Kite

Modeled loosely on the 1998, anime movie... I Wasn't very keen on the original, went on to find this movie to be pretty uninteresting, as a big anime fan I watched this assuming the ratings would be incorrect. However, this movie didn't really grip me..

There seemed to be far too many characters of different nationalities for a country which is post apocalyptic.

I didn't really feel anything for the characters, and the story seemed to jump from one section to the next with noting much substantial in between.

The best thing about this movie is that it has very little or no CGI oh, and that it stars Samuel L Jackson.

Each is different though, watch it for yourself, I'm sure if you are just into action movies you may find it appealing...

The story is based on a Japanese manga/anime that I intend to see momentarily. Without seeing it, though, I can hardly compare it with the film, so my review is for the movie as a standalone.

The first feeling I got when I started watching the movie is that it must be a Luc Besson film. It felt the same way: international cast, a very young female killer and the dreary violence that is usually met in European films. I am still amazed that it is a US/Mexico production.

The acting was also particular. I wouldn't call it bad, just different. India Eisley is incredibly cute, but she is playing this kid killer who wants to avenge her parents. She is an addict for a drug that erases the memory, so she doesn't even remember the parents in the name of which she exacts revenge. She is not a perfect killing machine, instead she is always close to death and only luck and sometimes a mysterious boy are keeping her alive in several occasions.

The world is somewhat similar to the first Mad Max movie, only not a desert, but what is left after "the banks fell and the governments collapsed". Slightly more appropriate for the times than an post apocalyptic world or one caused by shortages of oil.

Overall I enjoyed watching it. The action scenes felt very real, and even if the girl had fighting skills, most of the time it was just about surviving or running away and she got her ass handed to her more than once. No fancy wire-fu, no huge explosions, no rain of bullets. The twist at the end was pretty obvious, I practically waited for it since the beginning of the film, and the boy's character was full with inconsistencies, yet these were not enough to make me regret watching.

Bottom line: the imperfections of the film, the way it is always slightly off recipe, made it worth watching. It is not a masterpiece, but certainly one of the (re)new wave of film making, where actors and directors are starting experimenting again and expressing artistic vision. More of this, please! And India... she's only 21, but she looks like jail bait. The contrast of her childish beauty to her character was another great asset of this movie.

If you like great ambiance, excellent directing and impeccable styling this is a movie that will please your eye...however the script and the plot do not merely match the level of the picture itself, and were disappointing to me. I would recommend it only in case you love the beauty of cinematography, light, perfect costumes and styling and deep underground ambient. If this is the case i can assure you that you will enjoy all the little details it has to give to the viewer. Choreography of fight scenes is cheap and messy, acting is adequate to the budget but could definitely be better. I would say - a decent movie that could be a great one, if it had a good script.

This was a very mediocre film that did almost nothing right. Nothing really worked well in this movie besides the decent gory action that was choreographed well. The plot was dull and the protagonist was hard to root for. Also the movie was very ugly and it made it hard to watch. Even Samuel Jackson couldn't save this dumpster fire and you can tell the budget mainly went to hiring him. The acting and dialogue were also very poor. It's also hard to believe this was based on a Anime and you could tell they butchered the story and left so much out that fans wouldn't recognize it. Pass on this one.

Visually they have created the dark world. Futuristic yet chaos full world. Not so bad not really good. A one time watchable for pass your time or you need an action movie. Art director, VFX artists, lighting .... The technical team did a wonderful job. Visually it was really good. The mood, camera everything just make us feel like we are in that world. The underworld vibe was there. Anyway I skipped lot, not because the movie was bad because I think I was not in a mood for the action. But giving this movie a chance was not a bad idea. The performance was good by everyone. But still it's not for everyone. Even if you like action movies, this one may not be your taste. So my opinion is give a chance and kill it kind of movie.