I have seen one anime film in my life as a nerd. It was Miyazaki's Princess Mononoke, recommended by a friend. I thought it was alright, but it didn't set alight a fervent enthrallment with the medium. I didn't feel a pull to check out other anime titles, or even other Miyazaki vectors. Ventures? No, I'm positive that "vector" is the appropriate word. Don't look it up. Well, I have now seen two anime films. I've been familiar with Vampire Hunter D for nearly two decades and I have come close to buying it on occasion. Why didn't I? Eh, I'm just not an anime type. It's hard to explain. I'm averse to the animation style, for starters. Simply put, I couldn't see myself relating to the characters and losing myself in a plot thread.
If I were to cozy up to a ration of Japanimation, I knew that this 1985 leech scoop would most likely be my huckleberry. We follow a vampire hunter (no shit) as he endeavors to run his sword through Count Magnus Lee. Lee serves as our Dracula, and no, the name is not a coincidence. Apparently, much of D's gothic trappings are meant to mirror those of Hammer outings. Hideyuki Kikuchi, the author of the source material, was a big fan of Christopher Lee."
Why the quotation marks? Because I am presenting the above block of text as a curiosity, a peek into another dimension. Also, I'm a fucking idiot. Allow me to explain. Last night, I watched Vampire Hunter D online. Or so I thought. Today, I began my review and I got precisely that far (*points at the second paragraph*) when I realized that I didn't watch Vampire Hunter D. Between the words that I was reading and writing, something was erroneous. Glitched up, if you will. I watched 2000's Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust, the sequel. How the shit did that happen? I'm pretty sure that I know, but it's a long and ultimately superfluous story.
Of course, it still holds true that I'm not an anime guy. The synopsis reads differently, though. Heh, I was wondering why Count Magnus Lee didn't ring a bell. Have I mentioned that I'm a fucking idiot yet? Here, D (the character, not the movie) is paid a handsome amount of gravy tender to retrieve the prized daughter of a rich invalid. The old financier paid a group of outlaw bounty hunters for the same reason, so I guess it's a race? In any event, there are obstacles aplenty and it's made all the more complicated when the bird taken hostage decides that she genuinely loves her fanged captor.
Camera angles, shading, framing...the cosmetics are spot-on. I can't say that I love the overall style (I'm still too American), but Bloodlust is a slick picture. The script never goes off the rails. That said, gloomy atmospherics take over when the scaffolding isn't structurally sound. A main villain is introduced in the third act. And I do mean "introduced," as her name isn't uttered in the first hour. That's a no-no. The only other failing is Left Hand. If you've seen Bloodlust, you probably know why I detest Left Hand. Fuck Left Hand.
Seriously, fuck Left Hand. Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust is a cool action/horror anime, and I can see why it (and its predecessor) is often proposed as an approachable film to show someone from another fandom. Have I been converted? No. Robert Z'Dar says, "Tentacle rape or get the fuck out!"
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