Patlabor 2: The Movie

This is a fine example of what Japanese animation can produce at its best. The style of this movie strongly reminds me of a Tom Clancy novel, which is unusual for anime. At the beginning I was a little put off by the slow pace of the movie, but as the story unfolded, I was sucked in by its complexity and realism. Indeed, the conflict and the political games between the government, the army and the police are so well constructed that I thought "this could *really* happen!"

If you liked this movie you should try to see "Jin-roh". There's the same kind of political and military intrigue but the story is more personal and close to the action than the high-circle strategy atmosphere which permeates Patlabor 2.

It's 2002, 3 years after the events in Patlabor 1. The collapse of the United Nations Labor team in South East Asia began the build-up to form a deadly terrorist plan that threatens to send shock waves throughout Japan's military. A fighter jet crashed into a bridge as a first sign of disaster. With evidence of an impending military takeover, the scattered members of the original Second Division must gather to defend Tokyo against any possible danger or an outbreaking war.

This is known to be the most political Patlabor anime ever made. The topics discussed in it make it feel like your watching a live action film. As well as long monologuing scenes that can be a snore. But the characters, story, and labor robots are all there.

Unlike the other Patlabor anime. This one focuses on Captain Goto, Shinobu, & Detective Matsui throughout the movie. And it's very meaningful in war, terrorism, and politics.

As with Patlabor 1, there's a facade of misleading marketing around this film. There's a picture of a big robot on the packaging, and any teaser will probably promise you a non-stop mecha blasting fest. This is, simply put, a shameless lie. Patlabor 2 is a political thriller (often likened to a Tom Clancy novel with good reasons), and a very slow, brooding, talky, philosophical one at that. Big robots just happen to exist in it's setting, but their presence in the film is so slight you'll hardly notice them.

What you will notice, however, are some wonderful visuals and music, and a story that asks the viewer many daring, insightful questions about the world of today.

The plot centers around a few terrorist attacks on Tokyo taking place in the winter of 2002 (note that the film was made in 1993). Most of these attacks are really fake, or harmless makebelieve-attacks, but they're enough to create panic and to cause the established sense of security to crumble to bits. Captains Gotoh and Nagumo of the Special Vehicle Units try to unmask the man, and especially the ideas behind these staged attacks. Everything points to a certain Yukihito Tsuge, who's an old familiar of Nagumo.

What makes this film special is the way we're given insights into Tsuge's beliefs through the dialogues. The viewer is directly confronted with some very powerful questions. The state of being that we call "peace" in the western world - just how peaceful is it really? How fragile is it, and how much do we deserve this relative 'peace' compared to the prices mostly others pay for it? The film is rife with such questions, and they leave a considerable impact on the viewer. I daresay Patlabor 2 is worth it's price alone for being confronted with such thought-provoking issues set to some of the most beautifully haunting images and music ever put on screen.

The animation is definitely finely-crafted (there's a scene where helicopters swoop over the city who's smoothness has to be seen to be believed), but it's biggest strong point is the way it's all been directed. Slow, sweeping shots of the intricate semi-futuristic cityscape are the order of the day, with many other impressively beautiful shots.

But it's the music that really stole the show for me, with a wonderful use of mostly gentle and haunting melodies. The soundtrack is a true masterpiece, whose tunes will remain with you for a long time after viewing the film. It adds a dimension to the atmosphere that really can't be described very well on paper, so I'll just say it's powerful and beautifully-crafted stuff. The image of snowflakes drifting down onto tanks stationed all over Tokyo while a soft, ghostly melody plays in the background is a good example of the sort of moment where Patlabor 2 shines.

