Review of Casshern (2004) by Jy S — 13 Aug 2008
Casshern is Kazuaki Kiriya's debut film as a director, producer, and writer. Let me say that this is one h*** of a start.This film is based off an anime and there is no question that there will be a cult following.
There is a strong science fiction story to drive this film, but it drives it just a bit too far. The 2 hour 20 minute run time actually feels like 2 hours and 20 minutes because the pace is fairly slow with only a moderate amount of action.
Director Kiriya is not afraid to take huge steps with the visual aspect for this picture. If you take the looks of Sin City, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, and a little bit of Ultraviolet, you get Casshern.
It does sound overwhelming and at times it is. Certain portions look wonderful, while others are visually excessive. In the end, the benefits outweigh the negatives and it helps make the connection to the anime more meaningful, although there are other ways to accomplish this.
The action sequences are all about CG and effects. Sometimes, this doesn't work out so well, but they turn out pretty good in this film. Throughout the film there is an orchestrated soundtrack in the background, but the rock music kicks in when the hits start coming.
The sound effects also pick up during these too few segments.The acting is pretty good. A lot of the characters seem a little bland, but that is more the result of the film style rather than bad acting.
Casshern isn't a perfect film, but once you realize it is the director's first big budget one, you will come to appreciate it a little more.
This review of Casshern (2004) was written by Jy S on 13 Aug 2008.
Casshern has generally received positive reviews.
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