Tekkon Kinkret

Genre: Action

Format: 1 Movie

Allegiance: Studio 4°C

Director: Michael Arias

Vintage: 2006

Intelligence Agency Report by: The Macaque

The wonderfully decadent town of Takaramachi is under siege from a group of vicious Yakuza entrepreneurs who'd like to turn the town into an amusement park. Kuro (black) and Shiro (white), two anarchistic orphans, view the streets as their own and would do anything stop the Yakuza from taking over their turf. In no time, the two find themselves in a fast paced adventure that eventually runs deep into psychological territory before returning to the real world of Takaramachi.

Field Agent Report by: The Macaque

Plot
Characters
Impact
Visual
Audio

8.50
8.75
9.50
9.50
8.75

Overall

8.00

(not an average)

Tekkonkinkreet is based on a critically-acclaimed manga by Matsumoto Taiyo. I haven't read it myself, but I've been told by those who have that the movie cuts a few corners here and there. Nevertheless, this anime still stands alone quite well.

Right away, the stunning beauty of the dilapidated town of Takaramachi jumps off the screen. Studio 4°C pulled out all the stops to create a believable setting for this story. You'll rarely find backgrounds created with such artistic passion in any anime. Combined with the incredible pace of the story, they create a non-stop rollercoaster ride of jaw-dropping visuals. When put against these backgrounds, the character designs might seem a bit unorthodox at first. However, they quickly blend right into the overall visual style of the movie, as do the sounds and the music. The score, created by the electronic music group Plaid, is diverse and is well suited to the different moods of the characters.

Then comes the plot. It is quite fascinating and runs smoothly, like an anime reviewer on coffee, up until the last few scenes of the movie. Unfortunately, just like when the caffeine wears off, the whole show grinds to a screeching halt in the final fifteen minutes or so. This is a bit disappointing, seeing how the first hour and a half was such an adrenaline rush. However, this annoying glitch does not destroy the overall positive experience, and for me, the movie is still very much worth the almost two hours.

Finally, I'd like to give credit to Michael Arias, the first non-Japanese director to work with a major anime studio. Whether this movie will open doors for future gaikokujin (foreigners) to work in the industry is yet to be seen, but one thing is for certain: this movie has made its mark on the anime map.

Field Agent Report by: Drake

Plot
Characters
Impact
Visual
Audio

8.00
6.00
2.00
9.50
7.25

Overall

6.00

(not an average)

For the first time in history, an American has been given the chance to direct an anime. While to an average reader this may not be very significant, it is, due to foreigners’ roles in an anime studio being traditionally limited to minor parts of a creative team. However, Michael Arias, best known for his work as an animator and producer in segments of The Animatrix, has broken this trend by taking the helm with Studio 4°C and producing and receiving financing from the Japanese to make Tekkon Kinkreet. Having heard all this, plus the hype generated around the film, it was reason enough for me to investigate this anime.

Right off the bat, I noticed the animation was simply breathtaking and maintained a realistic feel to it - unlike the score, which was comprised of medicore electronic music. It had some nice tunes, but did not mix well with the rest of the components of the movie. The character designs, which seem to generate a lot of passion in many people, were not very appealing to me personally. From a technical point of view, the designs were definetly unique and were given some serious thought, they just weren’t able to mesh with me like they did with others.

The story on a basic level is pretty simple- big company comes to slum neighborhood with ambitious plans and must contend with local vigilantes. While the story is pretty simple, the underlying themes are pretty interesting, namely the religious overtones (Shiro being God, and Kuro a lost believer). However, even though the story is decent, the characters fell very short of my expectations. I was unable to feel emotions for them, despite being told they would be something special. Black was another wannabe badass charged with caring for an overly bratty White, who required help in doing the most mundane tasks such as getting dressed. Thats all it was, really, even in scenes where the two are separated. Keep in mind this is just the main characters - the side characters made the movie even more confusing and harder to get into.

In the end, Tekkon Kinkreet is pretty hyped up – and with good reason, may I add, given the amazing art and the first American anime director. However, don’t have overly high expectations. The movie was ok, but nothing spectacular. I’d recommend watching it once if you’re curious, but if you don’t find the trailers or synopses interesting, I wouldn’t push you to watch it. It’s certainly not something you will most likely remember in the years to come as one of the ‘great’ anime movies.