Year:
2001
Production:
Miramax Films
Bandai Visual, Media Factory,
Dentsu, Nippon Herald Films
Feature:
3/5
DVD:
2/5
Avalon is a
science fiction story set in a dystopic near future. The main character
is a woman named Ash (Malgorzata Foremniak) who is a one of the best
players in the popular virtual reality world of Avalon. Ash is a loner
in a game that favors group play.
She is driven to beat the game, which is theoretically impossible.
Until she finds out about a secret level. But to get to that level she
needs help and once there it is totally different than anything she
could have possibly imagined.
The film is cinematographically quite stunning. Most of the movie is in
this sepia-toned, drab world (filmed in Poland). Outside of the game
people are lackluster and don't move much at all. Ash is truly alive
only in the game and the real world is somewhere to pass the time
between game sessions.
I believe everyone is speaking Polish so the movie is subtitled. All
the written stuff is in English though, which is nice since there is
some computer usage in the movie and it's nice to be able to read the
screens. It's really neat and jarring when Ash gets to the secret level
and steps out into the "real" world which is like downtown Warsaw or
something, all bright and colorful and full of people.
This is more of a thinking film and the ending reflects it. The movie
ends after Ash finds out several things. She has her gun out and is
ready to shoot her final target. And the question the audience is left
with is does Ash actually shoot the target or does she turn on Avalon?
Personally I'm not a fan of films that leave things up in the air.
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Special
effects were merely ok in my opinion. A whole lot of CGI is used which
is cheaper than practicals but leaves something to be desired. Then
again it is supposed to be a virtual reality world so the "computer
generated" look of the special effects actually works a bit.
I thought Foremniak was very good in the main role. She had a lot of
non-speaking scenes where it's all about showing what she's thinking
and she did that well. She also has a certain Eastern Block beauty to
her. And I do like the haircut, even if it was a wig.
Overall I thought this was a fairly good film. It's Japanese
live-action movie filmed in Poland, using Polish actors to tell an
anime-style story. Other than the ending being a bit unsatisfactory for
me, I enjoyed watching this film.
Extras
The Special FX of Avalon: an
hour-long segment with each special effects team tallking about their
work in the film. All the FX companies are Japanese so everything is
subtitled. I especially liked the last segment on the filtering and
manipulation used to give Avalon
it's unique color and look.
Interview with Director Mamoru Oshii: twenty minutes of Oshii talking
about life and his childhood and his beliefs. Not much relating to Avalon. He's definitely very uhm...
artistic.
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