*** Official "COWBOY BEBOP" Review Thread (1 Viewer)

[TheLongshot]

Probably a good place for a review than anyplace else.

I saw it on Sunday during the day. Pretty full theater, actually, tho Dupont Circle is a tiny theater.

As I kinda thought, it was the dubbed version that was shown, which was fine with me, even if I don't like Ed's actor.

Pretty good overall. It is Cowboy Bebop upgraded to the big screen. All the characters are there, including a pretty funny cameo of a few characters. The action was intense, and the humor funny. Pretty darn solid.

7/10

Jason

 

[Elizabeth S]

Saw it on Friday. Although I have the 6-disc series at home, I had not had time to watch it yet; therefore, the film was my first exposure to the world of "Cowboy Bebop". While I enjoyed it, I guess my expectations were VERY high from what I'd heard about it, so I wasn't overly impressed. The voice work of the dub was fine.

I'm VERY surprised Honolulu was included in this initial release, as they always ignore us for everything.

 

[Richard Kim]

Having seen the entire series, I was a bit disappointed with the movie. I thought that some parts of the movie dragged a bit, they could have cut at least 15 minutes from the film. It has it moments though, like the opening sequence.

 

[Robert Crawford]

This thread is now the Official Review Thread for "Cowboy Bebop". Please post all HTF member reviews in this thread.

Any other comments, links to other reviews, or discussion items will be deleted from this thread without warning!

If you need to discuss those type of issues then I have designated an Official Discussion Thread.



Crawdaddy

 

[Terry St]

"It's Bebop Jim, but not as we know it."

All the elements of Cowboy Bebop are present, but with subtle differences that make the movie a very different experience than the TV show. The basic plot is Bebop through and through at first glance. The crew is lured onto the case by a nice fat bounty, not realizing at first what they're getting into. Things naturally escalate and a weird and wonderful trip ensues. Will they win the Bounty in the end? I won't spoil it for you. (For those who haven't seen the show, they usually don't, but occasionally do.)

However Bebopian the plot may be, it and the characters are given a very different treatment than they got in the TV show. First of all, their motivations are very different. In the show the characters are all primarily motivated by greed, self-interest, ghosts of their individual pasts, and occasionally loyalty to each other. The group isn't so much a team as a collection of misfits thrown together by chance, trying to eke out a living. The bounty hunting isn't about stopping crime, protecting the innocent, etc.. It's just a living. In the film the characters are more concerned with "saving the world" than cashing in. By the end of the movie the Bounty doesn't even really matter. To tell the truth, I actually can't recall if they got it or not!

The film itself has a very serious tone. The TV show was mostly very upbeat, treating action as a wild entertaining ride set to upbeat Jazz. The occasional episode focused more on the blues, mood and ambiance. The film, on the other hand, is a metal-charged high-octane action flick. The action is nail-biting, rather than a jazzy romp or stylish piece set to the blues. It's some of the best animated action I've ever seen, it fits in just fine with Cowboy Bebop, yet it's treatment is fundamentally different.

Some things are bang on though. The opening hostage scene in the convenience store is pure Spike material. Likewise, his motivations for confronting the villain are also fairly true to his character.

As for the more superficial differences, the seatbelt's theme from the TV show was something I really missed. The opening title sequence, while impressively animated, is totally alien to anything in the TV show. I literally responded with a big "WTH? Am I watching the right film?" when I first saw it. The film's theme song, while okay, is nowhere near as good as the TV series theme. The animation throughout the show remains stellar. The fights are very realistically done. They make the reasonably realistic fights in the TV show look very cartoony. This works well for the film though.

How well does the movie fare on its own? It's pretty darned good I say, but it's not a classic. To put it simply, this is an action film. The plot is a little unoriginal and the character development is good, but nothing special. However, the plot is intelligent enough and the action is both plentiful and excellent. The animation is top notch and the music is very well done too. This flick is definitely worth the price of admission. At the very least it's worth checking out just to decide if the TV show is your kind of entertainment. If you like the film, you will *love* the show.

:star::star::star:

 

[RafaelB]

I personally thought it was simply "just okay." (and I have seen a couple episodes and ended up with the same opinion, whereas my best friend swears it's the best anime ever). I also thought that it dragged a bit in the middle.

Defintiely didn't compare to a Miyazaki film, AKIRA, or even Rintaro's METROPOLIS, so I'd give it a C+.

Rafael

 

[Chris_Richard]

Caught this the other night. Really enjoyed it. I just discovered the series a couple of months ago on tv by accident and got hooked.

I does run a bit long and I was a little disappointed in its use of music. The series uses music really well which is one of the thinks that got me interested in it. On the plus side, it comes off as feeling as a, instead of an expanded television show. The animation is really good with nice characterization. This is more action-adventure than the series usually is but it does a good job. I will probably be adding this to my dvd collection when it comes out.

Grade: B+ (could go higher)

 

[Lew Crippen]

What Elizabeth wrote—it was ok, but I was expecting more.

 

[Angelo.M]

Finally saw this.

I've seen most of the series; my wife hasn't seen a single episode. She liked the film much more than I did.

I thought there was a lot of fat that could have been trimmed and, ultimately, this could have been a one-hour episode. Yes, there's some good action, but also some ponderous, scratch-your-head stuff. There was nothing particularly cinematic about it, save for the train sequence (which was great!). I enjoyed the opening and ending credit sequences, which gave the film a very lived-in, very 'real' quality.