Tekkonkinkreet Movie Review

by AVForums
Movies & TV Shows Review
Tekkonkinkreet Movie Review
Back in September, I had the pleasure of reviewing my first anime movie. Try as I may, I found it hard to get into the story - though I was drawn in by the artwork and presentation of the piece.

The boss here at Play Towers decided to give me another chance with the film, and has asked to me to carry out a comparison review between the Region A version released previously, and the Region B offer from Sony. Try as I may, I still couldn't get the ending - and my view of the movie hasn't changed. Here, for your delight, is the write up from my original review back in September...
Tekkonkireet tells the story of Black and White, two street urchins who watch over Treasure Town as the vigilante group called the Cats. Thirteen-year-old Black is the older of the two siblings, trying to save what's left of his younger brothers' innocence. Forced to grow up quickly whilst living in an abandoned car under a freeway, Black has mastered most of the martial arts, and isn't afraid to use them He has taken it upon himself to save the decaying Treasure Town from the evil grips of the Yakuza as well as look after his younger brother, White.

White, on the other hand, is finding the growing up very difficult. Thinking it's an achievement counting to ten at the age of eleven, he really couldn't live without his brother, whereas I get the impression that Black finds him a bit of a burden...

White slowly loses his sense of reality as the film progresses and is taken into protective custody by the police. Meanwhile, Black continues his lone battle against the Yakuza, led in Treasure Town by Suzuki, who has been entrusted by the big boss with clearing out the town for a new development. Yakuza sells out to Snake, a big gang leader more intent on wiping out the cats than actually developing Treasure Town.
Helmed by first time director Michael Arias, as a first time anime viewer, I got the impression that the story was actually being written as it went along. Characters would appear from nowhere and become big part players in the story - often with no explanation as to what, why they were there or who they were. Confusing to say the least. And confusion reigned supreme in the films climax. The first time I watched it, I really didn't know what was going on...I watched it again and again, this time in English and caught on - kind of. I think the film has some deep underlying message that went flying way over my head.
Whilst the story may be little confusing, the visuals are, as usual for anime, stunning. The attention to detail is astonishing. Some big Hollywood directors should look at films like this and take notes - particularly on the continuity side of things. The characters develop nicely along the way and we see a very dark side to Black. Mercy is certainly not a word he knows the meaning of. In fact, right up until little White starts going a bit mad, I was really enjoying this movie - I then kind of lost the plot a little every time I watched it.
Having now watched this movie a total of FOUR times, I've now given up on working out the conclusion. Maybe the anime genre just isn't for me...

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