Lupin III: Farewell to Nostradamus

'Farewell to Nostradamus' is the fifth Lupin film and to me it's one of the best. My second favourite in fact behind 'The Castle of Cagliostro' (a personal favourite animated film of mine, as a fan of animation and anime). Also the boldest Lupin film since his first film 'The Secret of Mamo' with its surprising sexual content and the most entertaining since 'The Castle of Cagliostro'.

There is very little to complain about with 'Farewell to Nostradamus'. Occasionally it's a little rushed, the slightly too short length plays a part in this somewhat, and the character designs occasionally lack finesse (though nowhere near as underwhelming as those in 'Gold of Babylon', the weakest of the Lupin films). Otherwise, 'Farewell to Nostradamus' is great and a must watch for fans of Lupin.

Visually, along with the previous film 'The Fuma Conspiracy', 'Farewell to Nostradamus' is one of the better looking and more polished Lupin films. It's great here, with the attention to detail in the chase sequences and backgrounds being particularly impressive. The action is truly exciting with a healthy dose of both suspense and humour.

Its tense climax is one of the better ones of the films, closer to the great ones of 'The Fuma Conspiracy' and 'The Castle of Cagliostro' than the weird, underwhelming ones of 'The Secret of Mamo' and especially 'Gold of Babylon'. The music is an improvement here, being more dynamic and fitting, not discordant.

Writing is humorous (the humour is especially good, a lot of it being hilarious), thought-provoking and taut (every bit as successful with the suspense), with a little pathos in the mix. The story is gripping and a lot happens that ensures that the film is never dull and the tension and fun never slipping, not feeling over-stuffed either despite the large amount going on, or overly convoluted despite it being suitably complicated at times.

Characterisation-wise, 'Farewell to Nostradamus' is one of the better Lupin films. Lupin is a fun, charismatic lead, while the villains are suitably sinister and the supporting characters are more than up to his level particularly Zenigata and Fujiko. The voice acting is quite good, the dub being much better than in the previous film.

All in all, terrific. 8.5/10 Bethany Cox