Customer Reviews
Not what I was expecting! - By: Charlie Baltimore, 10 Jul 2006 
After being an avid amine follower in my teens, I have recently started to revisit some of the old titles due some of the masterpieces of Studio Ghibli. Although I was immediately grabbed by the action in Appleseed (which continued throughout), I found that it lacked the grit seen in classics such as Fist of the North Star, & Akira, which left me feeling that I could have been watching Transformers the movie (that's not a good thing!). But, even saying that I can't complain about the story, I feel that in true manga style, it questioned humanity & how deserved we are of alll that we have been bestowed with this planet.
For the most part, I felt let down by the cheap looking animation. If you are interested in good CGI animation, I would recommend you watch 'Final Fantasy'. Although it is not from the manga stable, its story lends heavily from that genre, with characters that look far superior to thoughs in Appleseed. So if you appreciate the classics with blood, guts & gore, which have been drawn not to perfection, but with a rugged realism & with a story that does not try to portray a happy ending of sorts, then I would suggest that you give this a miss!
Review for 2004 version - By: Takaharu, 16 Jun 2005 
There are two versions of this film, the original (drawn) version & the 2004 (CGI).
Having seen this film in subtitles before its release in English I have to say it's an awesome film. The CGI is stunning, out-classing alll except Ghost in the Shell 2.
The film's set in the future where bioroids (ie: human look-alikes) co-exist with humans and, like any good Manga, the ending has a surprising twist.
Top-notch film; definitely one of the best Mangas in my list.
IGNORE OTHER REVIEWS FOR THE *WRONG PRODUCT* - By: S. Lee, 22 May 2005 The reason is because they are for the old purely handdrawn animated, NON-CGI version. Notice how it says the reviews are for an 'out of print' version. This is an alll new updated version I have ordered from Amazon.com that is purely in CGI & made in 2004! Don't believe me? Go to www.amazon.com & look for Appleseed (the 2004 one) in the DVD section. The original had pretty basic animation, but in this version it is alll action. Try go to www.quicktime.com & check the trailer out in the 'independent' category (if it is still there whenever you see this review).
Shirows work too large for the small screen? - By: Stephen, 07 Dec 2002 
Masmune Shirows Appleseed has been popular with Manga fans for years & given this particular titles strong following, an animated version of the original comic book was probably inevitable. The post apocaliptic utopian setting & cinematic story telling style that characterised the comic book have however sadly been trimmed down for this comparatively low budget production. The central theme of the terrorists struggle to assert their own identities against the totalitarian olympian society is not given adequate space in a very short running time & character development suffers as a result. Deunan & Briaereos the principal characters are almost added into the plot as an afterthought & their personalities don't reallly have the space to shine. In summary the best that can be said is that the most was made of limited resources in this work & my advice for new viewers of shirows work is to either start with the original comics or try the much better done Ghost in the Shell.
Not amazing, but not poor - By: , 02 Oct 2002 This films sees you following the swat team of olympus city in their quest to despose of a terrorist. Olympus is the perfect city, which was built after World War III. The city is shared by humans & bio droids, an advanced, & modified version of the humans. After the terrorist takes out one of your men, its time to take the terrorist down. There is a nice twist to the story, & it has plenty of action. But the animation does not suit this type of film, its reminiscent of pokemon. Its not a very long film either, its on for just over an hour. Personallly i think there are much better films out there to spen you hard earnt cash on
