Mr. A returns to BLOW YOUR MIND!!!
The Story
After Earth's demise, one of the only safe havens left is the floating island of Metro City. Dr. Tenma, head of the Ministry of Science, loses his son Toby (Tobio in the original story) when a prototype war machine he created goes on a rampage. Insane with grief, Tenma enlists the aid of his old friend Dr. Elefun (Ochanomizu-hakase) in the creation of a boy robot made in the image of Toby. This new "Toby" is nothing like the original and is discarded by Tenma. "Toby", after being chased by the military who is after his experimental power source, ends up on the Earth's surface where he is given the name Astro (Atom)...and the real character development begins.
The Review
Astro Boy isn't something you should go into without knowing the original story. A lot is going to get "lost in translation" and the fun little tidbits will fall through the cracks. Acting is alright, not incredible, but it gets the job done. The story was okay for the amount of time they had to tell it, although I would've liked to have seen the supporting characters further developed. Something that was a major bother for me is that the robot designs (save for Astro/Atom himself) are rather uninspired and Tezuka's unique art style is almost nowhere to be seen.
The Verdict
Flashing lights and bright colors will keep the little ones glued to the screen, but the emotional content might not entertain a fair amount of the parents (it was enough to keep me interested though). However, if you are an Astro Boy fan or an Osamu Tezuka fan in general, it's well worth the matinee ticket price.
8/10
So that's it. There's not much to say about this film that I haven't already said in Episode 11. Stay tuned, I might do some tweaks to this review.
Jaa matta,
Mr. A (executive producer)
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