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| Reviewer: Black Cat |
Run Time: 100 mins(?) |
Format: Fansub |
Distributor: N/A |
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P A T L A B O R 3 : A W X I I I |
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It goes without saying that I am a huge fan of Patlabor, I loved the first two films, and I am a huge fan of all the series, having grown up with it while I was living abroad. Patlabor, the first film, was the first anime I ever came across, it was not simply another mecha show, as it had more mature undertones and themes, unlike anything I had ever seen before. The series continued my love for this type of more realistic mecha shows (is that even possible?). The characters were true to life and interacted with each other in a manner that I am very familiar with, they are not heroes saving the world from an evil menace, but civil servants, who constantly moan and bitch about the low pay and the long hours. The Patlabor of the title is the name given to a type of police mech, employed by the second section of the police force, who pilot eight metre tall robots against other ‘Labors’ which have been either hijacked or gone awry, but this film is anything but a simple continuation of the exploits of SV2, as in the series and previous films. With each new Patlabor film, the tone of the franchise got deeper, with Patlabor 2 snagging several awards for its dark tale of vengeance and intrigue. Patlabor 3, has continued with this change in mood, though in a very surprising way. The actual title of this film, is WXIII, which surprised me somewhat, but then I actually watched the film and saw the reason why. Even though this is technically the third Patlabor film, it has very little to do with the special vehicles second section, who are the stars of both previous films and the TV series. Instead, the tale centres around two ‘ordinary’ police detectives who are investigating some mysterious cases of Labor sabotage around the Tokyo bay, which soon turn to gruesome and bloody murders. The animation of the film is superb; it is pure, decadent eye candy, something that pleased me greatly about the film. The soundtrack is excellent, and the voice actors have really shone with their efforts to inject life and realism into the characters, something that the Japanese have really got sussed with their animated shows. The story is mature and thought provoking, and yet completely unrealistic. But even though the fantasy element of the plot is quite strong, it still manages to make it believable, which is not all that surprising, since Headgear, the group who are behind Patlabor, managed to make eight meter tall police robots seem like something you should be seeing every day. All in all, I was very impressed with the film, though I was a little disappointed by the lack of screen time given to the Patlabor team, but since the film is of such high quality, it seems like a pretty meaningless gripe indeed. I must warn that there is a great deal more violence and gore involved in this film, than the TV series and previous moves put together, but it is not mindless violence, so that makes it ok (sick but true). Awe inspiring stuff, what more can I say. 9/10 Back to Menu |
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| Mechs and the City |  |
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For more megalopolis-mecha action, check out MVM's BubbleGum Crisis.
Action packed and intelligent character driven drama has never been
so good.Read the Review |
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