In my opinion, this is one of the best anime movies I've ever seen. This is the first anime movie I've viewed since Princess Mononoke and Blue Submarine No. 6 that I think can compare in both story and animation. My only word of caution is not to come to this expecting a continuation of the series; the movie follows a completely different storyline, and even the characters, though similar in appearance and attitude, have been changed.
However, this does not change the quality of the movie itself. It's one of the most beautifully animated features I've ever seen, with a stunning soundtrack by Yoko Kanno, and a good storyline. I'll admit, the storyline for the series was probably a bit better, but that doesn't lessen the quality of the work.
My biggest relief was that the voice actors of the series returned; I was highly impressed by the work they did, and I believe that this is some of their best so far. Andrew Francis, the voice of Dilandau Albatou, remains one of my favorite voice actors, and his work on the movie simply stunned me.
I was also quite impressed with the updated characters; my favorite was the update to Allen Schezar, and my second favorite to Merle. I believe both versions of Dilandau Albatou and Van Fanell were fitting, but the movie updates suit them just fine. My only disappointment was the update to Hitomi Kanzaki, the main character. I was happy to see them change her outfit and appearance, but the personality change was rather upsetting. However, the movie makes up for that by having wonderful character development, thus my complaints are resolved.
The movie did have a slightly rushed feeling, but it's hard to fit what wants to be a long story into the time limits. I think they did a wonderful job with the constraints they had, and that this is most certainly something any anime lover should see. Let me remind you again that this movie is not a continuation of the series, so please don't watch in the hopes of finding more to the original story. This is a complete re-telling.
All in all, I think this is a wonderful movie; the story is good, the characters are colorful, the music is excellent, the visual is stunning, and the voices are, as always, amazing. It's well directed, well designed, and well made. I would recommend this movie on my top list of choices without a second thought.
However, this does not change the quality of the movie itself. It's one of the most beautifully animated features I've ever seen, with a stunning soundtrack by Yoko Kanno, and a good storyline. I'll admit, the storyline for the series was probably a bit better, but that doesn't lessen the quality of the work.
My biggest relief was that the voice actors of the series returned; I was highly impressed by the work they did, and I believe that this is some of their best so far. Andrew Francis, the voice of Dilandau Albatou, remains one of my favorite voice actors, and his work on the movie simply stunned me.
I was also quite impressed with the updated characters; my favorite was the update to Allen Schezar, and my second favorite to Merle. I believe both versions of Dilandau Albatou and Van Fanell were fitting, but the movie updates suit them just fine. My only disappointment was the update to Hitomi Kanzaki, the main character. I was happy to see them change her outfit and appearance, but the personality change was rather upsetting. However, the movie makes up for that by having wonderful character development, thus my complaints are resolved.
The movie did have a slightly rushed feeling, but it's hard to fit what wants to be a long story into the time limits. I think they did a wonderful job with the constraints they had, and that this is most certainly something any anime lover should see. Let me remind you again that this movie is not a continuation of the series, so please don't watch in the hopes of finding more to the original story. This is a complete re-telling.
All in all, I think this is a wonderful movie; the story is good, the characters are colorful, the music is excellent, the visual is stunning, and the voices are, as always, amazing. It's well directed, well designed, and well made. I would recommend this movie on my top list of choices without a second thought.