Armitage III: Poly Matrix (Video 1997)

A policeman, Ross Sylibus, is assigned to a unit on a Martian colony, to find that women are being murdered by a psychotic named D'anclaude. He is assigned a very unorthodox partner named ... See full summary »

Director:

Takuya Satô

Writer:

Chiaki Konaka

Stars:

Elizabeth Berkley, Kiefer Sutherland, Dan Woren

Cast

Credited cast:
Elizabeth Berkley	...	Naomi Armitage (voice)
Kiefer Sutherland	...	Ross Sylibus (voice)
Dan Woren	...	D'Anclaude (voice)
Wanda Nowicki	...	Julian Moore (voice)
Mike Reynolds	...	Lieutenant Randolph (voice)
Bryan Cranston	...	Eddie (voice)
Stephen Apostolina	...	Chris (voice)
Barry Stigler	...	Dr. Asakura (voice)
Doug Stone	...	Coroner (voice)
Dorothy Elias-Fahn	...	Kelly (voice) (as Dorothy Fahn)
Steve Blum	...	Kelly's Manager (voice) (as Steven Blum)
Anne Sherman	...	Jessica Manning (voice) (as Riva Spier)
Ellyn Stern	...	Rosalind (voice)
Debra Rogers	...	Model (voice) (as Debbie Rogers)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Steve Bulen	...	Additional Voices (voice)

Storyline

A policeman, Ross Sylibus, is assigned to a unit on a Martian colony, to find that women are being murdered by a psychotic named D'anclaude. He is assigned a very unorthodox partner named Naomi Armitage, who seems to have links to the victims. To stir things up more, every victim is found to be an illegally made third-generation android, built to be almost perfect replications of humans. It becomes a race against time when the government attempts to cover up the existence of the 'Third Types', and eliminate the only ones with the evidence. And even more importantly, why are the Thirds created to be so similar to humans, even to the extent of being indistinguishable from them on every level, mentally and biologically?

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Plot Keywords:

cyberpunk | anime

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Taglines:

If mankind hates me...then why did they create me?

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Genres:

Animation | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Details

Official Sites:

Pioneer Animation TechTV

Country:

Japan USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 August 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

Armitage III: Polymatrix

Company Credits

Production Co:

AIC

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Ross Sylibus: ...always hurts like hell when the rain comes...

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Connections

Followed by Armitage: Dual Matrix (2002)

User Reviews

Exciting, thoughtful...but a bit confusing

Having seen both the 4-episode OAV version of Armitage III and the Armitage III Polymatrix DVD, I note some interesting differences between the versions. Particularly interesting is the fact that the Polymatrix cinematic movie version was done _only_ in English, and subsequently subtitled for Japanese viewing--that's how the Japanese wanted it. There is no corresponding subtitled version of Polymatrix; it's an English-only film.

Polymatrix alters the storyline of the OAV series slightly, cutting a few scenes and adding a bit of new animation. It also adds two new voice actors, replacing the OAV dub cast: Kiefer Sutherland and Elizabeth Berkley as the two leads. For the most part, these cuts are acceptable; they improve the pacing of the movie at the cost of some additional story and characterization. While I was watching, I hardly missed what was cut. (For those who are concerned with seeing the whole story, the four OAV episodes should be viewed, preferably in the subtitled versions.) The ending is also changed slightly, and seems to me to make more sense in this version.

The storyline of Armitage III is set on a colonized Mars, and concerns itself with a new third generation of robots ("Thirds") that can actually think and create. A madman by the name of Renee D'anclaude has found out about these Thirds and is going around killing them. What is less clear, and somewhat confusing even when it is explained late in the movie, is _why_. It took repeated viewings of the OAVs, then finally the movie itself, for me to figure out the full political motivations behind the murders--and why it was that the Thirds stood in the way of an important political treaty between Earth and Mars.

Although Armitage III becomes somewhat confusing in the last twenty minutes, it nonetheless is an interesting and thought-provoking movie that should not be missed.