Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

MFKZ Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman April 10, 2019

MFKZ is an abbreviated alphabet soup alternate title for Mutafukaz (how subtle), as the film is known in other regions. The film is a Japanese-French anime directed by Shōjirō Nishimi and Guillaume Renard. MFKZ doesn't bat an eyelash at blood, guts, mayhem, oddball characters, references galore, Sci-Fi overtones, and a quasi-dystopian setting, the latter of which nevertheless feels all to familiar. The narrative rarely gels and the plot points almost work better in isolation. It's unique if it's anything, uniquely weird to be sure and uniquely aimed at an audience with tastes for the macabre, for excess, and for exploitation in animated form.

Just your everyday DMCers.

Angelino (voiced by Kenn Michael) is a down-on-his-luck nobody whose one wish in life is to be “a somebody.” He can't hold down a job and he lives in a cockroach infested apartment with his friend, Vinz (voiced by Vince Staples). Angelino lives in Dark Meet City (which the residents have rebranded Depression, Murder, and, um, crazy people to say it in a way acceptable for a family-friendly website). It’s part of “New California,” apparently, which is very much familiar except that things are a little different, including Angelino’s unorthodox appearance and that Vinz is a skeleton with a flaming head, à la Ghost Rider. One day, their apartment is raided by heavily armed Nazi-esque stormtroopers. Suddenly, Angelino discovers a few latent talents that allow him and Vinz to escape. With the help of their conspiracy theorist friend Willy (voiced by Dino Andrade) and the mysterious and lovely Luna (voiced by Dascha Polanco), Angelino finds himself on the run and part of something much bigger than he could have ever imagined.

MFKZ summarized in a word: weird. The film's playground is some strange hybrid of familiar and fantasy, modern realities and dystopian frights, blurring a line between the two and creating what is the film's strength, a grungy, grimy, uncomfortable vision of the world, one so dense with uncomfortable despair, disrepair, and cockroaches that a good, hot shower feels like a requirement after watching. It's highly effective in shaping its world but narrative is not necessarily the film's strong suit. The plot introduces a number of characters and mechanics, each with unique stories, motivations, and places in the world. None of it comes together to any sort of approachable level. The film feels distant. It's not unsure of its construct, but it plays with a lack of assuredness in sharing its story with the audience. There's too much going on, visually and verbally on the surface with more dramatic and thematic undercurrents than the picture can sustain. The movie never approaches anything resembling a succinct storyline. It's so overwhelmed by its styles that it loses track of whatever substance the filmmakers wanted to bring to the surface.

Yet it's undeniably alluring. It's not particularly well made in terms of conveying its story and purpose, but there's so much density to the movie, so many sights to see and sounds to hear and people and places and things to explore that the movie maintains audience interest even when it's falling narratively short. The film's characters are well drawn, and not simply in the artistic realm. They are unique in appearance and personality, and even without much coherence around them they play well in isolation, particularly as Angelino's self discovery propels the story, an identifiable thread in the midst of the movie's maelstrom of violence and urban chum.

MFKZ Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

MFKZ's 1080p Blu-ray transfer is proficient, delivering a quality viewing experience that reproduces the film's world with healthy detail and color. Dark Meat City is alive with textural abundance, particularly as the film focuses on less than pristine environments where run-down structures and poorly cared for natural details reveal the city's state of disrepair that is both a proverbial character in the film and a rewarding viewing experience in seeing and sorting out all of the little urban touches and the multitude of references both to this film's plot and the larger entertainment landscape. Blu-ray's clarity and image stability allow this world's grungy, inhospitable look and feel to shine on any size screen, more than proficient in conveying the film's essential and subtle stylings with textural adeptness. Character models are nicely defined, too, though there are some examples of macroblocking and banding getting in the way. Take a look at one of the "men in black" at the 17:30 mark for one of the most obvious and sustained examples (the image also suffers from the occasional jagged line; a horizontal car windshield seen at the 36:40 mark is a good example). Colors are plentiful, and there's no bleeding through the multitude of shades that define the various urban locales and items, such as storefronts, billboards, alleyways, and apartment interiors. Saturation is good, contrast is even amidst the movie's grungy, quasi-dystopian vision, and character models reveal various color elements (Angelino's black skin, Vinz's ever-present flame) with commendable accuracy.

MFKZ Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

MFKZ's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack handles prescribed duties admirably, but not excellently. Probably the most disappointing audio characteristic is that distinct lack of oomph to gunfire. Whether blasting machine guns, large caliber sniper rifles, or magnum revolvers, gunfire plays with more of a subdued whimper than a grand, blasting sonic signature. Action in general is a little timid, not wanting for increased spacial engagement but certainly wanting for greater low end engagement for that fuller, more immersive sense of place. That's disappointing since the film is so visually chaotic, and would-be aurally chaotic, but the track mostly settles for replicating sound rather than becoming actively engaged with it. Musical spread and clarity are good, however, and various examples of discrete environmental details and more broadly immersive location din are handled well. Dialogue is delivered with good foundational clarity and front-center placement. Prioritization is fine.

MFKZ Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

MFKZ contains a substantial making-of and a few trailers. A DVD copy of the film and a Movies Anywhere digital copy code are included with purchase. This release ships with a non-embossed slipcover.

• The Making of MFKZ (1080p, 53:02): This comprehensive making-of (which is split up into 10 chapters) offers an in-depth discussion of the source material and the challenges of fully understanding and embracing it. It also looks, in some detail, at character and environmental details and animations. The piece takes viewers into detailed collaboration meetings, covers the language barriers amongst the filmmakers, the film's story and themes, the U.S. setting, the Sci-Fi plot elements, the film's violence, and sound design.
• Trailers (1080p, 4:14 total runtime): Include are the film's US Teaser, the US Redband Trailer, and the Original French Trailer.

MFKZ Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

MFKZ obviously favors its sometimes trashy excess over any existential philosophy or sense of direction and purpose, even if those things seem to be in here somewhere, well buried under the superficialities that overwhelm the movie. It's a movie that demands its audience have a taste for its visual and aural crudities and style. No doubt it will go down as a classic in some circles and be rejected outright in others. One thing is for sure: this isn't a movie for kids, despite the "GKIDS" label. Universal's Blu-ray delivers good, not great, video and audio presentations. Supplements include a lengthy making-of and a few trailers. Fans can buy with a measure of confidence. Newcomers should proceed with caution.