Highlander: Em Busca da Vingança

I am big fan of Yoshiaki Kawajiri and it pains me to see such a production with his name on it. Yes, the visuals are great, but even they get irritating as the movie goes on, because someone decided that almost every action scene and many of the ordinary ones should be done with 3D, and when you see that same method re-used for the 50th time in just 80 minutes... well not only isn't it impressive anymore but very annoying.

Whatever the problems the movie had, I wouldn't be that disappointed if it wasn't the *STORY* - awful, cliché after cliché, unbelievably cheesy b-movie lines and one of the worst juxtaposion of sex scene ever (lighting candles??? what the hell?!)... The script really ruins everything good, and the characters are very flat and stereotypical, not to mention most of their designs are almost copy&paste from Kawajiri's previous works. And not only the characters are copied but whole scenes (e.g. the battle on the rooftops - Animatrix: Program), and though not 1:1 you still get a bitter deja-vu quite often.

So thank you but I'd stick with Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust and Ninja Scroll - Highlander is no way near them.

As one has to expect from Yoshiaki Kawajiri, this film will get you glued to the screen, it has loads of action, a decent story, and details typical from previous films Kawajiri's directed before (A cynical hero, strong willed women, ruthless and cunning villains, and annoying, but wise, old men).However, it seems to lack the distinctive "atmosphere" that previous Kawajiri anime flicks had (at least in my opinion, for those who have seen Ninja Scroll or Cyber City Oedo you can feel that "darker" atmosphere). Probably because the color scheme was brighter. I won't spoil the story, as it's very interesting and you'll probably and up watching it even if you aren't a Highlander fan. As for this movie, its not linked to the original in any way (sans the immortality plot), but somehow demonstrates how the follow-ups should have been, instead of making those bad sequels with rather bad concepts.

First things first, this is a typical Kawajiri film, as you may or may not know, Kawajiri is like a Japanese Frank Miller, meaning all his work share a distinctive feel to them, and follow a similar path story-wise. Some people call this auto-plagiarism, and bash it. However if you are like me, and have really liked his work, from Ninjascroll, to the Animatrix short, from "wicked city" to "vampire hunter D bloodlust", "lens-man", "Cyber city Oedo", etc etc. Then the mere prospect of watching some part of the highlander myth animated in this fashion will have your blood boiling. If you haven't guessed it yet, I really liked the film.

Lets start reviewing it part by part.

Story: It fits in the Highlander myth, this is not about any known Mcleod, so you may think of it as an alternative story-line. Everything is a little clichéd though, still beats the crap out of any Highlander sequel so far.

Setting: The movie takes place in a post-apocalyptic world, very kawajirish, it has this "Fist of the north star" feeling to it, huge bad guys, wrecked urban landscapes, silent heroes, you know the drill.

Character design: Again typical kawajiri film, busty women, sharp factions, impossibly muscular males, you may love it or hate it, I really like it. This is no Inuyasha, boy....

Animation: Very Good, some less than stellar CG shots, and "matrix moments", if you can deal with that there are really well choreographed fights to be seen. Specially gorgeous are the fights that take place in the past.

Sound: Mostly OK, some voice overs could have been better, the movie comes in English just like Vampire Hunter D Bloodlust. There are some great accents to be heard when the Highlanders speak, however some secondary characters could have used better actors.

Music: Gorgeous, really symphonic gives the feeling of epic and greatness to the whole movie.

So if your love for highlander allows you to overlook some small flaws, and some kawajirisms you'll really like the movie.

The Highlander mythology was always one of the coolest concepts for a movie - immortal swordsmen battling each other across the ages until one remained. Combine the potential within with the skills of Yoshiaki Kawajiri, the man responsible for Ninja Scroll, and you sound like you have quite a winner on your hands.

The Search for Vengeance is about the plight of Colin Macleod, the eponymous Highlander, and his centuries-long feud with Marcus, a Roman general who murdered Colin's true love. Time and time again throughout history, Colin and Marcus clash with each other until they come to their final showdown amidst a futuristic New York riddled with plague and war.

Like any continuation of Highlander, The Search for Vengeance crafts its own fiction by combining the original's mythology (holy ground, Quickenings, death-by-beheading etc) with several of its own ideas (in this case, demons, robots and spirits). Although some of the more fantastical elements (e.g. Colin's communication with a druid-like ghost) grated a little, they're tolerable enough changes to the Highlander world. In the end, it feels like it leans more towards the animé side of things.

As for the film itself - visually, it's pretty good. The animation is fluid and the action looks great. The constant changing of era (a staple of the Highlander series) works a treat, as you see battles of all kinds across the centuries. The showdowns look a treat as well (I expect nothing less from the maker of Ninja Scroll), as do the battles during the futuristic scenes. I will say that fair chunks of the plot are fairly clichéd and if you've ever really watched prior Highlander material, you can probably predict a fair bit of it.

The last word on The Search for Vengeance - who do I really recommend it to? It's a decent enough watch for anyone with even a passing interest in animé, and it's a more watchable experience for Highlander fans than the film sequels, but outside of those two groups, it'd be a little hard to recommend. In any case, it was a decent watch and if you need a good fix of sword-fighting or animé, this isn't a bad choice.

By pure coincidence, I've stumbled along most of Yoshiaki Kawajiri's filmography. His Lensman kickstarted my desire to find lesser-known animated films. But I'd never say it was a great movie. The only film I'd seriously recommend would be Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust, his magnum opus.

Highlander: Search for Vengeance is not an exception to the rule. While it may legitimately be the best Highlander sequel, it falls back on tired tropes seen in his previous films, yet takes itself too seriously.

It tries to tell a tragic tale, Colin MacLeod hunting his arch-nemesis for twenty centuries, wasting his immortality for a pursuit he always fails. The scenes in the past are actually not too bad, honestly. Unfortunately, the plot in the present future is by the numbers. In post-apocalypse, Colin finds love and revenge, leading a rebellion against a force less accurate than Stormtroopers, ascending a towering skyscraper to the final showdown. It brings up the negative effect of hatred, but after briefly contemplating, Colin still earns his revenge. Why he succeeds this time is beyond me.

It is kinda fun, though. The animation is fairly good, the action fast. Most importantly, there are dozens of cheesy moments. Giant chainsaws and gators, bad-ass chicks, delayed sword slashes...the clichés show little restraint. The World War II scene should be legendary. I'd compare it to Goku Midnight Eye, but at least GME was consistently campy - Highlander's failure to be a good, serious action film reduces its enjoyment as a bad, funny action film. There's still a lot of dumb fun to be had, if you can tolerate a generic plot, a bad ending, and a pretty gruesome crucifixion.

It gets 4 out of 10 for sheer ineptitude. It may be a good anime for Bad Movie Night, but there's a chance that choice will backfire.