Mill Creek Entertainment; AMAZON

Every Saturday morning during the late 1980s and early 1990s, I would wake up early, get a bowl of sugary cereal, sit in front of the television set, and watch mindless animated bliss. Well, that was back when network TV actually aired cartoons.

While there are still cartoons being aired on cable channels, as an adult, I have no interest in watching any of them.

Why the change of heart?

I just don't care very much for today's animation styles and many of the new cartoons are way too silly for me.

This morning I found myself watching a few episodes on the Anime: 3-Series Collection DVD (NOT RATED; 13 hours 52 minutes; $24.98), which was released earlier this year by Mill Creek Entertainment. The 3-disc set includes Ultra Violet: Code 044, Kurozuka, and Viper's Creed.

Ultraviolet: Code 044 is based on the 2006 dystopian science fiction film Ultraviolet starring Milla Jovovich. Created by Madhouse animation studio, the series is centered around 044, a nineteen-year-old female super-solider who was genetically manipulated by a virus which gives her superhuman abilities. The only downside is that her life expectancy is reduced significantly. During the series 12-epsiode run, 044 goes on a mission to destroy the outlaw group Phage.


Based on the Japanese novel of the same name by Baku Yumemakura, Kurozuka is a 12-part series centering around a swordsman named Kuro who falls in love with Kurozuka, a vampire. After being attacked by the Red Imperial Army, Kurozuka attempts to turn an injured Kuro into an immortal. However, things don't go as planned. Kuro awakens to find himself in a future post-nuclear Japan that is controlled by the Red Army.


Viper's Creed is a a mecha action anime series that aired for a few episodes in 2009 (or was it 2008?) before being pulled from the air due to low ratings. Only 12 episodes were produced. The series is set in a post WWIII world where an environmental catastrophe has caused the world's cities to flood. To help rebuild civilization, the governments hired PMCs (Private Military Corporations) to enforce the law. One of the PMC units is called Argon Global Security Corporation, which uses an elite military unit, Viper, to stop terrorism and other violent crimes in Fort Daiva City.

Final Thoughts

Harlock: Space Pirate
Director: Shinji Aramaki
Voice Cast: Shun Oguri, Haruma Miura, Yu Aoi
Studio: Ketchup Entertainment
Release Date: March 31, 2015
Retail: $20.99
ASIN: B00RDEISAA
Running Time: 111 minutes
Rating: Not Rated
Buy Link: Amazon

Review:

Arriving on DVD tomorrow from Ketchup Entertainment for the first time in United States is the 2003 Japanese 3D CG anime Harlock: Space Pirate. Directed by Shinji Aramaki (Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, Halo Legends, Appleseed Saga: Ex Machina), the film features the voices of Shun Oguri, Haruma Miura and Yo Aoi. The movie can be played with the original Japanese voices, an English subtitles version or with English dubbed voices. There are no special features or bonus extras on the disc.

Based on the manga series Space Pirate Captain Harlock by Leiji Matsumoto, the film centers on a young soldier, Yama, of the Gaia Coalition, whom is ordered to volunteer as a new member of Captain Harlock's renegade crew aboard the pirate spaceship Arcadia. Once he is trusted by them, he is to take out the Captain.


While his orders seem to be simple at first, Yama quickly realizes that Captain Harlock might not be the bad guy that the Gaia Coalition claims, especially after the Captain saves his life. He quickly learns that the startling truth of what really happened to Earth and he goes on a quest with the crew of the Arcadia to seek out justice.

