The Red Spectacles

Starring:Shigeru Chiba, Machiko Washio, Hideyuki Tanaka
Director: Mamoru Oshii
Studio: Bandai
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Description
As the world decayed into chaos, the Metropolitan Police had no choice but to fight back and create an elite police unit known as Kerberosthe Watchdogs of Hell. Over time, the zeal of the police force soon transformed into actions of cruelty and corruption. However, three of the elite rebelled against the system, but only detective Koichi Todome escaped. Several years later, he has now returned home. But why? What is left for him in this city that continues to decay? Kouichi must now determine who is friend and who is foe as he attempts to unravel what happened after he left. KEY SALES POINT

Description

Mamoru Oshii has created and directed some of Japan's most celebrated motion pictures including highly acclaimed movies like `Ghost in the Shell', `Patlabor', and `Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade'. Now available for the first time outside of Japan are three of Oshii's early live action theatrical features: `Talking Heads', `Stray Dogs', and `Red Spectacles'. These are the stories of of men whose lives are forever changed by deceit, betrayal, and murder and whose sole purpose is either to live as wolves or to live as sheep. Prepare yourself for a cinematic collection that delves into the mind of one, Mamoru Oshii.

KEY SALES POINT
From one of the premier directors of Japanese Cinema - Director Mamoru Oshii
Filmography includes - director 'Ghost in the Shell', creator 'Jin-Roh', director 'Patlabor'
Live Action Theatrical Feature
Anamorphic Widescreen
Mamoru Oshii's Cinema Collection Contains an EXCLUSIVE original CD Soundtrack from the features
DVD Features:
Interactive Animated Menus
Dolby Digital Surround Sound
Japanese Language
English subtitles option
EXCLUSIVE Original CD Soundtrack
DVD Extras:
Mamoru Oshii Text
Theatrical Trailers

Customer Reviews:

Unique.......2004-05-25

These movies certainly won't appeal to everyone, but I personally found them refreshingly different, interesting and very enjoyable. Whether or not you will enjoy them depends not only on personal taste but also what you intend to get out of seeing movies. If you've dismissed movies such as David Lynch's "Eraserhead" or "Lost Highway" as 'arsty pretentious rubbish', these won't be the films for you. The directing draws attention to itself (especially in "Talking Head"), which means if you just want to be told a story, you're already missing the point. These can be seen as 'experiments' in movie-making, and the results are very interesting, provided you're into that sort of thing.

Understandably, some people may be interested in these movies because of the connection to the Oshii-written anime "Jin-Roh". Don't expect a similar film, or much relation to it. At first, these films seem to have little relation to each other, let alone other films. Don't expect action, either. There are occasional action scenes, though if that's why you're watching the film you're once again likely missing the point.

It occured to me that "The Red Spectacles" is, in a way, a parody of itself. Any event or aspect of the storyline that may have been slightly far fetched, silly, or seen as a mistake in a normal film, is made very deliberate, exaggerated and displayed in an over-the-top manner that is somewhat remeniscent of comedic anime.. yet it doesn't feel out of place. It seems to fit right into the world Oshii has created in the film.

"Stray Dog" is a mellow, aesthetically beautiful film, rich in color, which is a startling contrast to the schizofrenic "Red Spectacles", which was predominately in black and white, and generally far from mellow. If you're not a fan of slow movies, or are expecting some action, you'll likely look at the time an hour into the movie and be amazed that seemingly nothing's happened yet. This isn't actually the case, of course, and while the film may be less complex, and generally less active, than the other two in the series, it still has plenty of ideas to express. This is the film that probably has the most in common with Jin-Roh, but again, don't expect the same film.

"Talking Head" defies convention even more than "The Red Spectacles" did, and presents a story about filmmaking full of bizarre characters and events, and commentary on various aspects of the art. This should be fascinating viewing for appreciators of 'arty' cinema, not just for it's bold direction and quirkiness, but also for the ideas expressed about the medium of film (and more specifically, animation), and the creative process.

I've long appreciated Oshii's animated works (such as Patlabor 2, Ghost in the Shell and Jin-Roh), and was very interested to see his live action films. Between his anime films, these films, and the absolutely stunning "Avalon", Oshii has shown diversity and unique vision, and has more than earned a place among the giants of cinema.

Great work with some flaws.......2004-05-13

I loved these movies and the soundtrack that came with them. Mamoru Oshii is a genius but there were quite a few flaws that kept me unsatisfied. I wouldn't recommend these for everyone but only for those who like Oshii and anime. If you do it's a definate buy!

I'll be honest..........2004-02-17

These movies flat out suck. For one thing, the box art and movie trailers will show you that these movies are action packed (by showing constant gun fights, and armored soldiers running around), when in fact they are not. My main reason for buying this set was because I loved Jon-Roh, as well as Ghost in The Shell. So I figured a live action version would be awesome, but it's not. In Jon-Roh, there was quite a bit of action involving the awesome looking armors the soldiers wear. In the live action movies, you barely see this at all. At the start of the films you see a tiny bit of action, and then for almost an hour and a half later, it's nothing but slow pacing footage of people wondering what's going on.

In Red Spectacles, a former Kerberos soldier comes back to Japan to find his team mates he left behind, and goes to find out what's been going on ever since he left. He finds out what happens to his buddies, but the ending leaves you questioning if he did in fact find out anything at all. The Movie starts off in color, but the rest of it is in black and white, which gives the movie an odd look. Also, instead of being a serious film, the characters end up trying to be comical like in anime, but it's never funny because trying to do cartoon gags in live action never turn out right because live action films never get the timimg right.

