Parasite Dolls - Anime Advanced

• Media Source:Anime Advanced
• Reviewed By:Ray Almeda
• Review Date:11/16/04
• Read the original review click here

"This is a cop-story that could?ve gone the golden road up to the classics"

Parasite Dolls

Parasite Dolls

Media DVD Region 1 Genre Action/Adventure Publisher ADV Films MSRP $29.98 Running Time 95 Minutes Aspect Ratio 1.33:1 Release Date 10/19/04 Age Rating 17+ Website ADV Films

'This is how the world of mechas/boomers should?ve been introduced to us ? dark, weird, and of course ? real.'

Review Hardware Used: Sony 36-inch WEGA KV636 w/ S-Video Out, Toshiba SD-4900 DVD Player ? Progressive Scan Region, Grado SR325 Prestige Series Headphones

Disc Description

Beauty is only skin deep, but when you can't see beneath the skin, how can you know what you're really dealing with? In a world where perfect androids called Boomers have infiltrated every aspect of society, it's the job of Branch to maintain peace between the people and the plastic. Unfortunately, not all boomers are created perfect, and when boomers go bad, people die. The thin blue line that separates man from machine is about to meet its most horrifying test in Parasite Dolls.

Features

Disc Review

Content: (SPOILER Warning)
In this futuristic, yet highly-urbanized environment that we?re introduced to in Parasite Dolls, boomers rule as a ?second race.? Androids designed specifically by humans for human protection and service, these boomers cause quite the controversy when this thriller starts to really envelop. Taken place in the fictional year of 2034, we?re introduced to a small group within the AD Police called The Branch. Similar to undercover and special forces divisions within most police divisions today, this group focuses more on the investigation and public appearance of boomer crimes, while the AD Police focuses more on the militarial aspect. The Branch is so critical to the focuses of the plot, because it soon gets faced with an unimaginable circumstance, focusing the division?s three operatives (which includes a boomer detective, hijacking computer hacker, and tomboyish yet persistent female officer) to do all of this work for Genom.

Often being referred as being the ?Fronters? of the police organization, The Branch does all of the dirty work, and I emphasize the word ?dirty? to its outmost extremities. Computer jockey Myers, geeky and all, works as the technical servant of the group, getting online and coded work done within the quick presses of his keyboard jamming fingers. A hacker at heart, Myers provides a necessary, important role for the group as the insider for keeping track of clues and keeping everybody on track for the next step in investigations. Reiko Michaelson, the sole female of the group is helicopter pilot for the group, and excels in physical activity ? even it that means killing. Her style is rather awkward at first, but fans of Cowboy Bebop may find some resemblance in her being somewhat the fictional counterpart of Faye Valentine. Kimball, the main character within the series, is the boomer detective ? and the integral reason why everything in the plot will shape its form. Silent, yet sly at many times during the viewing, this character was simple enough to be complex. He doesn?t talk much, but still gets his work done, already knowing an inkling of where to go next.

Now, The Branch basically take upon three different situations, all magnificently presented in their own forms ? yet extremely generic from the usual robot-vs-human anime we?re used to seeing (Metropolis comes to mind). Parasite Dolls? plot is so methodical at first, that it?s forced to do a chapter-like division of internal plots Kill Bill-style. We all know how this is layed out, as each chapter introduction is so intense in their own senses, that I?m sure by the third and final chapter, you?ll be foaming at the mouth by its visual yet surprisingly real depictions of the prologues into these forthcoming schemes.

The third and most important chapter of the anime introduces an individual that has devoted his life to ridding all of the boomers from the system, and balancing the natural harmony for mankind once again. Now, the antagonist in this situation is plain cynical. If any of you are fans of gruesome anime thrillers of the Satoshi Kon sense, you?ll love how this chapter gets introduced. This story is so dark and mysterious in its own sense that it doesn?t back away from the heavy influences of the sex references, scenes, and numerous obscenities. What makes this anime so special in its own sense, is that it is never afraid in its own liking to back off from the viewer. It pounds everything at you at one time, and it will take the veteran anime viewer to capture all of it. Is this a good thing? I think so ? especially since it goes beyond the actual storytelling, and portrays it with wonderfully orchestrated cinematography within its backbone. The entire plot is presented (as originally released in Japan) as 3 OVAs spliced up and put together side by side. Although this spans through a time span of six years, it doesn?t really detract by the overall dark mood of this thriller, though it leaves plenty of unanswered questions for the casual fans not taking note quick enough.

