Take A Pick Tuesday: Blood
The Last Vampire
We’re on the forefront of revolutionary storytelling every
day, new shows come out all the time that have expansive ideas or expand on
ideas and transcend expectations, as well as genre to be a part of culture and
film. This is nothing new and yet it is always new when it brings something that
can be added to an impressive collection of shows and movies that have long
since been numbered beyond count, shows and movies that have been able to make
these changes within the genre of anime.
Yet knowing
this, it’s easy to be surprised or instead have a greater knowledge of how long
this has been happening. Blood The Last Vampire came out during a time where
anime seemed so cinematic that they could just be released in theaters ( some
were and have since been re-released in theaters), no one had to wave it in
front of your face and say this is an anime. In Japan this had been nothing
new, these were made for theater releases and had been treated as such, in fact
they still are. For the US those
that didn’t even watch anime knew and the only thing anyone cared about was how magnificent
these shows and movies were.
In fact looking
at Manga Entertainment it’s easy to forget what a difference that made in North
America, how they helped to bring such an impact, minds that had been opened
for years or had already unfurled were scooped up and showed something that
would remain with them for the rest of their lives. Foundations of why they
were an anime fan, even if the gateway had been other shows beforehand, this is
where they came to explore the genre, one of many stepping stones in that
journey.
This is before
Funimation would become the monster distributor it was, even before other
companies would disappear, re-emerge or live on through their titles that would
be picked up from the remaining companies.
All the companies were kicking through it sure but look at Manga
Entertainment’s catalog and see what a difference they brought by bringing
these titles to us. Blood The Last
Vampire had company alongside, Ghost In The Shell, Patlabor,
Blackjack, X and even their Street Fighter films and series managed to take
something that was a basis for a fighting game and add mythos to it, a story,
an explored mood that would have people go wow! At least it did for me. The list goes on and on.
Blood The Last
Vampire is insight into an era, as it is an insight into one of kind
storytelling, showing that truthfully we’ve been on the forefront for some time
now. The film had an all-star cast of creators and animators including Mamrou
Oshii. Still you’re not distracted by who are attached to this
project, you’re not saying I’m watching it because these people are working on
it, no you’re watching it because of the film and it captures you the moment it
starts, showing you shadows, nothing but shadows in the light, with characters,
with everything. You know the moment the scene opens with Saya sitting on the
train, in a nearly empty car except for one unassuming tired man, until you
realize that this is the beginning of the hunt you’re watching. This is a
mission, that man was a creature.
We’ll get back
to this towards the end but that’s just it, we’re fed details, bits and pieces,
the viewers are not given a beginning, there’s more of the sense that we’re in
the middle of something that’s been happening for a while, another day and
mission or perhaps one of the final days of a final mission. One of the most
significant points in these character’s lives, not just those that will see them,
characters swept in the world but also the characters that already a part of
it, like Saya.
The basic
synopsis of the film is this, Saya along with two men who are part of some official agency
of sorts, are sent to a base in Yokota Air Base, right before the start of the
Vietnam War to dispatch of these creatures we know as vampires, more specific
Saya is sent in to eliminate these creatures while it becomes clear that not
only may she be one of them, but might be the last original. That’s all you really need to know going in to
the film and that becomes clear fairly early.
You wouldn’t
think a vague description like that is enough to hook you on a story but it
is, this is coming from someone that is
as fascinated with the story as anything else but of course Blood The Last Vampire is a triumph when it
comes to animation. Old and new techniques are used to give even a veteran
anime watcher an appreciation of the detail and style used in the film. The era captured and the mixture of Japanese and English audio in the dubbed version at least. It adds
to the mood and the tension, never forget this has heavy horror elements into
it and it plays with this giving a completely new dimension that is left for
you to hold on to, play around with in your hands to see a depth, one that will make
you run back again to see the movie.
We’re talking scenes
like the glossed/waxed wooden floors with a trail of dripping blood in an auditorium
at the height of a Halloween costume party.
