Release Date: June 13th, 2007 (Quad Cinema) by Destination Films. The Voices: Kazunari Ninomiya, Yu Aoi, Masahiro Motoki, Min Tanaka. Directed by Michael Arias. In Japanese with subtitles. BASIC PREMISE: Black (voice of Kazunari Ninomiya) and White (voice of Yu Aoi) stop alien assassins from taking over their city, Treasure Town. Based on the manga by Taio Matsumoto. ENTERTAINMENT VALUE: Tekkonkinkreet has visually stunning and vibrant animation, but suffers from a tedious, unimaginative plot. Black and White are young childhood buddies who have the ability to fly and spend their time protecting Treasure Town from local gang violence. They realize that a greater evil lurks when Snake (voice of Masahiro Motoki) sends a bunch of alien assassins to take over the city. What falls is a basic good vs. evil struggle with plenty of battles and cat-and-mouse chases through rooftops and on the streets. Screenwriter Anthony Weintraub fails to add an imaginative plot with any real suspense. Too many battle scenes in throughout the second act feel tedious and headache-inducing. At least director Michael Arias provides some eye candy by combining CGI and traditional Japanese animation with close attention to foreground and background detail. Ultimately, Tekkonkinkreet seems like a much more violent version of a dull Pokémon movie without the adorable Pikachu. SPIRITUAL VALUE: None is required or desired. INSULT TO YOUR INTELLIGENCE: None, as long as you suspend your disbelief. NUMBER OF TIMES I CHECKED MY WATCH: 6 IN A NUTSHELL: Visually stunning and vibrant animation, but an often tedious and unimaginative plot RECOMMENDED WAY TO WATCH: TV Main Page Alphabetical Menu Chronological Menu The "T" Menu ______________________________________________________ |