Video:
This U.S. release was originally released in Japan as three different OVAs in late 2003, the released in early 2004 as the full compilation theatrical release. Presented in 1.33:1, this show is presented as very dark? very, very dark. You?ll barely see the sun in this world, filled with morbid figures, shadows, and urbanized alleys. Cross coloring and aliasing are non-existent from the transfer, and there?s plenty to gauze at. Just turn off the lights, and watch this show at night. The lighting is gorgeous in relation to the dark environments, and adds to the overall experience of the plot?s mood and characters. Pay attention to each chapter?s introduction ? purely psychotic stuff. Well-deserved.

Audio:
For our primary viewing session, this show was watched in English 5.1 form. The music is orchestrated quite well, with rear audio-channels being introduced to the mix at some points during the anime. The track is generally good, but not over exaggerated because of its dark tone. Although quite simple, yet epic at times, the rather techno-themed tone works rather well for this futuristic thriller. No complaints here.

Menus:
The menus are simple, but they look great. The main menu has a digitized, Matrix-like background with a hard-hitting trance beat playing in the background. As usual, scene selections are presented with animated video cells. The green, hazy look is easy to navigate, and accesses very fast. The CG image of the boomer?s vision was a great themed addition to this aspect of the DVD.

Extras:
Most of the extras on the disc were intended for hardcore fans, although there won?t be too many considering that this just an anime movie. Most of the additions were promotional additions, rather than inside interviews or production behind-the-scenes. Although the production sketches are also nice, there?s nothing to go crazy about here.

Dialogue:
Watching the show as the dubbed version, I was quite impressed by the level of quality by the story?s main characters. However, minor ones were portrayed way too profusely and sound a bit forced, as with any American-style, Japanese-produced anime movie. I was also quite disappointed at the fact that the robots were presented with that ?tech echo,? since the Japanese dialogue had them simply speaking like regular humans. Other than that, nothing spectacular, but several scenes will shock most with their intense, vocal moments.

The Bottom Line:
Parasite Dolls definitely gets it props for effort and presentation, but may not sit well for audiences looking for something satisfying. The rush of the storyline and its moral values are rushed too profusely, sometimes too intense for audiences to move on to the next scene without thinking about the previous one. And? I love it. I?ve always been a fan of bold anime releases, different from the norm and raising the bar for other anime beyond it. Parasite Dolls not only excels in its standard, but rather it exceeds that bar for future anime to look up to. Although the pace could?ve been touched up a bit more, the production values for this anime cannot be denied as well done. It?s so good in own world, that I would?ve rather seen this spectrum of characters, and explosion of plot values expressed in a series, rather than a three-story stand. This is an anime intended for older anime viewers alike, avoiding the constant usage of fan service. This is a cop-story that could?ve gone the golden road up to the classics. This is how the world of mechas/boomers should?ve been introduced to us ? dark, weird, and of course ? real. This is the real deal.

Content Amazing boldness in the mecha sense in relation to the similarities to humans. A well-deserved step to raising the genre's quality bar. 9.0
Video This movie is well intended for older viewers, as most of them will appreciate the rushes of visual moments that will captivate its viewers. 9.1
Audio The dark, morbid tone of the soundtrack is well-paced, but unimpressive by most of today's standards. Thank god for the stray away from the 'bubblegum' tracks we're used to listening to. 8.0
Menus Great menu background. Easy to navigate. Terrific opening menu song. 8.0
Extras Not enough for casual viewers interested in how the entire anime was created. Only the bare essentials were included here. 7.4
Dialog Voice acting was fantastically done at key scenes of the movie, but minor characters lack inspiration. 8.6

Verdict

A very worthy addition to a world we've been so accustomed already. The anime could've been longer, preferably 'series' material. Too bad it had to end here.

8.5[not an average]

Posted on Tuesday, November 16, 2004 (Archive on Thursday, December 16, 2004)