place in Mardock Scramble. While it's not a show constructed to be as deep as one such as Ergo Proxy or Serial Experiments Lain, it makes up for the lesser cerebral focus with great action and even better visuals. This is definitely a very adult trilogy of movies though- with sexual abuse, murder, torture, dismemberment, and a myriad of other vile acts. For the gorehounds, there's some fodder, especially with this gang of murderers who delight in removing body parts and organs from their victims, which they then transplant or graft onto their own bodies. There's a lot of blood and gore, and also a lot of nudity as well. For the fans of a great cyberpunk world, this will deliver. For those drawn to a beautiful, visually stunning action film- this will knock it out of the park.
I think Mardock Scramble is a fantastic trilogy of films, a real hidden gem in a million colored rainbow ocean of anime.
"I've died once. I'm like your brother: I know the horror of being alone in the dark. But, I was lucky. Someone was there to help me out of the locked car." - Rune Balot
