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Galaxy Express 999: The Signature Edition
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Animation - 7.0 |
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Sound - 6.9 |
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Story - 8.4 |
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Character - 7.6 |
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Value - 7.3 |
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Enjoyment - 7.4 |
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Average - 7.4 |
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| Average |
8.0 |
| Animation |
7 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| I remember watching the classic Galaxy Express the TV series when I was just a little kid. Now i have grown up and changed over the years but the magic of this anime has stayed with me since. Not willing watch 100+ episode of TV series, i picked up this 2 hour movie and I am not disappointed. Even though this anime is now very outdated in every aspect, it still does not mean it is not enjoyable. If you are young, there plenty of adventure to keep you entertained. If you have matured, there's enough philosophical questions to keep us thinking. It's a shame this anime is going unwatched by anime lovers.
The presentation is very poor. Its style won't fit you if you can not stand 80's anime. However i should also say that this judgement is not fair in a way that this anime is very old. Now considering its age, this anime does have splendid and wonderful overall designs and vibrant animation. However regardless of age I did have problem with its lame designs on spaceships.
Music is very good. It brings out the dramatic moments and sets splendid overall mood. However, the music many times goes overboard and overused. There are scenes where I thought slient moments would in fact have better impact.
I personally found the story rather disturbing (I shouldn't spoil the story). As the viewers will discover, this anime asks deeps and question and provide disturbing incidents. I felt shocked at what happened to Tetsuro's mother especially.
Story prevails in a rather fast pace and won't make you yawn. I did feel however things just happened in auto-fire and many characters were left behind. Captain Harlock and Emeraldas appeared to be important but they turned out to be rather disappointing characters. Only character worth mentioning is Tetsuro and Maetel.
Also so many things just don't make any sense especially at the end. I don't have problem with 80's physic defying adventure stories but some things are rather weird. For example what happened between Clair and Maetel's mother? Or that pendant with dad in it? Everything just came at once and i was not able to fully understand the material.
However, even with all that negative, I can confidently recommend this flim to every anime loving people out there. If you have no problem with outdated style and little bit of confusion, this anime will present many philosophical questions and gripping adventure story of essense humanity. It's a shame this anime is overlooked by many viewers.
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Max |
(2005-04-26 14:01:51) 2005-04-25 03:47:17 |
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| Average |
6.2 |
| Animation |
8 |
| Sound |
4 |
| Story |
7 |
| Character |
5 |
| Value |
7 |
| Enjoyment |
6 |
| Update: after watching the entire movie I can safely say this is indeed a children’s story. A very poor one at that. The rationality that holds the story together is paper thin, something any mind more developed than that of a preschooler or perhaps elementary school student would inevitably tear through again and again. Unrealistic to the point of exhaustion, deus ex machina abounds, with characters in places they have no way of knowing to be, doing things they have no rational motivation to do, succeeding when they have no logical right to. The surprises that occur come out of the blue and on more than one occasion make you scratch your head, saying "If that’s the case, how in the world could the other characters not have already known that?" Everything moves along on the flimsiest of pretexts, as I say below. The only commendable aspect of "Galaxy Express: 999 Signature Edition" is the animation, which, crappy though it may be for someone of our time, must have been quite amazing when it was released. I think the creators were banking on that.
Go watch "Escaflowne: A Girl in Gaia" if you want to see a real journey by a lamentable soul (only it’s split in to two, that of a girl and a guy).
This movie has been reviewed quite well by a number of people, so I gave it a shot, thinking it would be a diamond in the rough. Now halfway through, I’ve turned it off twice, once by way of falling asleep and the other the old fashioned way, by pressing the stop button.
The story is absurd: in the first few minutes, we learn that people can turn themselves into robots, and that a "Count Mecha" hunts them for fun, and has killed the protagonist’s mother. For no real reason. Our young hero is soon helped by a woman named Maetel, giving him no real reason. He is given a gun by an old woman, for no real reason. Maetel is kidnapped, and then so is Tetsuro, for no real reason. Then a pirate woman finds him and gives him information only she knows, for no real reason. You get the idea? Everything in this anime pushes along through the flimsiest, dumbest reasons, if you can even call them reasons. The definition of a "reason" is that you have a point, making a choice for a purpose. Nothing that helps/hurts Tetsuro, the protagonist, has that: purpose. This makes for one frustrated viewing from a story standpoint.
