Ganheddo

I came to this film after a viral tweet expressed how Final Fantasy VII, Armored Core and Metal Gear owed a debt of gratitude to this film's imagery. I can easily imagine an impressionable teen or 20-something seeing this and later creating concept art for any of those game series; the resemblance is sometimes uncanny.

A story about tech scavengers entering the dormant 500-floor megafortress of a Skynet-like rogue AI is an obvious product of its time; one part Stalker, one part The Terminator, and existing in a continuum of otaku "mecha" media & techno-action video games.

The fortress is a chemical plant hellscape; the Death Star but without its austere cleanliness. Tangles of pipes stretch endlessly into the dark horizon strewn with wreckage from a decade-past humans-vs-robots showdown. Nightmarish "bioroids" lurk in the shadows as the scavengers rummage for lost technology.

Gunhed's particular horror revels in Japanese industrialization gone amok with its labyrinthine steel superstructures, putting it on a similar wavelength to "Patlabor: The Movie" and Katsuhiro Otomo's "Akira" and "The Order to Stop Construction". Its sometimes sublime imagery recalls the foggy and colorful sci-fi noir of Ridley Scott films and "Aliens". It could be a cultural touchstone for some, but it's very much a product of its time and wears its influences on its sleeve.

When the rogue AI's apocalyptic plans are revealed, their only hope is to repair the titular "gunhed", a giant, bipedal, transforming tank accompanied by a witty computer personality. Gunhed delivers the goods in terms of miniature-based visual effects. Whether good or bad, it often charms. A scene where the gunhed tank aggressively fords a pool of chemicals while fending off automated defenses is impressive; fire and waves and sparks filling the screen. I would love to see the filming of that battle.

Unfortunately, much of the storytelling is conventionally poor, visual or otherwise. Sometimes it's hard to tell what characters are doing, or what's happening to them. The dialog, with its blend of spoken English and Japanese, is 1980s style-over-substance; charmingly dated and poorly acted. It's only engaging as an artifact of its era, rather than a functionally good movie. If you're looking for cultural artifact to study, then Gunhed is interesting. Otherwise I'd skip it.

Patlabor: The Movie is an extremely similar but significantly better film in almost every respect: depth, writing, visual storytelling, and comprehensible action choreography. Like Gunhed it's about characters who enter a labyrinthine superstructure full of mecha gone amok in order to avert a Japanese industrial robo-pocalypse. Proving my point about the zeitgeist, it released at nearly the same time as Gunhed.

Gunhed is by no means an Oscar contender, but if you are a fan of Japanese Fantasy Films, or even a sci-fi fan, I see no reason why you wouldn't enjoy it. Though the plot may be a bit convoluted at times, I find that after multiple watchings (at least twice) a lot more makes sense. What you can't make out of the plot, ignore it and watch the action sequences! A lot goes on with this movie, and it's some of the better "giant robot/machine" technology I have ever seen. I would like to address a few complaints I've heard/read regarding the film:

1. "It makes no sense!"- Remember, this is one of those sci-fi, neo-future, cyberpunk, check your brain at the door films. They can write their own history of technology.

2. "It wasn't anime!"- No, though the film was released through ADVFilms, which mostly produce Japanese Animation, they have obtained the rights to distribute some live-action Japanese films. If you didn't like Gunhed because it wasn't anime, or you only want to see anime, then you may also want to stay away from ADV's copies of Destroy All Monsters, and the Daimajin Trilogy.

3. "They should have used CGI!"- Keep in mind, this movie was made in 1989. Even the Americans weren't using much CGI back then!

Like I said, enjoy this movie for what it is!

Ganheddo was produced by the same Japanese studio which brought us Godzilla, and it shows... but in a good way. Where many, higher-budgeted films of the time were moving to computer-generated effects, Toho stuck with scale models and stop-animation, giving this movie a gritty look not often found in films of similar provenance.

Though the plot is difficult to keep up with at times, it is still enjoyable, made especially the more so by the character of Seven. This movie will be a godsend for fans of the Mechwarrior/vertical tank type stories. The plot revolves around a group of scavengers who happen across a defunct lair controlled by machines, cyborgs, and their master, a central computer. The scavengers are after a rare power source which fuels the complex. Having detected their presence, the computer counts down to self destruct. Matters are complicated when one of the crew becomes incorporated into the machine's consciousness.

Good cinematography, decent acting, and a fantastic story all contribute to this film's warrants. It's too bad that CGI has taken the forefront -- I think modern filmmakers could learn a lesson from this one.

Incredible special effects make this movie worthwhile. For a movie made from Toho it has special effects worthy of an Oscar in 1989. The Japanese version is the one you should watch because it has better dialouge and it isn't dubbed. Visually intriguing but not a very competent plot. Rated R for some strong violence, blood, and profanity. Grade: B+

If you can surpass some of the crappiest acting in human history, the annoying brat that makes retarded noises, some questionable editing, disjointed story, slightly sluggish pacing and embarrassingly painful dialogue Gunhed is a pretty good movie. What make this movie stand out is its impressive set design, costumes, action and effects and does make up for the aforementioned flaws. But in the long run, I could only really recommend this movie to people who are fanatical cyberpunk enthusiasts because this movie is a train wreck. I hate kids.