Name(s): Appleseed / アップルシード
Format: Movie
Studio(s): Digital Frontier
Related: Appleseed (1988)

You can probably imagine my happiness, as a huge Ghost in the Shell (GitS) fan, when I found that Masamune Shirow‘s other works were also science fiction, then my disappointment as I noticed there was a gigantic gap in acclaim between them and the legendary Ghost in the Shell.

Well, the only way to find out for certain was to venture in, myself. It looked to me like Appleseed was his most-acclaimed work following the GitS franchise, and I was told this movie was the best entry point. After watching, the lack of enthusiasm regarding it doesn’t really surprise me.

The most immediately distinctive aspect of the Appleseed movie is that it’s Japanese animation that’s entirely CG. I’ll start off by saying that I generally have a strong dislike for CG—I think it has a sterile look to it, lacks a human touch, and a unique sense of style in the art. I’m not a fan of Appleseed‘s CG either, but at the very least it attempts realistic proportions with it, as opposed to the usual, amorphous Disney CG blobs.

Style aside, the CG is animated perfectly well. I didn’t notice any clipping, and while the humans creepily looked like dolls, the backgrounds and machines were nice to look at. I still have to question choosing to use CG in the first place, when this is an adaptation of a manga, which is obviously 2D artwork…

Some of Shirow’s talents in constructing the Ghost in the Shell universe are still observable here. No technology seems outside the realm of plausibility, and even though there are mechs, they’re smaller, mobile power suits. As said earlier, the environments are generally very pretty to look at. Turmoil aside, Olympus looks like a cool place to live. In spite of this, the technology isn’t as intriguing as GitS. Possibly because it’s generally less desirable. Most of the technology we see is militarian, not utilitarian.

The plot and characters are… all right. Serviceable entertainment alongside the action and backdrops. The philosophy is simple and idealistic, and if you’ve ever seen sci-fi that deals with human nature apologism, then you know what to expect. Deunan Knute feels more like a plot device than a human being, being thrown around here and there out of obligation to the legacy of her parents rather than her own individual feelings. Her skill as a soldier reminds a lot of Motoko Kusanagi, although when it comes down to it we’re usually shown her succeeding thanks to the efforts of others instead of her own expertise.

Briareos is pretty cool, but it says something about the movie when it’s primarily because of his design and voice. There wasn’t enough one-on-one interaction to get to know the cast very well.

The best aspect of Appleseed is a minor one, and that’s the relationship of Deunan and Briareos, particularly relating to the fact Briareos has to use a mechanical body after losing his original in the war. It’s a clever analogy that’s easy to sympathize with as that of another relationship being tarnished due to physical deformities victims gain from war for the upper class. Deunan’s repulsion towards seeing Briareos’s new form and her guilt over that instinct is the best part of Appleseed. It’s just a shame it wasn’t the primary focus.

All in all, an entertaining action sci-fi movie with not much more to it. I wouldn’t mind not being able to return to the world or characters again, to be perfectly honest.