This might not be such a big deal if the music wasn’t so horrid, but it is. Many who read this review might be too young for this, but try and remember back in grade school, or even middle school. Remember the horrible educational movies they would show in class that dated back to the seventies? Remember the music that would play in the background of those movies? Well, "Galaxy Express: 999" has the same music, in all its bitter-beer-face-inducing glory.
The animation is also quite dated, as you would expect, and must be enjoyed on a nostalgic level, as an anachronism. It’s akin to the old "Charlie Brown" animation style, or Dr. Seuss cartoons like "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas." Again, I stress that you MUST view it with a forgiving eye, for while I hate to admit it - being one who prefers to side with the old school over new school on many subjects - the novelty of the animation wares off very soon.
The whole thing reminded me of the animated movie "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," a classic. Old school animation depicting a fantasy world for young children to explore. Thus, "Galaxy Express: 999" is quaint, but I was expecting something better than a pre-teen story, based on other reviews. For what it is I recommend it, but only for what it is, so please heed this warning: you have to be in the mood for this one, if you aren’t, you won’t like enjoy it.
Also, as a little side note for some of the reviewers on Animenfo: people, please, stop saying things like our friend Hua here:
"If you are easily amused by computer graphics, thundering sound effects, chick flick comedy, or endless bloodshed and violence, then this anime is not for you…Blatantly put, if you are "low class" and simple minded, then this anime is too much for you. There's no possible way you can handle and absorb all the greatness of this masterpiece. Go watch Street Fighter or something…"
Pathetic, half-ass arguments like this really don’t help your case. If you have to use crap as a foil to explain the greatness of the piece in question, that’s not saying much. I happen to like "Dragonball Z," (an anime Hua would no doubt label a "low class, and simple-minded" action anime) and sincerely think it has it’s own soul and some deep reflections on the human condition. (Hell, I’m almost positive the voice actor for Tetsuro is the same as Goku. Think about THAT!)
And lastly, to those labeling it a "classic": get over yourselves. A classic, no. A relic, yes. And as a relic is may very well be a valuable artifact, but just because 1979 and the time period around it may have been a little sparse in terms of good anime, that doesn’t make this a classic. In this case that’s an important distinction.
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| Average |
9.2 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
9 |
| Value |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| If you are easily amused by computer graphics, thundering sound effects, chick flick comedy, or endless bloodshed and violence, then this anime is not for you. However, if you seek a well written, intricate story with fulfilling and emotional characters, then do not miss this classic. The music at times creates a lasting impression and conveys the story in a much deeper fashion. Blatantly put, if you are "low class" and simple minded, then this anime is too much for you. There's no possible way you can handle and absorb all the greatness of this masterpiece. Go watch Street Fighter or something...
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| Average |
7.0 |
| Animation |
7 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
7 |
| Character |
7 |
| Value |
7 |
| Enjoyment |
7 |
| I want to be really honest here. The movie did not have as much enjoyment value as I expected it to be. I want to say however, I could sense the immense potential behind the plot but it wasn't fully and substantially developed, very often rushed such that some elements in the story seemed forcfully placed and unnecessary. I found out only awhile ago that this was in fact a complete TV series. In conclusion, the ending still justifies a good experience but could have been better. I guess I'll check out the TV series. ^__^
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Pantha |
(2006-02-13 14:25:04) 2004-12-06 18:51:09 |
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| Average |
7.7 |
| Animation |
6 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| Classic. That word gets used way too often. With very few exceptions, no anime made in the past five years deserves the label. And no, Akira is not a classic. Neither is Ghost in the Shell. Ninja Scroll is crud. What makes a classic anyway? It takes more than merely being a cross-over hit surely. Unlike the aforementioned works, Galaxy Express 999 is a TRUE classic that actually means something. And as thus, it should be seen by anyone who wishes to call himself a fan of anime.