In Stray Dogs, most of it is serious, but at times they will go off doing stupid gags that never work (again, because the timing is off). And just like Red Spectacles, we never see any action except towards the end. In Stray Dogs, a former Kerberos soldier is released from prison, and he leaves japan to search for his master. The pacing in this movie is too slow as well. Most of the movie is just wandering around, not really doing anything. When there's a small fight between these two characters, it's all in one angle, and one angle only. Not only can you see the kicks not even making contact (they just swing them over each other) but the actors reactions for being hit are way off. One guy kicks, delay, other guy finally reacts. Had they had quicker timing for this, and different angles and sound effects, it would have been better, but instead just looks cheesy.

Customer Reviews:

oH MY GOSH!.......2006-10-16

I love Oshii's anime work. I was expecting Jin Roh the live action movie...I got it for about five minutes at the beginning of the movie(The suits looked awesome..very WW2 super soldier.) Then the bottem fell out. A drudging crawl of a satire about fascism and the... oh whatever... Buy the poster instead and you won't be disappointed. I'm a little biased in that I really wanted a cool Jin Roh live action movie following the actions of the Kerboros...it is not here. If you are a film student studying Oshii...go for it!

"Jin-Roh" + "Alphaville" = surreal "Spectacle".......2003-11-13

As a fan of Mamoru Oshii's action-packed, yet intellectually provocative anime films, like "Ghost in the Shell", "Patlabor", and "Jin-Roh", I was expecting something interesting from his live-action films. I started by watching "Avalon," which lived up to my expectations. I then decided to watch "Red Spectacles" next because it takes place within the same alternate world of "Jin-Roh".

While "Red Spectacles" starts off with a full-color live-action shootout that could've been straight out of "Jin-Roh", that's about as far as the similarities between "Red Spectacles" and its animated kin go. What follows the opening credits is a sepia-toned black & white genre-bending tour de force reminiscent of Jean-Luc Godard's "Alphaville".

Veteran anime voice actor Shigeru Chiba plays Koichi, a former member of the elite Kerberos police unit who has returned home after spending several years in hiding only to discover that the world he left behind has totally changed in his absence. "Red Spectacles" is constantly shifting genres, from action to slapstick to thriller to tragedy, and though these mood swings can be jarring at times, the film always maintains a surrealist tone. Oshii uses the language of film to cinematically convey Koichi's confusion and paranoia as he fights to uncover a government conspiracy that still wants him dead.

I won't give away the ending, but I will say that the last 5 minutes were visually breathtaking. The cinematography is especially remarkable at the end and Oshii introduces a metaphor in the final frames of "Red Spectacles" that he explores in detail a decade later in his screenplay for "Jin-Roh".

However, I must warn people who are expecting an action flick; "Red Spectacles" will probably bore and/or confuse you. I personally appreciate avant-garde film, so I loved "Red Spectacles", but my bloodthirsty anime "otaku" friends spent the whole film scratching their heads and begging me to fast-forward.

Description

As the world decayed into chaos, the Metropolitan Police had no choice but to fight back and create an elite police unit known as Kerberos…the Watchdogs of Hell. Over time, the zeal of the police force soon transformed into actions of cruelty and corruption. However, three of the elite rebelled against the system, but only detective Koichi Todome escaped. Several years later, he has now returned home. But why? What is left for him in this city that continues to decay? Kouichi must now determine who is friend and who is foe as he attempts to unravel what happened after he left. KEY SALES POINT

* From one of the premier directors of Japanese Cinema - Director Mamoru Oshii
* Live Action Theatrical Feature
* Anamorphic Widescreen

Customer Reviews:

oH MY GOSH!.......2006-10-16

"Jin-Roh" + "Alphaville" = surreal "Spectacle".......2003-11-13

The next film at the top of my "To-See" list is Oshii's 1991 live-action sequel-of-sorts to "Red Spectacles" called "Stray Dogs: Kerberos Panzer Cops" (aka "Jigoku no banken: kerubersu").

Mamoru Oshii Cinema Trilogy Collection (Talking Head/Stray Dogs/The Red Spectacles) + Soundtrack CD
Average customer rating:

Unique

Great work with some flaws

I'll be honest...

Mamoru Oshii Cinema Trilogy Collection (Talking Head/Stray Dogs/The Red Spectacles) + Soundtrack CD
Starring: Mamoru Oshii
Manufacturer: Bandai
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Anime & Manga | Genres | DVD | Video
Bandai | By Studio | Anime & Manga | Genres | DVD | Video
( M ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Anime | Boxed Sets | Stores | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Avalon

Stray Dog of Anime: The Films of Mamoru Oshii

Jin Roh (Special Edition)

Patlabor - The Mobile Police The Original Series Collection

Patlabor: The Movie

ASIN: B0001BMM9U
Release Date: 2003-11-04

Customer Reviews:

Unique.......2004-05-25

Great work with some flaws.......2004-05-13

I'll be honest..........2004-02-17

DVD:

DVD List

DVD

DVD

Elmo's World - Flowers, Bananas & More

100 Favourite Toddler Tunes And Rhymes : Video

New York City Ballet Workout (REGION 1) (NTSC)

DVD: Scarecrow Gone Wild

The 18 Bronzemen