Vampire Hunter D is what Twilight could have been. It wasn’t the best anime, but not terrible either. The future is a Wild West wasteland a la Cowboy Bebop but with a Victorian Goth twist to the decor. Humans have almost made vampires extinct or flee the planet on rockets. A few half-human, half-vampire hunters…
Carved: The Slit Mouthed Woman
When I first came across Carved: The Slit Mouthed Woman I genuinely thought it would be scary. Just before watching it I felt that it’s either going to be really scary or really stupid. It turned out I was wrong on all counts. But let me back up a moment. Carved is about a mysterious…
Grotesque
Grotesque. Well, I can say at least two good things about this movie. Three things actually. The title is not misleading at all. You are told you will see something grotesque and it certainly delivers. On more than one level actually but more on that later. The second thing I can say is that it…
Okami
Okami is currently my favorite video game. I don’t mean to sound fickle, I’m not. Okami has been at the top of my list for almost two years, for a few reasons. #1. I am a graphic oriented person. I like pretty pictures and Okami happens to have stunning graphics. The world is artistically rendered…
Kigeki
Kigeki (Comedy) is a short anime film produced in 2002 by Studio 4°C, and directed by Kazuto Nakazawa. It features two Schubert pieces, “Ave Maria” and “Erlkönig.” In this dark fairy tale, a young girl, desperate to save her village from invading English soldiers, sets out in search of the legendary Black Swordsman, who accepts…
Anime’s Visual Language
Anime and manga have a unique visual language that conveys character emotions and thoughts. Many of us “regular” anime watchers are so familiar with these symbols that we don’t give them a second thought. These symbols (like the vein popping out, as shown to the left) can make anime confusing for people new to anime….