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david_g
Reviews
Kaubôi bibappu: Cowboy Bebop (1998)
One of the greatest anime series ever.
Cowboy Bebop is perhaps the best anime I have ever seen. While I do not consider myself otaku, I have long been interested in anime and have seen the best examples the medium has had to offer. Cowboy Bebop is set in the future some 100 years from now where faster than light space travel has been made possible by the advent of jumpgates and Earth has become a stagnant backwater constantly bombarded by leftover moon fragments (the result of a massive jumpgate explosion). Humans have spread throughout the solar system and like the Wild West of frontier America, desperados are rampant. With the law spread thin between the colonies (or out and out corrupt) the peace is kept by Cowboys, bounty hunters that do what it takes to get paid. Cowboy Bebop follows the exploits of Spike, Jet, Faye and Edward as they make their way around the solar system in the Bebop, a converted fishing trawler that has seen better days.
Cowboy Bebop has a heavy noir influence that is striking right from the beginning. The overiding theme of the series (for me at least) is that you cannot escape your past, at best you can only delay its consequences. The central story revolves around Spike and his past with the Red Dragon syndicate. From the beginning his story unfolds in flashback, detailing his time in the syndicate and his relationships with the two people that figure most prominent in his life, Julia (his lover) and Vicious (his former friend turned arch-nemesis). However, Cowboy Bebop is by no means a one-man band. The subplots involving Jet, Faye and Edward are highly engaging (and in the case of Edward, really funny) and show how much stronger a series can be when the full cast is utilised. I won't say much more about the story other than it's quite unlike anything out there at the moment.
Also worthy of mention is the music. Yoko Anno and the Seatbelts have outstripped themselves providing excellent jazz-influence music that does a lot to set the theme of Cowboy Bebop. The animation is of an extremely high quality and for a change the English dub is very good. Cowboy Bebop is a series for both anime veterans and newcomers alike. I cannot recommend Cowboy Bebop enough, it is a must see.
Babylon 5: In the Beginning (1998)
Fine telemovie that should be watched by all fans of the series.
Before watching In the Beginning I had only ever heard of Babylon 5 in passing. I knew it was well respected amongst its fans and had earned critical acclaim. After watching this film I became an avid fan of the series. In the Beginning tells the tale of the Earth/Minbari war, Earth was on the rise as an interstellar power and filled with confidence after defeating the Dilgar. Many races were courting Earth's favour, in particular the Centauri, a former power in the cosmos now in the twilight of its Empire. The tale is told in retrospect by Londo Mollari (Peter Jurasik), then just a lowly liason to the Earth government, but now an aging and sad Emperor. Through his narration you get a sense of the importance of the events surrounding the war and the consequences for all life in the universe as a result of it.
The special effects are of good quality, on par with the series but not of the same quality you'd find in a cinema release. Some of the scenes have been recycled from the first season of Babylon 5 (particularly those shots involving the Battle of the Line and Michael O'Hare) but coupled with Peter Jurasik's voice over they prove to be very effective in portraying the relentlessness of the Minbari and the courage of the humans in the face of destruction.
Despite the conspicuous absence of Micheal Garibaldi (Jerry Doyle), all of the series regulars make an appearance. It was interesting to see a young looking John Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner) in his much talked about battles with the Minbari and the events surrounding Delenn's (Mira Furlan) proclamation of war against the humans after the death of the Minbari leader Dukhat. However, it must be said that the star of the film is Londo Mollari. Anyone familiar with the regular series will appreciate Peter Jurasik's performance and his subtle references to the mistakes he made in the past.
In the Beginning can be watched by anyone. I came to it with no knowledge of the regular series and enjoyed myself immensely. It tells a stirring story of heroism, courage in the face of overwhelming odds and hope for the future. Those fans of the series that haven't seen it yet will no doubt come away with a greater appreciation for Babylon 5. It fills in a lot of the history surrounding the Earth/Minbari war and has a great ending that links in directly to the double episode War Without End from the third season of B5 (it my confuse those not familiar with the series though). That said, those interested in good sci-fi would do well to see this telemovie as it shows what can be done with good writing, wonderful acting and good special effects. The best of the Babylon 5 telemovies.
Breaking Away (1979)
Great coming of age story.
Breaking Away tells the story of four teenagers on the threshold of manhood and the troubles they have in adapting to the pressures that are increasingly coming to bear upon them. Dave, Michael, Cyril and Moocher spends their days in the water filled limestone pits ruminating on where their life is taking them. To the local college students they are nothing more than "cutters", townies hanging onto to the past glory of their high school years. However, they see themselves in the prime of their lives, enjoying each day as though summer will never end and only sometimes fearing what the future may hold for them.
Things are brought to a head through Micheal (Dennis Christopher), a cycling phenomenon obsessed with all things Italian (much to the chagrin of his father). His misadventures with his cycling bring him into contact with his hopes, fears and the future. His experiences bring him closer to his friends and his father and show him a world beyond the small town in which he lives. To paraphrase his father (an actual stone 'cutter') during one touching scene in the film "I don't want to see my son grow up in the holes we cut.."
Breaking Away is a wonderful film that is beautifully shot and treats the trials of a teenager on the verge of adulthood with respect and dignity (something that cannot be said for most teenage films nowadays). The dialogue, particularly between Micheal and his father, was wonderful and shows that families can be dysfunctional without being abrasive. While Dennis Christopher was the standout actor as Michael, he is well supported by an ensemble cast including a very young (and very fit looking) Dennis Quaid. If you're looking for an uplifting film that isn't overly sentimental, Breaking Away is the film for you.
Fallen (1998)
Excellent supernatural thriller.
Fallen is one of those movies that wasn't entirely appreciated at the time of it's release and quickly sunk out of sight when it hit video. However, despite this, Fallen is one of the great films of the last five years. It is a rather understated film that tells the story of a fallen angel carrying out its vengeance against mankind by inhabiting the bodies of anyone it touches and generally causing mayhem. It crosses paths with Denzel Washington's character Hobbes in the form of Edgar Reese, a virulent serial killer consigned to the gas chamber in the beginning of the film. From then on the film tells a tale of a good man's struggle against an implacable, and immortal, foe.
All the performance's are great with a strong supporting cast that complement the principle characters. The interaction between Goodman and Washington was a joy to behold and makes me wonder why these two fine actors haven't done more work together. Elias Koteas in particular sets the mood for Fallen with a great manic performance as Reese. The film is genuinely creepy in places as the fallen angel stalks Hobbes through countless strangers, pushing the frantic cop to breaking point as circumstances steadily spin out of control. The way the demon manipulates events against Hobbes makes you grateful that such creatures don't actually exist (hopefully).
The last half of the film speeds quickly to the inevitable showdown between Hobbes and the demon, but just when you thought you had it figured out, Fallen presents you with perhaps the great movie twist since the The Sixth Sense. If you're even remotely interested in good film with a strong cast and a great ending, Fallen is the film for you. For fans of Denzel Washington, alongside The Hurricane, Fallen is perhaps his best work since the late eighties. Go out and see it today.