Jinzô ningen Hakaidâ

After encountering a group of rebels in the autocratic pseudo-utopia of Jesus Town, a vengeful cyborg battles the forces of the town's angelic/demonic self-righteous despot. I watched English-subbed version of this henshin action-fest 'cold', having no familiarity with the television program on which it was based and found the film visually interesting but a bit boring, the latter due to the overly long and repetitive action set pieces. The perpetually scowling Hakaider was just another in a long line of similar looking über-mecha and there seemed little logic or consistency in his toggling back and forth between wetware and hardware or his resistance/susceptibility to various weapons. There is an interesting 'angel' motif woven through the imagery, both Gurjev, the leader of Jesus Town and Michael, his android head of security have wings (sort of) and clouds of white feathers feature prominently at times. The script and acting are drama-school at best (at least when watched dubbed) but the special effects are well executed although the designs seem derivative, resembling everything from Kamen Rider to Robocop. I especially liked the climactic stop-action work. All-in-all: OK but likely more appealing to fans of the original TV show or of the 'mecha-henshin' genre in general (of which I am not, I am just check-boxing my way through a lengthy list of live-action Japanese sci-fi films).

Is it advisable to watch a movie, that's based on a TV series, without first watching the TV series? Probably not, of course. But that doesn't mean one can't enjoy the movie on its own merits. 'Mechanical Violator Hakaider' is pretty fun.

It's far from perfect. The dubbed voices and dialogue are unfortunate, and one wishes scenes were a bit more dynamic; in particular, fight choreography and the timing of effects like explosions are questionable at times. The narrative flow feels disjointed, characterized by hard cuts in the editing and equally abrupt insertions of scenes that threaten our engagement.

Still, even without greater context, the plot has a solid foundation, telling as complete a story as it needs to. MVH isn't the first film about rebellion against a dystopian society, but this iteration is sufficiently different. The oppression underpinning Jesus Town is uniquely horrific, exceeding what other tales have conveyed.

It helps that there are some especially impressive visuals on hand. Costume design and set pieces work in tandem to fashion some notably arresting imagery, not least of all in the stark white citadel of the villain. To that end, the climactic fight between Hakaider and Michael is where the greatest effort was clearly placed. It's an unusual but entrancing choice to leave out any music for much of the fight, so that sound effects are more greatly emphasized. When music does pick up partway through, it's a captivating theme that wouldn't sound out of place in the impressive gothic wonderland of the Castlevania universe. And as the set takes further damage, the red interior of the infrastructure - set against the otherwise white room - is frankly beautiful. Honestly, it was a screenshot from this scene that first caught my attention and interest in watching, and I can safely say it was worth it.

For all the outstanding visuals and great ideas herein, I kind of get the notion that 'Mechanical Violator Hakaider' was not fully developed as a screenplay. The emphasis on specific poses and visual cues, to say nothing of the imagery in general, give a sense of a storyboard, or series of comic book panels. This would help to explain the lack of flow between scenes, certainly, with sudden shifts mirroring the division between one static image and another. This style doesn't entirely scuttle our enjoyment, but it does make MVH more difficult to engage with - yet there's no disputing it's an interesting approach.

When all is said and done, I do think this is a movie worth watching, even if one hasn't had any experience with the 'Kikaider' series where Hakaider originates. The picture has plenty of difficulties, and would never be considered an essential piece of cinema. But the story is sufficient, the visuals are outstanding, and the end result is that 'Mechanical Violator Hakaider' is fun and entertaining.

This movie here has to probably Keita Amemiya's most beautifully done film he has ever made (pays some respect to Ishinomori-san).

Hakaider has to do with the main cybernetic hero (with the same name as the movie) getting re-discovered by a gang from Jesus town,which was formerly the Holy Land in the Middle East.However,Hakaider lost all of his memory and starts blowing people apart.This all stops when he meets the pretty Kaoru (which looks like a Japanese double of Cyndi Lauper).Kaoru tells him about the evil that the handsome,if mavolent seraph Girjev and his servant,Mikhail has brought onto the town.In many beautiful(if albeit eery) dream like sequences that Kaoru has, Hakaider must not fight for himself,but for the people of Jesus Town as well.

The most original parts of this film is that,like I said,the good guy wears black and the bad guys wear white.It's really true,see it for yourself!

NOTE:This was also one of Amemiya's more controversial films,due to some imagery of shattered Jesus and Virgin Mary statues,plus the bad guys being rather "Angelic" looking.Watch only if you are not easily offended by the dark depiction of the Jewish/Christian faith.

Hakaider is about some robot on a quest to stop some fruit-loop from turning everyone into retards. The action, the visual effects and cinematography is where the movie shines. The action is very well crafted that contains some karate action and gun shooting $#!+ with exploding heads and dismemberment and some bloody crap. I know, I'm compulsive. I liked the effects particularly when the white cyborgs blew up and bled feathers for that heavenly look. The letdowns were the story and pacing. Though the concept is actually great which is about a religious coercion through an insertion of a micro chip into the cortex to make people retardedly subservient, the storytelling was derivative and stupid with these meaningless flashbacks and some annoying characterization. And pacing is inconsistent with the action scenes being fast and the dialogue scenes being slower than sloth sex. Overall the pros out weigh the cons, hence, I liked it.

This movie is a must see for any fan of "Tonkatsu" (Reflective to real life) style cinema as well as Science-fiction/action. Comparitively this movie is an unsung classic in "Tonkatsu" it has such compelling elements similar to work from Kurosawa's "Ran" and "Rashomon".As some would complain that this film is not a visual masterpiece, I would in turn ask them how much of it they have seen. There are very dynamic characters and excellent plot formation and culmination. The storyline is a very insightful view on humanity and socio-economic divisions and struggles therein. While touching these points and making an impact at doing so, the movie's elements of action and drama are of such quality that anyone can enjoy the film without struggling to get it's deeper meaning. Missing this film is an injustice to anyone who enjoys science-fiction, action, drama, and intriguing storyline. Enjoy this excellent film.