royalef
I'm not a fan of Japanese Anime films. The lower quality of the animation is an obstacle for me. Then add in the awkward English dubbing and CC. The language sounds unnatural and often doesn't match the visuals in the sense of emotion and characterization,. Here the voice actors are acting. Seriously.
The animation is superior to almost every anime I've watched in the last two years easy. The quality of this is elevated and really enjoyable. The film is far futuristic, somewhat post-apocalyptic. Dunpeal's horse is a robotic ride now. I think the blend of supernatural undead and future cataclysm is excellently done. Besides vampires, zombies & werewolves, there are a number of other creatures. Some are very interesting and cool. And surprising. And they are well done in animation style and use in combat and pacing. The characters and scene sets are memorable, which is wonderful. Even the music is varied to cinematic effect, like it would be in any movie that has a soundtrack built to emphasis the edited film. Many anime are blunt and obvious. You realize what is going to happen and often wait for the slow sequencing and slow script to spell everything out that you just saw happen, in case you couldn't figure out what just happened. The characters in the anime often narrate what they feel, what they and you just saw, what they are thinking. Good films demonstrate those things through acting and directing style. This feels like a movie.This is not a movie for anime fans. This is for anyone who enjoys this genre. If you aren't a fan of low-cost, low frame rate anime, WATCH THIS BEFORE the original 1985 film.
heath-jeffrey
The original, Vampire Hunter D (1985), was a decent action anime movie. D is a mysterious but ultimately flat character, and there was a tiny twist at the end (explaining why D was chosen as his name), but ultimately it was a pure action movie. Simple plot and simple characters to show off a series of amazing anime battles and to show off D as a Gothic superhero.But the sequel, Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust (2000), was thoroughly amazing.It kept the amazing anime battles, going even further with unique abilities and effects that only anime could easily show. It kept D as a Gothic superhero. But it added a unique plot, perhaps riffing off Romeo & Juliet, but with a lot more to it than that. Around that plot it built a human story, about love and racism and the difference between loneliness and solitude, about friendship and real loss. And it introduced and developed a wide range of interesting characters. It did all that without detracting from the action and while maintaining a great pace.And right where you'd think such an ambitious movie would falter - tying it all up appropriately at the end - it really hit the mark. A truly satisfying ending - not too happy, not too sad; not easy to anticipate in full, but not unbelievable in the context nor a 'wake up from a dream' twist that's actually just a write-off; and ties up a number of strings related to plot or character development.And one thing that's easy to escape notice: despite D still being the same, flat, 'does nothing but fight' character, that character feels well developed in this movie. How? Cleverly managed through the way the other characters and the similarities and differences in the various relationships kind of tell his story for him.An exceptional movie.
arsonistheway
Remember when vampires weren't the complete laughingstock of the film world because of "Twilight"? Neither do I because I am only 15 and wasn't around for that magical time. First I will mention a few of this film's flaws. The romance between the main villain and the woman he loves isn't really explained or developed that well and at the end I don't understand why D thinks he will still get the reward if he just takes the ring, but those are the only flaws I can remember about this film. The visuals are absolutely gorgeous, so if nothing else about this film works for you your eyes will be entertained from beginning to end. The action is absolutely spectacular. The fights are two-sided, have great suspense, a variety of cool attack and weapons, and are just nice to look at. The characters all have some sort of morals and reason for doing what they do as well as having human flaws which makes all of them very interesting. There are also several great tear jerking moments and this film doesn't insult its audience by making sure all of the good guys get out alive. One common complaint I have heard is that in the original manga the vampire hunters kept the female vampire hunter as a sex slave, but I thought that was a good change because this would probably make them generic terrible people and I genuinely enjoy their characters in this movie. If this was the best film ever, which it isn't, I would be okay with that because it just does so many thing so perfectly.
airdzboi_2560
As a fairly new fan of the anime genre, Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust was the first Anime flick i bought and i didn't expect much of it but, damn! was i surprised at the end of it! The story tells of a young Vampire Noble, Meier Link (young in the vampire world) that abducts a rich, innocent girl(Charlotte). To retrieve the girl, her family call on D, the famous Dunpeal Hunter who is known for his reserved yet ruthless nature and his impressive number of successful missions but to ensure the hunt is a quick one, her brother hires the Marcus Bros. a notorious band of brothers known for their unique individual skills and fearless approach to hunting vampires. The two parties race relentlessly to retrieve the girl in order to receive the huge bounty placed on Meier Link's head.As the story pans out, the hunt becomes more and more dangerous, with deadly obstacles standing in the way of the hunters, the real story behind the abduction and D's personal mission to retrieve the girl.The movie is great for those looking to explore or is new to the Anime genre and is watchable for anyone looking for suspense, violence and a bit of drama in there as well as a great soundtrack backing it.
AD
