Redline [DVD]

I acquired the Japanese Special Edition when it was released (put it on preorder as soon as it became available) and it is the Blu-Ray to beat for Audio/Visual quality of anime. The Audio and video are just about perfect and reference quality. The only thing truly not quite up to par on the Japanese release is the English subtitles.When the date for the UK release was FINALLY finalized, I had to decide whether to wait for the US version at a later date or import the UK release. Well it became obvious the US was not going to get a collectors edition (confirmed by Manga themselves) and the UK Collector's Edition cost is right about the same as the US release pre-order list price... so I went with this UK release. The subtitles are noticeably improved and I do enjoy the Japanese w/ English subtitles a lot more now (my preferred way to watch for other reasons discussed later.) English Dub was ok as far as acting, but JP's character comes across more goofy with mannerisms like a surfer/greaser combined rather than cool and collected. And Sonoshee has some really b****y dialog moments that changes her character into something less classy and charming than she was before. With much more language and innuendo added in the English dub it definitely deserves an R/Mature rating now - the Japanese with English subtitles would still be PG-13/R borderline equivalent. Below is text of my review from Blu-Ray.com for the UK Collectors Edition release of Redline, no need for me to rewrite a new review from scratch:MOVIERedline is an anime movie with a rather straightforward plot about racing and goals, it's not a deep or serious movie. It was made for the sole purpose to have a fun experience watching...and it excells greatly in doing this. Almost entirely composed of 2D hand-drawn animation, it's a visually told story that keeps ratching up the action while maintaining a super high level of detail that has just has to be seen to appreciate. This UK release has English subtitles that are better than the earlier Japanese release - they are of a slightly smaller font size, yellow instead of white, and seem to better flow with and describe what is being said in Japanese along with giving more information with background dialog.1. Story: [4/5] ( premise/plot execution of the movie)2. Acting: [5/5] ( how the actors portray the characters)3. Cinematography: [5/5] ( how the camera-work adds to the telling of the story)AUDIO QUALITYUK release of Redline has a Japanese 5.1 Dolby True HD track that is very well done, basically comparable to that of the Japanese release 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio track. The English 5.1 Dolby True HD track doesn't quite fare as well - it is more muffled sounding and set at a lower dB level. Dialog is harder to make out with everything that is going on in the dynamic scenes on the English 5.1 track. For all 5.1 tracks there is a directionality and smooth transition of the enveloping surround landscape that is quite rare in anime - this has to be the best audio I have heard from an Animated feature (Japanese 5.1 Audio Track). Little details like fluids draining back into the pans after shutting off an engine and the cooling of the driveline and powerplant all add up as does a scene where a small earring is dropped on the ground with quite an impressive clarity at such a low sound level. When things are hectic (which is most of the time) the audio is right there with a bombastic precision whether it's a bombardment of weapons, jostling race sequence, or fight/scuffle sequence and thumping/quick paced music is right along with it. Very nice low end presence from some special weapons and vehicles too. Overall a very good frequency range presented. Japanese 5.1 Dolby True HD track with English subtitles is the one to watch for top audio quality experience.1. Lossless Codec: [4/5] ( overall quality of the audio format used)2. Extension: [5/5] ( dynamic range available of the audio, high to low frequencies)3. Clarity: [4/5] ( clearness/seperation of sound, high to low frequencies )4. Immersion: [5/5] ( audio ambience and surround use)VIDEO QUALITYAlmost perfect transfer with no image problems noticed...what more can be said? There is overscan of the image with a narrow black band around the entire image just like in the Japanese release, so the screen area is not fully being utilized. Other than that, image quality is what I'd consider perfect, just like the Japanese release. No banding at all was noticed and neither was any color issues that can sometimes be present in anime. Style of this film is bold and highly detailed...there is an animated crowd scene with what looks to be be thousands of spectators with thousands of pieces of paper, and everything is in motion!1. Clarity: [5/5] ( resolution and sharpness of image)2. Contrast: [5/5] ( how defined the black/white levels are)3. Colors: [5/5] ( how clean the colors are of bleeding or other issues)4. Noise/Artifact: [4.5/5] ( how clean the image is of blocking, banding, aliasing, and other issues)EXTRA FEATURESThe Blu-Ray disc features 2006 Trailer (Promotional Concept trailer), Perfect Guide to Redline, and Quick Guide to Redline. The DVD has 2006 Trailer (Promotional Concept trailer) and Quick Guide to Redline. Packaging extras just include a 20 page booklet with information on the director's intent, author's direction, and origins of the story. Not as good as the Japanese Collectors Edition is for content, but what it does have is of good quality at least.CONCLUSION & OVERALL BLU-RAY GRADERedline is a unique anime movie that is very hard to accurately describe...but when you see it, it is an experience to behold - a visual and audio feast that you will not forget.So this UK Collectors Edition release is very good, just not as good as the Japanese Special Edition. But at less than 1/3 the price it's a much better bargain! If you have Region B Blu-Ray playback capability I highly suggest this version, unless you want the region free Japanese "uber" collectors edition which is better in extras content but over 3x the cost...

Watching animation these days it often feels as though the art of hand-drawn animation is dying out. This film simultaneously illustrates why it is, and why it shouldn't.The film. Is. Beautiful. Every frame is hand-drawn, and the direction is superb; almost any one of them could be used as a poster in itself. Even the very first shot - pistachio shells falling onto a pile of... more pistachio shells - can be included in this. It's little elements like this, and the background characters who are more then just silhouettes or stills, that make Redline unique. Without making it explicit, an entire world is conveyed beyond the protagonists and the immediate events of the story.The story itself is probably the weakest element. There is nothing truly unexpected, and no real character growth. Logic takes a very willing back seat to the Rule of Cool. For me, this is excused because the plot is pretty much an excuse. The characters, while perhaps unchanging, have genuine personality, aided by some spectacular voice acting in the English dub (I regret that the Japanese soundtrack is not available on Amazon, so I cannot comment on it). Certainly nothing appears to have been lost in translation.Then there is the music, which is a perfect match to the visuals, and rounds off the spectacle. Clearly I liked it, because I went anbd bought the album.Why does this film demonstrate why films like this aren't made these days? Because it pretty well bankrupted the studio that made it.PS: note many little shout outs in the film - including (unintentionally?) a President Trump expy almost a decade before there was a President Trump.

Redline is a must see for anyone who is a fan of animation! Produced without the aid of any 3D modelling but only reference figurines of the vehicles themselves, it took 7 years to produce this movie and it was certainly worth it.Everything about this movie was more than I expected, the unique art style, likable characters and upbeat soundtrack. The only downfall of Redline is that the pace is so mind-numbingly fast that the scenes with no racing aren't quite as exciting. However ever frame is a visual treat.I would definitely recommend watching this in HD. This double pack is perfect for compatibility and is great to bring a disc to your friends house. All the extras are included from the Japanese special edition which is great, only one extra doesn't appear which is James Shimoji's Redline Day night club footage, however that is more of a music video than anything else. This is the definite edition of Redline as you get all the extras subtitled and an amazing dub to boot, so it is a great advantage over the Japanese Special Edition.If you loved Redline than I suggest you check out 'Trava' which contains characters from the same universe. 'Dead Leaves' is a definite watch if you enjoyed the speed and style of the animation, not to mention it is also a whole lot of fun.  Dead Leaves [DVD ]