Redline

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Anime Review
There's a thin skeleton of a story underneath the beautifully-animated skin of Madhouse's 2009 anime film Redline. This is not a complaint.

Redline's A plot focuses on a ridiculous, over-the-top futuristic racing circuit. Imagine Car Wars combined with Star Wars podracing: vehicles out of Syd Mead's wet dreams drive insane speeds, firing heavy weapons and enhancements worthy of Gamma World. (If you like realism, put that preference aside while watching Redline.) The final race of the season is scheduled for a planet whose military dictatorship that doesn't want the race, and so deploys the planet's military against the drivers. Of course, the race goes on anyway.

The B plot is about a guy and a girl. They kinda like each other. Oh, and the guy's right-hand-man is dodgy. That's it.

There are absolutely zero surprises in any of these plots, but Redline is all about energy and presentation. Like the makers of any good action movie, the staff of Redline seemed to care most about pacing and visual flair. On those, Redline certainly delivers. The racing sequences have possibly the highest sheet count I've ever seen; the screen is absolutely jammed with movement. Many shots are full-frame animation, almost never seen in anime.

The movie's hyperactive style results in tepid dialogue. There are many quiet moments, but since most of the characters are either rival racers or over-the-top gonzo military clichés, there's little of substance for them to talk about. The guy and the girl verbally dance around each other. A few quiet scenes do provide a couple of lovely moments of character development, but that's about all the complexity you get.

The Japanese voice actors fit their characters well, including the over-the-top ones. This can be a problem, as several characters basically scream their dialogue the whole time. It's appropriate, but I found myself wincing a few times as my ears were assaulted by exclamations worthy of Dragon Ball Z's worst antics.

Overall, Redline is a visual feast that must be appreciated as a high-energy action story. It's a bit more than that, but only a bit. Fortunately, the beautifully-crafted animation and unflagging pace remains entertaining for its entire run time.