bedheadred

The movie begins with a flashback of young Afro watching his father slayed for his No. 1 headband. He who dons the No. 1 headband is the ultimate warrior and can only be challenged by the owner of the No. 2 headband. Anyone and everyone will challenge No. 2 for his coveted headband. The movie follows Afro in a futuristic feudal Japan as he defends his No. 2 headband against many able foes, including his childhood friend who is also hell-bent on revenge. It took me many, many tries to actually sit and watch this movie because of the art style. The chiseled faces andalmost comic book style characters are incredibly unappealing to me. The action scenes were well animated and flowed well, offering interesting viewing angles. The majority of the movie is in either grey or sepia tones, which make the crimson blood more prominent. The color scheme complimented the dark mood of the movie. The soundtrack was produced by RZA of the Wu Tang Clan and is primarily R&B and hip-hop. I am personally not a fan of those genres, but the music did portray the mood and gave the movie a more futurist vibe. Samuel L. Jackson gave voice to Afro. Unfortunately throughout the movie Afro only muttered a handful of lines. I was surprised to read he also dubbed Ninja Ninja. Jackson's legendary bravado is truly lost on that character. Afro is a very flat, monosyllabic character. You only learn about his personal motivations through his flashbacks and interaction with Ninja Ninja. Ninja Ninja serves as his conscience, often pleading with him not to fight. As shallow as the character development is, the script has a lot of unexpected depth. Through the flashbacks and chance encounters, the viewer really gets a feel for the burden Afro is carrying by following the path of revenge. The quote by the antagonist "Do you think it is coincidence you don't have a father, friend or master?" summed up the movie in my eyes. This movie has a lot to offer a broad audience. It will appease those looking for a trendy score and flashy action, but it also has unforeseen complexity.

FlashyMan

The Story: Basic and easy to follow in this movie with revenge centering around the plot for our "hero" if you would, for this tale. The Art: Dark and Bloody would be strong ways to describe the movie with animation quality being second to none. The Sound: Nailed in every facet down to the slashing of body parts or the lines delivered by the cast in the english dubbing. No corners were cut when it came to this area as it offers some of the best sounding and acted works in a long time. Personally, This movie was fantastic as it fulfills the expectations of Action and gorefans to the utmost. Encapsulated in a gripping tale of strength and will it will leave you will that "Fuck Yea" feeling while maintaining a killer pace from the word GO! to the very end.