Plot: What’s it about?
In the middle of a thriving urban landscape lies Treasure Town, an island that serves as the metropolis’ less than desirable part of town. The entire island is populated by society’s undesirables, from drug dealers to gang members to pimps and prostitutes, Treasure Island has them all. Also on the island are two orphans, the street smart Black and the naive, but kind White, who try to make some kind of life for themselves. Whenever Black gets into trouble, White is quick to ask for forgiveness, so there is a fragile, unique bond between the two. When some gangsters set out to claim Treasure Town as their own, they run into little resistance, but Black refuses to give up what he and White have carved out for themselves. But when a vicious problem solver arrives, can even Black and White hold their ground?
I’ve seen a lot of anime, but no anime based feature films or television shows I’ve seen can boast the kind of visuals on showcase in Tekkonkinkreet. This is gorgeous stuff, with intense attention to detail, impressive dimensional depth, and just the kind of visuals you can easily get lost in and forget about the movie itself. In the case of Tekkonkinkreet, being distracted from the story isn’t such a bad idea, as the story isn’t on the same scope as the visuals. The story isn’t bad, but it should be so much more epic and instead, it seems like a tacked on reason to bask in these lush visuals. The end result is that Tekkonkinkreet is a landmark in terms of visuals and deserves to be seen, but it isn’t a movie that stays with you once it ends. But it is a fun ride and even if you mute the sound, you’ll still get enough out of this movie to give it a rental. Of course, this Blu-ray disc is the best way to experience those visuals, which simply shine in this high definition treatment.
Video: How does it look?
Tekkonkinkreet is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen. The main reason to watch this movie is the visuals, so thank goodness this transfer looks so damn good. All of the detail the animation offers shines through here, so image depth is excellent and overall detail is impressive. The animation styles looks simply stunning here, especially the backgrounds, as I have said before, you could get lost in these visuals. The colors look great also, save for a couple of instances of problems, but even then, the issues were minor in scope. In the end, this is a fantastic treatment for a movie that needed a knockout transfer, so kudos to Sony. If you want to show off your HDTV, this disc wouldn’t be a bad choice at all.
Audio: How does it sound?
The original Japanese soundtrack is preserved in an uncompressed PCM 5,1 option, which like the video, is impressive and then some. The track provides a crisp, active experience and beyond the effective background noise, when power is needed, this track can deliver. Not many scenes require sheer power, but some do and in those instances, the power comes in droves. Even calmer scenes have great presence however, this is a terrific soundtrack. No issues with dialogue either, as far as clarity and volume. This disc also includes Dolby Digital 5,1 options in Japanese and English, as well as subtitles in English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese.
Supplements: What are the extras?
All of the extras from the standard release are back, starting off with audio comments by director Michael Arias and other crew members. The tone is rather technical, so if you prefer anecdotes over the inner workings of animation, you might find this session to be on the dull side. The Making of Tekkonkinkreet is an in depth look inside the production and while not quite as epic as some pieces of this kind, it is very insightful. The final extra is a brief interview with Arias the musician duo Plaid.
