I've read the comments on this movie, and my opinion is that most commenters did not really get this movie.
This is an Enki Bilal movie, which means it is a Graphic Novel (i deliberately do not use the word "comic book") in cinematic form. If you get the chance to check out some of Bilal's work, you will understand this movie all the better.
The movie is a mix of live action and lots of CGI, which may make it confusing for some at times. If you must, think of it as an animated movie using live actors.
The movie is an audiovisual treat, but, like much of Bilal's work, is heavy on symbolism and portrays a very bleak vision of the future.
If you want to see a mainstream scifi spectacle, don't see this film. If you want to see something that is out of the box, go see it, rent it,or even better, buy it!
As a whole, the movie best compares to Japanese anime, more specific movies such as Ghost in the Shell.
I absolutely adored it. The Baudelaire poetry was an unexpected surprise (in retrospect, however, it should not have been)
As a result of seeing this film, I went out to buy some of Bilal's graphic novels.
If you:
loved the ambiance of The Fifth Element adore the darker side of Japanese anime wanted to walk through the streets in Blade Runner want more out of a movie than simply action love the work of Charles Baudelaire want to see that even Egyptian gods are flawed
See this film!!
Some points of notice:
At times, the amount of visual information is staggering. i had to rewind a couple of times to get everything. It compares to reading the page of a graphic novel a couple of times to get everything.
The mixture of CGI and live actors is strange at first, but you get used to it.
My one negative point about this movie: the Egyptian gods were too static. they should have been a bit more lifelike. As it is, they look like barely animated statues. It adds to the graphic environment, but comes off strange in a movie. I would have liked to see more of them as well.