There is a monstrous appearance of people among the monster and their
imperfection gives them a realistic, believable sense that they're not just fluff
for the background or just a character to say a few words to keep the movie
going. The designs of the creatures themselves have an organic look to them,
they could be animals in our world in some ways, long jaws and a slight trace
of human anatomy in them.
The creatures
have such rapid movement that make you look at the humans going ok, what are you
going to do, I mean their eyes bulge sometimes, looking like they’re going to
burst. Are they a vampire, no it’s worse, they’re just plump and ready for the
vampires to kill, as fleshy as they look it makes the hunt almost natural, it
makes it feel like these creatures although they’re being hunted and are things
that go bump in the night, are sort of part of the food chain, they just happen
to be on the top of it. Also a fine contrast to the humans that have at time clumsy motions, whether intentional or not it plays well against the actual vampire. That’s saying a lot considering they’re not even
original creatures though they don’t go deep into what makes them a synthetic, an inorganic
version of what Saya is, so even that can be questioned and scrutinized. At least in the film.
Am I pitching
this for Halloween, well no it’s just damn good timing but of course this is a
perfect Halloween film to sit down and enjoy the mood of the coming holiday. I mean it is downright horrific even when you
have someone combating these creatures, not everyone is just a victim but
enough are to still terrify you. Though the scene where Saya comes in and the
nurse is looking after two students in which she kills one and then gives chase to
the other, shattering the woman’s perception of the world while still
progressing the story, is horrifying as well as it is thought provoking. I’ve
used that a few times I know but I’m going somewhere with this.
To see a blend
of these themes in the show is once again to see the scene showing the
Halloween party in mid-swing, where the creature shows itself and the nurse
sees it and Saya runs at it with an antique sword which breaks, it’s a fake
and only the nurse seems aware of what's happening besides the other two in battle against each
other. It was like bringing one element into another, watching them clash and
of course showing the thought provoking aspect that no one can see this real
world.
Than we go
deeper, to do so we need to look at Saya. It’s enough to have a badass
character, sort of relentless, takes nothing from anyone but also to have
someone that doesn’t really allow you to see another side of them while still
managing to be fascinating and still help the movie be more than a
horror-action film. That’s something else entirely. There’s lots of fun films
with characters like that and then there are films that have depth with
characters like this, that’s a harder thing to pull off. Blood The Last Vampire
does it with ease.
Characters going through metamorphosis are important
elements to a story, in order for it to have a dramatic effect on you, to draw
you in, you have to be emotionally invested in the characters. So it helps if
they pull on your emotions through theirs. That’s why it’s a feat to do it with
a character that may seem like you couldn’t have that experience with. Yet Saya is one that
you can and it shows through subtle moments, through select words of which she
says little and one of the final scenes.
A good story
knows how long it needs to be and it, this film knows exactly how long and when
it will end, in its final scenes it gives you this metamorphosis, that’s when
you realize maybe it didn't just happened in this moment, maybe it’s been
happening the entire time. This final scene, seen and then pointed out by
someone else as well is when she’s given the fatal wound to the last creature,
it opens its mouth in agony, Saya drops blood in its mouth. It’s also where you get a shot of her hair
blowing and only a part of her face, not truly the front but a side that shows
you something other than anger. Metamorphosis,
a difference, whatever you want to call it, there’s this serene face that can
hold any of the emotions you would see in a character.
What is the face though, it could be anything
from peace, to the sadness, of watching, what may very well be the last of her
kind. In this scene the movie breathes
which is one of it’ greatest achievements. If you find flaws in it yourself, this scene might force you to ignore them. Everything that follows gives
answers to some questions and leaves others for us to wonder as any good movie
does. It also leaves a character whose perception of the world was opened up, to question everything. I remember lots of things about
Blood The Last Vampire, with so many years of a gap since seeing it last and it
isn’t how long the movie is that stays with me, it isn’t anything superficial that
sticks with me, I'm not laughing at any mistakes or sitting to poke fun at the film, it was the feeling of watching something special, it’s the scene
that breathes life into a film that was on the forefront of something revolutionary. That's what I sat down to watch.
*Photo courtesy of imdb*
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