After a deactivated cyborg is revived, she goes on
a dangerous quest to find out who she was. ACTION/SCI-FI
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Alita: Battle Angel (2019)Directed by Robert Rodriguez
Written by James Cameron and Laeta Kalogridis Starring Rosa Salazar, Christoph Waltz, Jennifer Connelly, Mahershala Ali, Ed Skrein, Jackie Earle Haley, Keean Johnson, Jorge Lendeborg Jr., Lana Condor, Idara Victor Based on the graphic novel series Gunnm by Yukito Kishiro |
Alita is an exciting movie, and cinematically stunning. The performances are surprisingly good, especially when this was likely a paycheck gig for all the big names. Its major issues come from the story, which at times is either confusing or lacking. The abrupt ending doesn't help matters. The entire third act feels rushed as hell, like it's setting up a sequel that we probably will never get considering this wasn't as successful as James Cameron had hoped it would be.
Rosa Salazar plays Alita, a recently revived cyborg and the only living being in the world with anime eyes. She does a decent job, though her character is a walking "chosen one" trope from beginning to end. She has amnesia and spends the movie trying to learn who she was, but there's evildoers who know about her and want her dead...for reasons. Not a lot is ever really explained, but the fight scenes are really cool. You get the feeling that the set pieces and impressive CGI are just distractions from the script's many holes. But hey, we get to see Christoph Waltz, Jennifer Connelly, and Mahershala Ali in the same movie. I liked most of Alita, but the ending comes out of nowhere with its blatant sequel bait and just about ruins the rest of it. There's great themes here about identity, humanity, and destiny, but they get lost in a muddled story with way too much backstory that requires its own movie to fully understand. Overall, decent effort that could've and should've been done better considering the filmmakers behind it. |
Manga and video games. Those are still some of the most seemingly notorious formats to adapt to the screen. While the latter seems to finally be finding some success on Netflix, the former still hasn’t quite found that success yet. And, honestly, for good reason. Manga does come from Japan. The movie adaptions are done in America. It doesn’t take a scientist to figure out where the initial problem begins. But, if Alita: Battle Angel proves anything, it’s actually quite possible to adapt a manga for American audiences.
I got to say, I’m really impressed with what Rodriguez pulls off in this movie. Primarily known for shooting in the lower budget spectrum, Alita is one of his few big budget studio features. He uses the money wisely. Everything about this world is beautifully built. From the characters to the city itself, it looks stunning. Let’s hope Rodriguez gets more chances in the future to direct bigger budgeted movies. He also shows a very keen eye for action scenes. Not only is Alita a very capable fighter herself, but you feel just how powerful these cyborgs really are. And, thankfully, the action scenes aren’t overly edited (thank God for the John Wick movies). The performances are also top notch across the board, with everyone taking the material seriously. If there is one main complaint I have, it’s the flow of the story. It does seem to move through things rather quickly and sets up for a sequel (something I’ve never been the hugest fan of films doing). Based off previous attempts at adapting a manga property, I wasn’t exactly overly excited for Alita: Battle Angel. But, after watching it, I was actually decently impressed. While I did have some story issues, this was still a very good adaptation. Let’s hope future attempts at adapting a manga are done even better. And that this film gets a sequel. I am interested in where they take this next. Now, we just need a good video game movie. |