Oshii's breathtaking sequel is treated with respect... sort of.
Presentation: With a cover that makes it look like it belongs in the kid's section, Innocence comes in a standard DVD case with no booklet. The main menu's animated with Kenji Kawai's music, but then there's also that annoying transitional clip with the exploding robot face... C
Audio/Visual: It comes with Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 Surround in Japanese only. I was surprised that there was no English dub. English dubs are tricky: some are really good while others are just plain awful. The reason I mention the English dub is because if there was one, I wouldn't have to use the subtitles.
The subtitles are the most frustrating thing about this DVD. There are way too large, taking up about a fourth of the widescreen picture. The least they could have done was drop them down into the letterbox region. Also, the subtitles double for the hearing impaired so every sound is also mentioned, and that can detract from the viewing as well.
And it's a real shame because the transfer looks utterly perfect. The animation of the film is a combination of CGI and traditional cel art, and both show up on your screen without any hitches. B+
Content: Innocence is the sequel to Oshii's 1995 film, Ghost in the Shell, which is based on Masamune Shirow's awesome manga. This film is not directly adapted from anything Shirow has written, but follows Section 9 officers Batou and Togusa on a case three years after the disappearance of heroine Motoko Kusanagi.
The beginning of Innocence intentionly echoes the beginning of the first film, and Batou is assigned to a case involving rogue dolls killing their owners. But that's not the true purpose of the film. While most films has a mystery as the central plot with various philosophical and moral themes to add depth, it is the opposite for Innocence. It is the philosophy that takes center stage while the case is only there to add some additional motive and suspense.
Innocence focuses on the dolls, or pure robots, instead of the cyborg- what makes us human if we're half robotic theme of the first film. Why do humans make things in their own image? Can dolls be made so lifelike that they could be considered alive? Do dolls have souls?
But all of this philosophy dedicates only 20% of the film to senseless violence, which will surely put off some viewers, as will the fact that Motoko isn't in the film. (Or is she?) Personally, I believe it was worth seeing just for the scenes in Kim's palace. B+
Extras: A director's commentary with subtitles, a 15 minute documentary, and the really long Japanese trailer. Pretty good effort for a foreign film. C+
Overall: Mamoru Oshii is one of my favorite Japanese directors and his mesmerizing film is simply a work of art. I just wished DreamWorks had put a little bit more effort into making the perfect DVD for it. B+
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