Appleseed Alpha Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

Appleseed Alpha Blu-ray Movie Review

I am the alpha and...the appleseed.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman July 19, 2014

"Every story has a beginning." That sounds like the tagline used for Star Wars: Episode 1 -- The Phantom Menace, but it works here, too, as an easy way to denote "prequel" or, looking at it another way, making one word into several. Appleseed Alpha, a film that depicts events prior to both Appleseed and Appleseed: Ex Machina, follows the early journeys of heroes Deunan Knute and Briareos Hecatonchires, two survivors in a post-apocalyptic world where the promise of a future and the fading chances to live a real, full life diminish with every shot fired, building crumbled, and bad guy encountered. This is, obviously, the most technically advanced Appleseed yet, a gorgeous example of modern CGI filmmaking that also boasts a decent story with big action and suitable character development.

"So I guess Pizza Hut's closed, then."

Deunan Knute (voiced by Luci Christian) and Briareos Hecatonchires (voiced by David Matranga) fail a mission for a post-apocalyptic New York City overlord named Two Horns (voiced by Wendel Calvert), to whom they are in debt, in which they could not safely return to him a critical vaccine. In response, Two Horns tasks them with eliminating some automatic drones located on the outskirts of the city. While on-mission, Deunan and Briareos rescue Iris (voiced by Brina Palencia) and Olson (voiced by Adam Gibbs). When Deunan learns that they're from a secretive, almost mystical safe zone called "Olympus," they join them on their mission and encounter resistance quite unlike anything they've fought before.

Appleseed: Alpha neve quite gets everything in perfect working order. There's a solid pace to the movie, an enjoyable rhythm of characterization and events and action, but never quite that deep, meaningful soul through which everything is tied together. While nothing about the film feels fully generic -- thanks, largely, not to the story details but rather the realism with which it all comes together on a superficial level -- it doesn't break new dramatic ground, either, staying in a comfort zone of twists and turns but never anything that leaves the audience in awe of the unfolded story or its impact on the characters. In essence, it's a movie created more for the superficial than any sort of inward, hidden, in some way deeper, themes. That's not to say the movie is dramatically flat, but it is to say that audiences expecting their minds to be blown or their world outlook to be shaped or challenged here will walk away disappointed.

In a movie like this, however, that's not the end of the world. Appleseed Alpha, taken for its surface value, offers a lot of digital bang for the Blu-ray buck. The movie is, aside from a few nagging issues with the video presentation (outlined in the video quality section below) proves often to be a startling visual tour-de-force of modern digital filmmaking. While it might look like a giant video game cutscene at-a-glance, it becomes clear rather quickly that the movie is anything but. The filmmakers have created a very real, tangible world and realistically constructed characters to inhabit it, even those (most of the characters) who appear futuristic in some way, usually by way of robotic implants or detailed mechanical suits. There's an uncanny photorealism to many elements, particularly more static elements such as objects lining long shelves or sandy desert terrain. Better, the action flows very well. It hits hard and, when it's happening, never relents until it's over. Sci-Fi action fans will have no trouble feeling right at home with the explosive gunplay and very real sense of danger that comes with every shot fired.

Appleseed Alpha Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Appleseed Alpha arrives on Blu-ray with a mostly good, top-end 1080p transfer. The Blu-ray resolution allows viewers to soak in every last digital detail, of which there are many. This is exactly the sort of presentation that truly allows viewers to appreciate the massive amounts of work that go into a movie of this sort, revealing all of the finest little odds and ends details on both characters and in their environments that elevate it from "good" to "spectacular." Indeed, all sorts of little chips and wear on armored surfaces, desert terrains, background details, and other elements look stunning in HD. Colors are even and exciting, with bright reds and a few other colorful shades nicely standing apart from backgrounds that largely consist of flatter metallic grays, earthy tans, and black and gray desolate cityscapes. Unfortunately, and despite and tremendous detail and well-defined colors, the transfer comes with some drawbacks. Black levels are iffy at best oftentimes appearing worn down and gray rather than deep and firm. Additionally, the image suffers from regular, and oftentimes distracting, levels of aliasing and shimmering that make straight objects jagged and with the look of being lightly in motion. Beyond those complaints, however, is a terrific transfer that fans should enjoy.

