Name(s):Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust / 吸血鬼ハンターD ブラッドラスト
Director(s): Yoshiaki Kawajiri
Format(s): Movie (102 minutes)
Genre(s): Action / Dark Fantasy / Horror
Studio(s): Madhouse
Release Date(s): July 2000 (Fantasia Fest) / April 21, 2001 (Japan) / September 23, 2001 (United States)
Related: Vampire Hunter D (1985)

A man simply known as “D” is a Dhampir, a rare half-human, half-vampire. D makes his living as many do – as a bounty hunter who hunts his own demonic kind. When D is offered a large sum of money to pursue a woman kidnapped by a vampire, he begins what seems to be just another case. Things get complicated when a rival group of human bounty hunters appear and impede him along with other creatures assisting the kidnapping vampire, Meier Link. And the strangest thing of all is that the woman may have gone with Meier Link of her own free will.

I had no history with this movie. I think I heard its name a few times in passing or seen its poster around, but at the most I just sort of registered it as a minor cult classic. Perhaps I thought it would be something similar to Ninja Scroll, an early English-dubbed pulp action movie that didn’t have much more going for it. For what it was, I liked Ninja Scroll and don’t consider it simply a movie for nostalgists, so I just tossed this on expecting a fun, easy watch. I ended up being stunned at just how high and balanced the qualities of this movie were. I don’t feel like doing a fully detailed review for now though so this will have to suffice.

The setting is instantly interesting, a strange mix of Gothic horror, dark fantasy, and occult science. Though a movie with vampires in it, it’s similar to Hellsing in how broad it adopts other mythologies. If anything it’s even looser, with most creatures in the movie not being vampires but also not falling into any traditional demon roles like werewolves. There’s a large variety in character designs, and D himself is modeled after the “lone gunman” with a large-rimmed hat and a black horse he travels with. Many parts of this feel like a neo-western, such as the adventure story where bounty hunters travel across wide, deserted lands in search of a criminal. D is similar to the character of Clint Eastwood’s “Blondie” character in that he acts neutrally and like someone only interested in profit, but his true motives are revealed through his unexpected actions.

The movie’s only town looks like one from a Midwestern desert, and has the most guns in the story as well as an actual designated sheriff. There’s also similar values regarding low dialogue (particularly in the midst of action), and landscaping. The setting is already interesting enough to be worth the extra attention to detail, but there really are some beautiful and ghastly backgrounds and set design. Carmilla’s blood red and depressive blue castle contrasts well, Meier’s invisible fortress that is guarded by eyes that open up and fire lasers is surreal and creepy, and the scene where D rides across gigantic sand manta rays feels like something on the scale of Berserk.

The plot is simple in structure, but understands to accompany it all with immediacy. I’ve already talked about how compelling the setting is, but the tone is desolately cold as well. Although the characters don’t have much ambiguity to them, they make the most out of their few lines of dialogue by leaving strong personality impressions with a witty script and phenomenal English voice work. I thought everyone in this movie was at the very least interesting, much like everything else about it.

The drip feed of lore and sense of mystery to the world kept the narrative surprising beyond what could be predicted in its plot, and I liked every cast member no matter how small their role turned out to be. The soundtrack was mostly a mix of orchestral and the typical church choral music you’d expect from Gothic horror. I thought all of it fit but was so engrossed by the movie I didn’t really pick out any stand out tracks.

Anyway that’s about it for now. I thought this was fantastic and it’s among my favorite anime movies now. The mood and setting are totally engrossing, the characters cool despite their brevity, and the emotional weight is carried enough by the atmosphere of every scene. It’s very heavy on style, but it left more of an impression on me than most stories I see in anime movies (or maybe anime in general), so I don’t see that as anything close to a flaw. I recommend this highly, and I’m stunned it’s not a bigger movie.