Buichi Terasawa's manga, "Cobra", about a Belmondo-like pirate roaming space with his android sidekick proved such a big success when released that it was adapted to a series and a film with little time separating the two. While the series has retained all of its cult charm, possibly owing to the fact that Cobra's charisma is evident throughout his adventures, the movie, "Space adventure Cobra" feels unneeded, since, while ostensibly centered on Cobra, uses him just as a pretence to explore visually stunning universes. It is cinéma du look made in Japan, but with little of the slickness of its French counterparts to make up for the ridiculous plot and characters.
Preceding the series by some months, "Space adventure Cobra" is completely based on the manta's first arc, in which the pirate and his sidekick team up with a bounty hunter, Jane Royal, in order to fight the leader of a crime syndicate called the Galactic Guild, who goes by the name of Crystal Boy. Kind of a C-3PO imitator but with sinister intentions, he wants to destroy Jane's home, the planet Miros, and only Cobra with his Psychogun, a ray gun under his left arm, can stop him.
So are we supposed to believe, but from the moment that Jane shows up, one thing I sure; this dynamic, independent heroine is capable to defeat this villain all by herself. Possessing a talent for martial arts, not to mention an irresistible seductiveness - this, of course, is what draws Cobra to her - she can fight all alone. It is through Cobra's clumsiness, though, that the two heroes find help in the face of Captain Sandra, the leader of an all-female force. In an age of female characters often only present for their sex appeal, the developed, interesting heroines of "Space adventure Cobra" seem pioneering, and Cobra, more of a womaniser than a warrior, seems totally unnecessary.
Perhaps it would have been beneficial to the protagonist if the makers of the film had checked out some of Belmondo's action comedies. There, not only his charm and humour, but also his talent for stunts, were exploited, making for an excellent combination of awe-inspiring action and sweet, gentle comedy. Unfortunately, "Space adventure Cobra" prefers to play it like a serious space opera, leaving no space for the character to express his goofiness and special kind of action in a way that fits into the plot without being utterly comedic, and thus a parody of Terasawa's creation. Cobra is like Belmondo in "L'alpagueur" - trapped in a role that doesn't fit him, too serious and lacking in human qualities to make his always triumphant one-man stands worth watching. At least Belmondo had acting talent to save him. Cobra, in his animated nature, has none such traits. In the hands of Osamu Dezaki, he becomes nothing more than a two-dimensional imitator of his French idol, without the qualities that gave the other his uniqueness. Only the goofy stuntman has remained of the original Belmondo in Cobra.
If the protagonist feels like a failed version of Belmondo, then the settings seem like Beneix on drugs. Bright colours, large spaceships designed in every detail - this is more like Besson - and different planets are there for us to admire. The film begins with a sequence full of psychedelic colours, in which a little tour of the planets of this cinematic universe is combined with the image of naked women inside water. Beneix in Woodstock, on stimulants. Fortunately, the setting becomes more modern as the film progresses, although, even in its neon, New Wavy moments, doesn't lose its desire to experiment with psychedelic art elements. It is a film made in the eighties, with nostalgia for the seventies. What if Crystal Boy's dark, distant, cold headquarters could've been pulled off a Besson feature? The film prefers to travel back in time for visual inspiration, thus losing its cinéma du look character. The only way it resembles the original cinéma du look films is that it uses the setting to complement a weak plot. But this is unintentional. The director doesn't seem to know that his story is weak and so doesn't deliberately highlight the film's visual aspect. The visual result is only an experiment.
To my dismay, the whole feature seems like an experiment in testing the protagonist's film potential. It just pushes him to the limits, making him play in a serious story, when only a brand of ironic, funny action could have saved him. Without a good lead character, the movie falls apart. Cobra was no professional. In fact, in his effort to distinguish himself as an action hero he just lost his way, and ended up in an environment that didn't suit him. He resembled more a child, one whose goal was to discover adventure, when he wasn't made for that. Cobra was a lovable character in the series. But in the film, this charm of his found no real use. And this is the most unfortunate thing about "Space adventure Cobra", a space opera with a lead actor missing all the right notes.
Preceding the series by some months, "Space adventure Cobra" is completely based on the manta's first arc, in which the pirate and his sidekick team up with a bounty hunter, Jane Royal, in order to fight the leader of a crime syndicate called the Galactic Guild, who goes by the name of Crystal Boy. Kind of a C-3PO imitator but with sinister intentions, he wants to destroy Jane's home, the planet Miros, and only Cobra with his Psychogun, a ray gun under his left arm, can stop him.
So are we supposed to believe, but from the moment that Jane shows up, one thing I sure; this dynamic, independent heroine is capable to defeat this villain all by herself. Possessing a talent for martial arts, not to mention an irresistible seductiveness - this, of course, is what draws Cobra to her - she can fight all alone. It is through Cobra's clumsiness, though, that the two heroes find help in the face of Captain Sandra, the leader of an all-female force. In an age of female characters often only present for their sex appeal, the developed, interesting heroines of "Space adventure Cobra" seem pioneering, and Cobra, more of a womaniser than a warrior, seems totally unnecessary.
Perhaps it would have been beneficial to the protagonist if the makers of the film had checked out some of Belmondo's action comedies. There, not only his charm and humour, but also his talent for stunts, were exploited, making for an excellent combination of awe-inspiring action and sweet, gentle comedy. Unfortunately, "Space adventure Cobra" prefers to play it like a serious space opera, leaving no space for the character to express his goofiness and special kind of action in a way that fits into the plot without being utterly comedic, and thus a parody of Terasawa's creation. Cobra is like Belmondo in "L'alpagueur" - trapped in a role that doesn't fit him, too serious and lacking in human qualities to make his always triumphant one-man stands worth watching. At least Belmondo had acting talent to save him. Cobra, in his animated nature, has none such traits. In the hands of Osamu Dezaki, he becomes nothing more than a two-dimensional imitator of his French idol, without the qualities that gave the other his uniqueness. Only the goofy stuntman has remained of the original Belmondo in Cobra.
If the protagonist feels like a failed version of Belmondo, then the settings seem like Beneix on drugs. Bright colours, large spaceships designed in every detail - this is more like Besson - and different planets are there for us to admire. The film begins with a sequence full of psychedelic colours, in which a little tour of the planets of this cinematic universe is combined with the image of naked women inside water. Beneix in Woodstock, on stimulants. Fortunately, the setting becomes more modern as the film progresses, although, even in its neon, New Wavy moments, doesn't lose its desire to experiment with psychedelic art elements. It is a film made in the eighties, with nostalgia for the seventies. What if Crystal Boy's dark, distant, cold headquarters could've been pulled off a Besson feature? The film prefers to travel back in time for visual inspiration, thus losing its cinéma du look character. The only way it resembles the original cinéma du look films is that it uses the setting to complement a weak plot. But this is unintentional. The director doesn't seem to know that his story is weak and so doesn't deliberately highlight the film's visual aspect. The visual result is only an experiment.
To my dismay, the whole feature seems like an experiment in testing the protagonist's film potential. It just pushes him to the limits, making him play in a serious story, when only a brand of ironic, funny action could have saved him. Without a good lead character, the movie falls apart. Cobra was no professional. In fact, in his effort to distinguish himself as an action hero he just lost his way, and ended up in an environment that didn't suit him. He resembled more a child, one whose goal was to discover adventure, when he wasn't made for that. Cobra was a lovable character in the series. But in the film, this charm of his found no real use. And this is the most unfortunate thing about "Space adventure Cobra", a space opera with a lead actor missing all the right notes.