Appleseed Alpha Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Appleseed Alpha bursts onto Blu-ray with an active and satisfying DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. The track is packed with well-defined yet highly aggressive action effects, beginning with a screeching subway car and including copious amounts of gunfire and tight, deep explosions. The action effects flow with considerable energy and accuracy, with gunfire in particular packing a realistic, heavy wallop. Explosions test the limits of the subwoofer and send a large, strong, punishing burst into the listening area. Sound movement is excellent, too. A subway car swooshes from side to side early in the film, and there's a very good sense of space as vehicles and characters maneuver through the environment in later parts of the film. There's not an abundance of subtle, environment-shapring atmospherics, but then again a desolate, dead world isn't expected to have much. Dialogue flows evenly and clearly from the center. Overall, this is an excellent track in every area of concern.

Appleseed Alpha Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Appleseed Alpha contains an audio commentary track and a detailed and oftentimes fascinating 11-part making-of feature. A UV digital copy code is included in the case.

• Audio Commentary: Director Shinji Aramaki, Producer Joseph Chouand, and Sony Pictures' Ishizuka cover, in a rather jovial, easygoing manner, tales from the production, scene details, story themes, technical details of the creative process, and much more. In Japanese with optional English, Dutch, French, German, Korean, and Spanish subtitles.
• The Making of Appleseed: Alpha (1080p): An eleven-part feature, as outlined below. In English and Japanese with optional English, Dutch, French, German, Korean, and Spanish subtitles.
• The Beginning (7:27): A look back at the project's history, dating back to the creation of Starship Troopers: Invasion, the material's viability in the digital realm, assembling the filmmaking team, assembling a team to work towards international distribution, working across borders and oceans, creating a "reboot" and "fresh start" for the franchise that features the characters in search of Olympus, fleshing out the characters, and more.
• The Backstory (2:03): Director Shinji Aramaki discusses the world in which the film is set and the protagonists that operate in it.
• Design (6:09): Concept Designer Shinji Usui, Director Shinji Aramaki, and Production Designer Daisuke Matsuda cover the process of designing the film's impressive array of mechanical elements and digital supportive props.
• Characters (2:44): Character Supervisor Kazuaki Kano and Shading/Lighting Supervisor Seiji Tayama cover the process of creating realistic digital characters.
• Modeling and Backgrounds (5:23): Background & Props Supervisor Tsutomu Nakazawa and Character Shading/Lighting Supervisor Masamitsu Tasaki discuss the importance of subtle yet critical details in creating a more realistic world as well as the the broader post-apocalyptic setting and objects that exist within it.
• Motion Capture (4:49): Director Shinji Aramaki and Military Action Advisor Masahito Hosokawa offer an overview of the motion capture technology, its benefits, the real actors' military training, and Hosokawa's performance in the film standing in for Deunan during action scenes.
• Animation (4:46): CGI Producer Shigehito Kawada, Layout Supervisor Sumiko Katsuki, and Animation Supervisor Hiroshi Takeuchi speak on the importance of storyboards, motion capture, layout, and the importance of integrating real-life subtleties into character movement.
• Facial Capture (6:12): Director Shinji Aramaki and Facial Animation Supervisor Hidemasa Moriya look at the benefits and challenges of detailed facial capture techniques and how they helped create emotion and realism in the film.
• Effects (2:24): CGI Producer Shigehito Kawada and Effects Supervisor Takuya Kiyozuka examine the process of creating realistic action effects.
• Compositing (6:30): CGI Director Masaru Matsumoto, Director Shinji Aramaki, Compositing Lead Motootsugu Endo, and Technical Director Wosung Jung look at the important process of compositing, which involves creating a finished, polished, detailed, cohesive look for the film. It also looks at working by hand or through the computer. There's also a brief, broader overview of the entire filmmaking process with Producer Joseph Chou at the end.
• Music (4:57): Director Shinji Aramaki, Composer Tetsuya Takahashi, and Music Producer Shin Yasui present a detailed explanation of the film's score and the elements it reflects. It also features a discussion of music's importance as a supportive element to heighten a scene.
• Previews (1080p): Additional Sony titles.

Appleseed Alpha Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Appleseed Alpha doesn't redefine a genre, but it does define a series and pushes the digital boundaries further forward. So, in two ways out of three, it is something of a game-changer, and an entertaining one at that. While audiences probably won't find any sort of truly deep themes running through the film, they will enjoy solid characterization, a well-defined post-apocalyptic environment, plenty of well-orchestrted action, and an astonishing attention to visual and aural detail. Sony's Blu-ray release of Appleseed Alpha features solid but sometimes troubled video, high end lossless audio, and a strong assortment of supplemental content. Highly recommended.