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| Average |
6.7 |
| Animation |
5 |
| Sound |
4 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
7 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| i watched this anime when i was a kid and even then it was already a re-run.
so forgive me if i'm working on memories and impressions that are nearly two decades old.
all i can remember is that it gave me one of my first, er, mature sci-fi anime (capt. harlock wasn't aired before this movie at my hometown and personally i think galaxy express is a better anime overall anyway.) i recall the girl who chose not to have a face because the one she lost was far too beautiful to be replace. i think it gave me nightmares when i was a kid.
i guess this is as good a place as any to note that to compare this anime with newer ones, along with other old anime, is unfair simply because the medium tends to get better with time as new techniques and technology are introduced.
i would consider it arrogant, however, to compare it with its contemporaries because i doubt it if many of the reviewers here have a fair number of animes from that era so who can say how it really compares with others. most, like me, probably depends on fansubs and written material on the net and what can be begged, stolen or burrowed from friends.
until i watch this anime again, if i can find it, all i can say that i was -as a kid- impressed not only by the story but by the depth of the characterization that the creators put into their work. surely disney ( at that time) would never dare address such issues. and to me this will always be one of the landmarks that set japanese animation from that of the west
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AngelArms |
(2004-08-19 14:53:02) 2004-08-15 18:25:32 |
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| Average |
6.2 |
| Animation |
6 |
| Sound |
6 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
7 |
| Value |
5 |
| Enjoyment |
5 |
| Just like the review below me, I taped this off of Sci-Fi channel's anime week along with Fatal Fury back around 1997. This movie is really boring and overall not very good. I can tell it came from a good storyline, but trying to cram it all in 2 hours just made everything seem way too rushed. the pirates were dumb and unnessecary. Animation was on Smurf level. Good themes and good story elements, but too rushed and too many lame characters.
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Sinai |
(2005-01-19 07:03:56) 2003-11-06 09:49:04 |
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| Average |
7.7 |
| Animation |
6 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| I don't really have the background to fairly review this movie...but that's never stopped me before. Galaxy Express uses a style of character design that I've always hated. Totally despised. It also reminds me of the Captain Harlock movie in that it tries to be really epic and live up to it's storied and extremely long TV series. Well, it actually succeeds, unlike the Captain Harlock movie. I enjoyed it more than I did the manga I read of the series, and it had a coherent story and explained the characters enough that a neophyte could understand it.
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| Average |
9.7 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| I was captured by the art from the first time I saw it. I couldn't get the hauntingly beautiful female characters out of my head with their exceptionally long lashes and sad eyes. The story is also excellent, it is a composition of various adventures taken place on different planets. At the end it poses the ever important question, what is the price we are willing to pay to live forever if it is even worth it.
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| Average |
3.5 |
| Animation |
3 |
| Sound |
3 |
| Story |
7 |
| Character |
4 |
| Value |
2 |
| Enjoyment |
2 |
| Im sorry, but I can't stand the site of this anime. The animation is great for its time. But lets face it, were not in the 70's anymore. The story is actually really good, but I couldn't appriciate the anime because the animation was so poor it hurt my eyes to watch it. I had to take breaks every now and then from watching this. How those 2 gave this a perfect 10. I will never know. Because I think anyone will agree with me, that this animation just sucks for our time. Unless you can get past the fact of the animation sucking so bad, I recommened you pass on this one.
Oh by the way, the only reason I gave animation a 3 instead of a 1. Is because it's animation is extremely well done for the date it was made. But there is still no question, it cant even compare to the worst animes made in the last 7 years.
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Luminaria |
(2004-04-05 16:55:25) 2002-09-18 22:54:21 |
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| Average |
10.0 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| My first experience with Leiji's work, GE999 - Signature Edition is a movie compilation of the GE999 TV series. One of the most visually arresting pieces that I had seen at the time, GE is full of cultural and social references that give a great, deep meaning to the overall plot.
Leiji Matsumoto's style is amazing. what an outstanding movie, a classic that everyone should see.
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