Japan has been hiding behind an electronic veil of secrecy for the last decade. Now, the United Nations can no longer ignore its blatant defiance of anti-robotic laws and sends in a special forces team known as "SWORD" to disarm the electronic veil and show the rest of the world what Japan has been hiding.
The Gist
The year is 2077 and for the last decade, Japan has been hidden away from the rest of the world after the U.N. declared a moratorium on the advancement of robotic research. Wanting to continue their development of robotics and androids, Japan chose to succeed from the United Nations and operate solely on their own.
Now, recent activity has raised some U.N. eyebrows and an American special forces unit - SWORD - is asked to infiltrate Japan and collect data on Diawa Robotics, the driving force behind Japan's robotic development.
Among the SWORD members is Vexille and her boyfriend Leon. These two, along with the other SWORD agents, are ordered to penetrate Japan and transmit a signal that will allow the U.S. to see past Japan's electronic veil using satellites.
But once inside Japan, Vexille and her team are attacked and she finds herself alone in what is left of TOKYO. Even more frightening is that Vexille discovers she's the only real human left - everyone else in the country has been reduced to bio-robotic androids.
Now, recent activity has raised some U.N. eyebrows and an American special forces unit - SWORD - is asked to infiltrate Japan and collect data on Diawa Robotics, the driving force behind Japan's robotic development.
Among the SWORD members is Vexille and her boyfriend Leon. These two, along with the other SWORD agents, are ordered to penetrate Japan and transmit a signal that will allow the U.S. to see past Japan's electronic veil using satellites.
But once inside Japan, Vexille and her team are attacked and she finds herself alone in what is left of TOKYO. Even more frightening is that Vexille discovers she's the only real human left - everyone else in the country has been reduced to bio-robotic androids.
The Review
Vexille is a fast-paced sci-fi thriller that turns the social questions of artificial intelligence, cloning and robotics into a nightmarish, worst-case-scenario reality.
After she becomes separated from her fellow agents, Vexille meets up with Maria, a mysterious and rebellious Tokyo resident who is bound and determined to bring down Diawa Robotics and end their experiment on humankind.
Thus begins a war, both with Diawa as well as the virus that was injected into Tokyo's residents to transform them into bio-robotic androids under Diawa's control. Once the virus takes hold of the brain, there's no going back so Maria and her group on in a race against time to save the rest of the world.
The action is good and the music in superb, courtesy of none other than Paul Oakenfold (The Matrix Reloaded). The animation is exceptional, with a CGI/Poser feel to it and there's plenty of high tech and sci-fi goodies to keep things moving along.
From the creators of Appleseed, Vexille is fantastic look at science gone bad and an excellent watch for anime fans.
After she becomes separated from her fellow agents, Vexille meets up with Maria, a mysterious and rebellious Tokyo resident who is bound and determined to bring down Diawa Robotics and end their experiment on humankind.
Thus begins a war, both with Diawa as well as the virus that was injected into Tokyo's residents to transform them into bio-robotic androids under Diawa's control. Once the virus takes hold of the brain, there's no going back so Maria and her group on in a race against time to save the rest of the world.
The action is good and the music in superb, courtesy of none other than Paul Oakenfold (The Matrix Reloaded). The animation is exceptional, with a CGI/Poser feel to it and there's plenty of high tech and sci-fi goodies to keep things moving along.
From the creators of Appleseed, Vexille is fantastic look at science gone bad and an excellent watch for anime fans.
Details
Release Date: May 20, 2008
Running Time: 105 minutes
Directed by: Fumihiko Sori
Produced by: Mike McFarland Distributed by: FUNimation Entertainment
Running Time: 105 minutes
Directed by: Fumihiko Sori
Produced by: Mike McFarland Distributed by: FUNimation Entertainment
Genres
Action, sci-fi, fantasy, thriller, futuristic, mecha