Alita: Battle Angel

Alita: Battle Angel was a film I had been looking forward to for nearly two decades. When James Cameron handed this passion project of his off to Robert Rodriguez, I had my doubts, but after opening day at the cinema, all my initial grumblings went out the window—this movie was a real solid adaptation of the original manga and anime OVA I grew up with and cherished. As a Battle Angel Alita fan, I couldn't be happier. Rosa Salazar as Alita was so good. She was super charismatic, and perfectly translated Alita onto the big screen—you can't help but root for her. Everything about Salazar's performance was amazing. Overall this movie was unabashedly anime as hell and I adored the film for it. Solid acting from a really great cast that plays the absurdity of everything straight and it just works so well. If you're looking for a sci-fi actioner with super clean/visually comprehensible action akin to the likes of Mad Max: Fury Road and John Wick, with a female lead whose grit and ferocity overcomes no-win scenarios, this movie is right up your alley. Let's hope Disney sees the potential Alita has and gives us a sequel or two.

This isn't the first review I've written for Alita so I'll go at this in a different way and skip the trivia. I caught this movie 5 times in theaters, not as part of the movement to secure a sequel, but just because it was that good. I enjoyed it more and more each time. The 3D was really excellent and if you missed it I feel bad for you. That said, it stands on its own without it. It takes at least two viewings to catch everything. There's so much exposition and it's delivered so fast that at times that some of the finer details may not be fully appreciated until repeat viewings. Some bits are cliche but they're not anything I can fault the movie for. It's based on some dated source material and it strives to remain faithful to it, so certain tropes are expected. And they're well done, as if this kind of movie is where those tropes are most appropriate. The acting is excellent, the plot is solid, the world building is unique, and the blend of comedy, drama and action are well balanced. It's a great coming of age story that literally starts with rebirth and goes through several stages of human development. Since I bought it, I've watched it a fair few more times and I'm always down to watch it again. It's just a good movie all around.. the criteria I typically rate movies for are: story, plot, dialog, acting, costuming, set design, score, editing, CGI, etc... and all of it is done superbly. Just watch it. I don't think anyone could regret watching it. At the least, you'll be pleasantly surprised. At best, you might just find your new favourite movie.

Ah, no. The CGI effects are all that are going on here, thus two stars. It's a derivative story, every thing you'll see you've seen before in another movie. It's an empty theme: The only thematic element is one character's insistence on not modifying the lead character with some technology, and then folding on that principle faster than a falling deck of cards. The plot is silly and the love story is tissue paper thin, and of course, it ends with a cliffhanger promising another bad movie to come. Skip it unless you hate empty acting and are only here for the ridiculous fight scenes.