- ISBN13: 9781404958135
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
REI IS A YOUNG INVENTOR LIVING IN THE U.K. IN THE MIDDLE OF THE 19TH CENTURY. BEFORE THE 1ST EVER WORLD EXPO, A MARVELOUS INVENTION CALLED THE ‘STEAM BALL’, BEHIND WHICH A MENACINGPOWER IS HIDDEN, ARRIVES FROM HIS GRANDFATHER IN THE U.S. \0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0The first feature Katsuhiro Otomo has written and directed since his watershed Akira (1988), Steamboy offers a fantastic, sepia-toned vision of the past-as-future. In place of the dystopic Neo-Tokyo of Akira, Steamboy is set in England in 1866. Young Ray Steam receives a Steam Ball, a mysterious, powerful device, from his inventor grandfather. Governments and businesses covet the Steam Ball, and Ray finds himself in a murderous conflict over its possession. He’s also caught between his father, a 19th century Darth Vader who builds terrible weapons for an American arms merchant, and his grandfather, who believes science should improve people’s lives. Otomo uses computer graphics to create dazzling visuals that few recent films–animated or live action–can match: monumental systems of gears and pistons; machines that dwarf the Tower of London; antique weapons of mass destruction. But the dazzling imagery can’t disguise the lack of a coherent plot and the flimsiness of the characters.
Steamboy is being released in a dubbed version that’s been shortened by 20 minutes, and a more satisfying subtitled version that preserves Otomo’s original pacing. Both versions suggest that Steamboy is the work of an important filmmaker who can’t quite shape his awesome visions into a effective narrative. (Rated PG-13 for action violence.) –Charles Solomon
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April 10, 2010
#1
…what was the director (Katsuhiro Ôtomo)thinking? I heard that this movie, in terms of animation, took TEN YEARS to complete. All I can say on that is, WHAT A WASTE OF TIME.
I don’t know about the DVD version, as I watched this in the theatre, but one thing’s for sure; I will NOT rent/buy this DVD; the movie hits an all-time low from the very beginning. Why couldn’t they dub this film in English????? It’s not very realistic, seeing a bunch of ENGLISH people in ENGLAND speaking JAPANESE!!! The plot seems to wander aimlessly round and round so much my head spins just thinking about it…until we meet our alleged heroine, Scarlett O’Hara (what are they trying to point out here? Or was her naming just an uncanny coincidence?)who shamelessly displays animal cruelty on her poor, helpless little chihuahua. Needless to say, I loathed her from the very beginning. Being a rich, spoilt brat, she did not warm my heart, failing to play the part of a “heroine”. Plus, the relationship between Ray Steam (like the pun?) and Scarlett did not build: there was one point where they seemed to be a bit ‘different’ so to speak, and that, apart from wowing at the graphics, was probably the best part of the movie. Other that that, I came out of the theatre very irritated and almost deaf: the volume was insanely high…I couldn’t even catch up on some sleep! Plus the movie didn’t even have any worthy morals; they seemed to promote greed and lust for power.
To cut a long story short: Don’t buy this movie unless you like pretty graphics (though not at all corresponding with the setting). Save your money, time and sanity!
April 10, 2010
#2
I purchased this as a request from a young man in Australia and it has been sent to him!
April 10, 2010
#3
Thank GOD that this anime movie from Dreamworks will have a english dialouge unlike (Ghost in the Shell 2). From the director of (Akira) brings you this out standing 2D animated movie that takes place in England I think in the 18 hundreads.
April 10, 2010
#4
The Japanese should stick with making Street Fighter and Dragon Ball Z movies. At least those are good and entertaining.
Making a boreing movie like Steamboy doesn’t help anybody. It is made worse by the fact that it is over 2 hours long. I watched the entire 2 hours only because I was hopeing to be entertained at the end, unfortunately I was NOT.
DON’T BUY THIS MOVIE!
April 10, 2010
#5
What a steaming pile this was. I had the unfortunate opportunity to see this film in the theater and took it. Katsuhiro Otomo has a fantastic reputation as an illustrator, author, and director. However, this does not excuse him from the prolonged banality that is called STEAMBOY. Though there is stunning animation, that is no excuse for the shallow character development and weak plot that permeates this film. Moreover, rampant explosions and wanton violence at the end (sorry for the spoiler, but AKIRA fans will know what I’m talking about) were not enough to erase the placid nothingness that forced this viewer to try and keep from nodding off for almost two hours. I must make a point that I am a big fan of Otomo’s comics and the film version of Akira. Visually it lives up to his artistic reputation. Falling short doesn’t even come close to describing how deep in the hole the rest of this movie has descended.