April and the Extraordinary World Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.0

April and the Extraordinary World Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman July 30, 2016

There's no question that Steampunk -- the fantasy genre that features more or less "advanced" worlds run by gadgets and gizmos powered by steam -- has become a fairly substantial force in the modern entertainment landscape. Big gears, clunky worlds, drab environments, and raw technology play in stark contrast to the real world's smooth and slick construction, and certainly practically alien to anything known to man beyond the realm of the imagination. The Steampunk world's latest imagining and adventure comes by way of animation -- classically styled animation, not new era Pixar -- in April and the Extraordinary World, a GKids film directed by Christian Desmares and Franck Ekinci that takes a look at a reimagined Paris -- and world -- in which a young woman, and her talking cat, looks for the miracle of life, the miracle in the flesh, and the miracle born in the test tube and promising the unbelievable.

If cats could talk...really...

The timeline has been skewed. The Franco-Prussian War never happened. Prior to the outbreak of hostilities, Napoleon III was killed during a failed experiment in the quest to create super soldiers. Napoleon IV assumed his late father's place. He was a peacemaker, and the world's future was drastically altered forever. But during that time, scientists -- the greatest minds in the world -- went missing. And so did the technological advancements and marvels they would create, advancements and marvels that would make the world safer, cleaner, and more efficient. Rather than the inventions of electricity, aviation, automobiles, and radio, the world became stuck in a polluted steam age. For decades, the wheels and gears kept churning, but man could not break free of an increasingly antiquated place in history. Years later, a family whose history dates back to Napoleon III's search for a serum to create a super-soldier was on the verge of finalizing a formula that would make man invincible, immune from disease, bodily damage, pain, and even death. But the police interfered and the family was separated. Young April (voiced by Angela Galuppo) and her talking cat Darwin (voiced by Tony Hale), who has the ability to speak following injection by a previous formula, fled. Years later, April has dedicated her life to continuing her family's work. But the police are still hot on her trail. She befriends a boy named Julius (voiced by Tod Fennell) who is secretly in cahoots with an obsessed policeman named Pizoni (voiced by Paul Giamatti). Still desperate to find her missing parents, April embarks on a remarkable journey through a steam-powered world and discovers extraordinary secrets along the way.

Extraordinary World = Extraordinary Imagination. While the movie's rooted Steam Punk stylings are at the center of it all, and a fairly pedestrian core story of loss and adventure plays out in the center, the film's peripherals are creative and well done, deeply developed and richly realized. The world feels inhabited and lived in, very rough and crude and not at all charming but shaped by the ingenuity that keeps it moving. The rather dour façade is met with a rather dour story, at least at the beginning. The themes are dark, the world is dark, color is sparse, and it sets an unmissable tone for the film. It can be a little jarring, at first, the visuals and the story alike. It's all different: revisionist history sets the tale and an alternate universe, oddly familiar yet strangely foreign, shapes the world. But the movie maintains a healthy spirit of hope through the darkness, having plenty of fun along the way. And besides, who doesn't like a talking cat?

The movie's English language voice cast is top-notch, each performance matching character construction and the movie's tone with expert authenticity. The characters and the voices that match all rather well developed considering the movie's straightforward storyline, helped immensely by their need to uniquely live in, maneuver through, and survive that world that's at once both relatable yet coldly distant. It works because, despite the fantastical surroundings, it's a core human interest story at its heart, the tale of a girl in search of her family and the obstacles -- natural and unnatural -- that stand in her way. April is determined, resourceful, and smart. She's not a particularly unique character, and neither are any of those around her, but she's perfectly designed and developed for the movie's needs. From a more technical perspective, April and the Extraordinary World impress with its simple throwback animation stylings that never sacrifice the world's complexities. It's an attractive movie even through the dour environment and a reminder of the power of this style of animation.

April and the Extraordinary World Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

April and the Extraordinary World's 1080p presentation impresses throughout. Though much of the first half is contrast between spurts of cheery colors and an overwhelming background that's mostly shades of blue and gray and brown, the palette enjoys a richness, within the film's established parameters, that accentuates where needed and deemphasizes to effect. Later in the movie, the palette expands by quite a bit when the action shifts to a more densely green jungle location. Image clarity is excellent and the animation's inherent details always manage to spring forth with ease. Whether well worn façades and streets in the city or thick jungle elements, the image retains a clear and sharp definition. Character animation is smooth, moving well against more static backgrounds. The image does present a bit of banding and aliasing, but neither are seriously detrimental to the presentation. The animation lacks modern complexities, but the Blu-ray presents the more classically oriented style with impressive, though not quite impeccable, ease.

April and the Extraordinary World Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

April and the Extraordinary World features a well-rounded, though not prolific, DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack (English only). Musical clarity and width are both strong; seepage into the rears is never heavy, but there's a nice, simplistic balance to music that's perfectly complimentary to the film's mixed-up world. Atmospherics are plentiful and more prone to distinct placement. A door knock presents off to the side. Water spills and rolls into the stage, flooding the entirety of the listening area. Dialogue reverberates lightly, and naturally, around the stage during scenes taking place in conducive environments. Heavier action elements are fine, if not slightly underwhelming. Gunfire lacks authoritative punch, but shots ring out with acceptable strength and stage presence. More than any commanding factor, the track is more gentle than it is assertive, enveloping the listener into the world rather than hammering its sounds home. Dialogue is fine, well prioritized and center-focused with natural clarity.

Note that audio tracks cannot be changed "on the fly." They must be selected from the main menu or in-film via the pop-up menu; changing tracks in-film requires a restart of the movie.

April and the Extraordinary World Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

April and the Extraordinary World contains a featurette and a trailer. A DVD copy of the film and a UV/iTunes digital copy voucher are included with purchase.

• The Origin of The Extraordinary World (1080p, 28:00): The filmmakers offer a guide through the film, from is origins to construction. It also explores the benefits of the animated world, design, themes, inspirations, voice performances, the visual construction process and look of the film, and more. In French with English subtitles.
• April and the Extraordinary World Theatrical Trailer (1080p, 1:49).
• More from GKids (1080p): Previews for Only Yesterday, Boy & the World, When Marnie Was There, Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet, The Tale of Princess Kaguya, and Song of the Sea.

April and the Extraordinary World Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

April and the Extraordinary World is most interesting when one considers the movie's "butterfly effect" story arc, how one moment changed can alter the world in drastic, almost unrecognizable ways. That world is well designed if not necessarily dark and dank and the story is rather straightforward. April and Darwin are well drawn and perfect fits for the story. Animation is simple, but impressive. It's not a masterwork of its genre, but GKids' latest is well worth a watch. Universal's Blu-ray contains one substantive extra. Video and audio are strong. Recommended.