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Cowboy
Bebop: The Movie |
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review | notes | availability | |
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Spike Spiegel struts his stuff in Cowboy Bebop: The Movie. |
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Japanese: |
Cowboy Bebop: Tengoku no Tobira |
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AKA: |
Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' on Heaven's Door |
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Year: |
2001 |
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Director: |
Shinichirô Watanabe, Hiroyuki Okiura (uncredited) |
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Producer: |
Haruyo Kanesaku, Masahiko Minami, Minoru Takanashi, Ryohei
Tsunoda, Masuo Ueda, Takayuki Yoshii |
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Voices: |
Kôichi Yamadera, Unshô Ishizuka, Megumi Hayashibara,
Aoi Tada, Tsutomu Isobe |
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The
Skinny: |
The Bebop crew leaps to the big screen with a theatrical encore
worthy of the critically acclaimed television series that
spawned it. |
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Review by
Calvin
McMillin: |
With its sleek animation style,
action-packed plots, and head-bopping soundtrack, Cowboy
Bebop arguably ranks as one of the greatest television
shows ever made—anime or not. For most, series' protagonist
Spike Spiegel serves as Bebop's primary drawing point.
Whether it be his Philip Marlowe-worthy hardboiled cool, his
Bruce Lee-inspired Jeet Kune Do skills, or his mysteriously
tragic backstory, Spike Spiegel never fails to intrigue. But
Cowboy Bebop isn't a one-man show; Spike's supporting
cast is far from lacking. His pals are a ragtag bunch to say
the least: there's elder statesman Jet Black, femme fatale/gambling
addict Faye Valentine, idiot girl genius Ed, and their trusty
data dog Ein. Together these bounty hunters cruised the galaxy
for 26 episodes before ending their heralded run on a poetic,
but decidedly final note. While many great television series
plod on for years until they've all but lost the magic that
hooked viewers in the first place, the Bebop creators got
out long before then, leaving their fans wanting more. And
more they got.
The plot of Cowboy Bebop:
The Movie isn't much of a departure from the action-packed,
yet often philosophical storylines of the TV show. In the
film, a simple bounty suddenly turns into a deadly game of
bio-terrorism as Spike and company try to stop the sinister-looking
Vincent Volaju from committing mass genocide on Halloween
night. To tell any more of the plot would simply take away
from part of the joy of the Cowboy Bebop experience
itself: the unfolding of the narrative. And like the best
of the TV episodes, the film unfolds with definite panache.
The filmmakers wisely opted not to pick up where the show
left off, and instead set the film between episodes 22 and
23 of the series. For longtime fans, the film provides a few
in-joke worthy treats, and also helps clarify the seeming
death wish that Spike Spiegel possessed in the final episodes.
The new characters of Vincent and his former lover Electra
are infinitely intriguing and nicely drawn on both a visual
and conceptual level. As she did with the series, Yoko Kanno
provides yet another jazzy, techno-infused score that propels
the film forward.
Those unfamiliar with the television
show might be lost, but also no less impressed, perhaps finding
themselves caught up in a stylish world that feels at once
retro, contemporary, and futuristic. Even for these novice
viewers, the film would still serve as a fitting introduction
to the merits of this wildly popular anime. No matter what
your familiarity level may be, Cowboy Bebop: The Movie
delivers one heck of a ride. (Calvin McMillin, 2003) |
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Notes: |
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The American voice actors from Bandai's Cowboy Bebop
English-language release reprise their roles on the English
dubbed track.
• Reportedly,
the film was not released under its original title due to
copyright conflicts with the Bob Dylan tune of the same
name. However, it is equally plausible that the American
studio simply wanted the title shortened for mass consumption.
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Availability: |
DVD (USA)
Region 1 NTSC
Columbia/Tri-Star Home Video
16x9 Anamoprphic Widescreen
Japanese and English Language Tracks
Dolby Digital 5.1
English and French Subtitles
Six featurettes, Character profiles, Music videos, Conceptual
art galleries, Storyboard comparisons, In-depth character
profiles, Trailers |
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image courtesy
of Columbia/Tri-Star Home Video
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| LoveHKFilm.com
Copyright ©2002-2017 Ross Chen
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