It doesn't shine all the way, though. There are a few flaws to this film, which make it hard to recommend to everybody. The talkiness, for one thing, sometimes really goes over-the-top. Instead of showing you what happened, a pretty important development is sometimes only mentioned in a conversation. This makes it difficult to keep up all the time, especially as the viewer is sometimes assumed to be an expert on political powergames; -"Some minister has just done something or other, and then this and that happened" -"I see... that means so-and-so plans to do yakkity-something..." Dialogues like that pop up a few times in the film and manage to be pretty unpleasant. Likewise, there's no gentle introduction to Patlabor newcomers, so it's recommended that you've seen at least the first Patlabor movie before tackling this. While the few scenes of how the regular Patlabor cast have gotten on with their lives are fairly unimportant, being at least somewhat familiar with them is a welcome help in following a sometimes overwhelmingly complex film (I mean that in a good way, though ^^).

Patlabor 2 will never be suited to general public tastes, as it's simply too complex, talky and basically 'different' for anyone just seeking some escapist fun. The DragonBall and Akira crowd need not look into this until they've learned to stop referring to the anime medium as 'ménga movies' while mistaking it for a slew of violent cyberpunk slop which they consider 'kewl' or 'kickass' or whatever. Same to the general Hollywood crowd who'd freak out at the idea of a film demanding efforts from the viewer - Patlabor 2 demands lots of efforts, but has something special to reward you with.

Patlabor 2 serves it's doses of food for thought raw, and it takes some effort to swallow them. But I'd say that effort is well worth it. For the unique, powerful atmosphere alone, this is more than worth a look. I guess "haunting" is really the most suitable word to describe Patlabor 2's superb feel. It literally does haunt you, with questions about the state of the society we live in that you can't possibly turn a blind eye on (in fact, after the attacks on America in September 2001, Patlabor 2's messages have become ironically up-to-date in their relevance). And a film that achieves such effects so very well deserves to be seen and to be praised. And then there's -that- music. Absolutely brilliant, it makes this film a must-hear as well as a must-see.

Mamoru Oshii's "Ghost in the Shell" got all the hype, but his earlier film, "Patlabor 2," is by far the more mature, artistically successful film. This is anime at its finest - sharply detailed artwork, superb animation, and a story that WILL hook you.

Disguised as a Tom Clancyesqe techno-thriller, Patlabor 2 is actually a knowing, often cynical examination of global politics. The film at times resembles a surreal CNN report...if it were scripted by Noam Chomsky and directed by Alfred Hitchcock! What does that mean? First, the symbolic visuals are beguiling and plentiful. I would suggest you first view either "Psycho" or the "The Birds" and then Watch the Birdie in "Patlabor 2".

Patlabor 2 is a beautiful film. There are many stunning, surreal cityscapes that recall "Blade Runner." These scenes are accompanied by Keiji Kawai's meditative, haunting score. But the film's greatest impact is its disturbing plausibility. There may be giant robot police patrolling the streets of Tokyo, but the patterns of infrastructure and the chaos that breaks out when it breaks down seem all too real.

I give this anime my highest recommendation and I would especially recommend it to those who are either unfamiliar with Japanese anime or perhaps think animation is not a "serious" artistic medium. (This film will set them straight). Due to it's highly dense dialogue, I would recommend the dubbed version (unless you're fluent in Japanese or just prefer subtitles). The dubbing job is superbly acted and well-timed, preserving the original script's dramatic pauses and moments of silence.

I was like many people upon viewing this film for the first time. I could sit through it without getting bored or falling asleep. It's not your typical robot anime at all. Its more than that really. The film isn't like its mecha predessors - its not about the action. And if your watching this film purely for action than you will be disappointed. Because this film is mostly dialogue and politics all the way through. But once you have a greater understanding of the film, you will realise as I have how wonderful and amazing this film actually is. The film is a commentry on Japanese 'common-sense' pacifism to war. It asks the viewer to question this pacifism: how can Japan claim to be peaceful nation if it ignores the security of others. The film makes it's point very clear, and it is effective in bringing this message across. But of course if you only want to watch the film for its action sequences, then obviously your missing the point of what makes this thoughtful film so amazing to watch.