The Tale Of The Princess Kaguya
Director: Isao Takahata
Voice Cast: Chole Grace Mortez, James Caan, Mary Steenburgen, Darren Criss, Lucy Liu,
Studio: Universal Studios Home Entertainment
Release Date: February 17, 2015
Retail: $34.98
ASIN: B00PHSDS0E
Running Time: 2hrs 18mins
Rating: PG
Buy Link: Amazon

Review:
 
Arriving on Blu-ray today, Tuesday February 17, 2015, from Universal Studios Home Entertainment is the critically acclaimed Japanese anime The Tale Of The Princess Kaguya. The film is produced by Studio Ghibli and directed by Isao Takahata. The American dubbed version features the voices of Chole Grace Mortez, James Caan, Mary Steenburgen, Darren Criss, Lucy Liu, Hynden Walch, James Marsden, Beau Bridges, Dean Cain, Oliver Platt, Daniel Da Kim, George Segal, John Cho, Emily Bridges and Liam O'Brien. Bonus Features include: "Isao Takahata and His Tale of The Princess Kaguya" - 86-minute documentary on the making of The Tale Of The Princess Kaguya, Announcement of the Completion of the Film, Japanese Trailers & TV Spots and US Trailers.

The film has received a 100% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and has won several awards, including Best Animated Feature awards at the Toronto Film Critics Association, 40th Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards, 35th Boston Society of Critics Awards, 36th Mill Valley Film Festival, Fantastic Fest, 8th Asia Pacific Screen Award and the 68th Mainichi Film Awards. It has been nominated for Best Animated Feature Film for the 87th Academy Awards.

Based on the Japanese folktale The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter, The Tale Of The Princess Kaguya tells the story about a bamboo cutter Sanuki no Miyatsuko (voiced by James Caan), who discovers a miniature girl inside of a glowing bamboo. He brings the girl home to his wife, Ona (voiced by Mary Steenburgen), and names her "Princess." They are shocked when the miniature girl magically turns into an infant.

As the days pass by, Princess (voiced by  Chole Grace Mortez) grows extremely fast and before long she starts hanging out with the children in the village, whom gives her the name "Takenoko" (Little Bamboo)! She develops a close relationship with her friend Sutemaru.

Pom Poko
Director: Isao Takahata
Voice Cast: Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Clancy Brown, J.K. Simmons, Tress MacNeille, Kevin Michael Richardson
Studio: Walt Disney Home Entertainment
Release Date: February 3, 2015
Retail: $35.99
ASIN: B00PYAE2IM
Running Time: 119
Rating: PG
Buy Link: Amazon

Review:

Arriving on Blu-ray for the first time in the United States is the 1994 Japanese anime Pom Poko. The film is directed by Isao Takahata and features the American voice cast of Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Clancy Brown, J.K. Simmons, Tress MacNeille and Kevin Michael Richardson. Bonus Features include the Original Japanese Storyboards and the Original Japanese Trailers.

Pom Poko takes on the Japanese folklore - the tanuki, intelligent raccoon dogs that can transform into any almost anything imaginable. The film begins in 1960, a time when the raccoons are living in an area called the Tama Hills, but their land is being destroyed by the development of houses and shopping malls. The raccoons find it harder and harder to find food and shelter, so they decide to adapt to their changing environment. 

By the time the raccoons enter the 1990s, they have perfected the art of transformation, so they can appear as humans. Their original attempt was to scare off the humans, but they will eventually learn how to balance their lives with the modern world.

The Wind Rises
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Voice Cast: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, John Krasinski, Emily Blunt, Martin Short, Stanley Tucci, Mandy Patinkin, William B. Macy
Studio: Walt Disney Home Entertainment
Release Date: November 18, 2014
Retail: $36.99
ASIN: B00MHT49KO
Running Time: 127 minutes
Rating: PG-13
Buy Link: Amazon


Review:



The Winds Rises tells the story of Jiro Horikoshi (voiced by Joseph Gordon-Levitt), who as a young boy dreamed of being a pilot, but his poor eyesight kept from it. Despite this setback, he still loves all aviation. He is determined to become an aircraft designer and follows the footsteps of his mentor,  Giovanni Battista Caproni (voiced by Stanley Tucci). He goes on to attend Tokyo Imperial University to study engineering, where he befriends future designer, Kiro Honjo (voiced by John Krasinski)