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Studio:Manga Entertainment

Director:Fuminori Kizaki

Product Description

Director: Fuminori Kizaki

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- KICK A**!!!!!!!!!!!!

A TALE OF SLIGHTED HOUNOR AND IMPENDING REVENGE.
WHAT CAN I SAY? VISUAILY STUNNING, DARK AND MOODY WITH BLOODY, FLYING LIMBS CUTTING THROUGH, AND SOME IMPRESSIVE BACKROUNDS.
THE VOICE OVER CAST JUST ADDS TO THIS MASTER PIECE, CANT GO WRONG WITH THE VERY RECONISIBLE VOICE TALENTS OF SAMUEL L.JACSON (AFRO SAMURAI) AND RON PEARLMAN (JUSTICE) AND EVEN LUCY LUI.
ITS WORTH A WATCH EVEN IF YOUR NOT A FAN OF ANIME, BUT IF YOU ARE, A MUST SEE, MUST OWN, AND AT THIS PRICE ON BLU RAY, AND ABSOLUTE BARGIN.

- Simply a great series, with great animation

I have to agree with the previous reviewer's assessment on this film getting four stars in general, but at a price just slightly higher than a rental, it could easily get five stars as well.

The story line is entertaining, the animation is high-budget, very cool looking stuff. It is a darkly depicted world with lots of greys, dark colors, amid splashes of violent red as heads roll, limbs go flying, and people get cleaved in two.

Don't be put off by the soundtrack, I dislike rap for the most part, but it does not bother me one bit in this film. It really fits in with the style of the cartoon, the attitudes, and the characters. On top of that, it is really just background filler, sometimes you hardly hear it playing in the film. It is not in your face, subwoofer slamming music that will annoy your neighbors, which in turn allows you to pump the volume for those cool fight scenes. In fact, I think they could easily have mixed the volume higher on the music myself. So if you are expecting the in-your-face thumping bass and loud soundtrack music, you will be disappointed.

Samuel Jackson's voice-over is brilliant. Any fan of Sam will really enjoy this as a perk.

As for the blu-ray itself:

As a big, big plus, there are no previews, no "don't steal this movie" rubbish, it skips almost directly to the main menu.

It contains five chapters, each about 24 minutes or so plus some extras.

Picture:

The lines are clean, the animation is very good, and the 1080P/24 really delivers this anime the way the director intended it. Five stars for picture quality, though if you are new to anime like me, don't expect Ratatouille quality animation as it is simply another style.

Sound:

Dolby True HD. At times the sound is brilliant, but the mixing is off in a few scenes. The music could have been mixed much louder, and the rear channels could use some more umph. The subwoofer rarely gets a workout, and that is a shame because there are some scenes which could have been well enhanced with some heavy bass. Overall a decent HD sound job, but you won't be showing off your speakers with this movie. Three stars for sound.

Languages:

English Dolby True HD 5.1
English Stereo 2.0

Subtitles:
None (bummer!)

Extras:

In the Booth- Voice Talent of Afro Samurai
RZA Music Production Tour
Character profiles with commentary by Co-Producer Eric Calderon

This film gets a thumbs up from me, and at the price it is now, it is a real steal.

- It's Nothing Personal...Just Revenge.

In an era filled with violence, samurai and hip-hop there exist 2 legendary headbands. The number 1 headband grants it's owner godlike status and displays it's owner as the best warrior in the world. The owner of the headband is virtually untouchable by anyone unless they have the number 2 headband. With the number 2 headband, the bearer is able to challenge the number 1 for his godlike status, yet the number 2 is also forced to lead a life of death and seclusion as anyone seeking a life of power and invulnerability will try to kill the person who owns it.

After witnessing the death of his father, an unnamed afro haired samurai begins a life dedicated to finding the person responsible. As his father was the number 1 samurai, the killer consequently takes his place and aquisitions the number 1 headband. Due to this the Afro Samurai must first search for the number 2 headband in order to challenge the person who murdered his father before his very eyes.
Afro Samurai is perhaps more well known purely because of the star studded voice cast which include none other than hollywood star Samuel L Jackson and Hellboy star Ron Perlman. With some great vocal performances from these actors, Afro Samurai turns out to be an entertaining, action packed gorefest.
Lasting only five episodes, series 1 of Afro Samurai moves at a pretty brisk pace compared to other anime series'. However, despite this, the story is still incredibly gripping with some nice sub storylines intertwined with the main story, making this series really enjoyable to watch.

The animation is of a very high quality and it is evident that this is a big budget outing. The look and feel of the series is effectively brought forward with the colour pallet, which contains mostly dull and dark colours, but conversely uses bright reds due to the amount of violence and gore. This style of artwork gives afro Samurai a very dark and gritty feel and also makes it feel unique and memorable.
Afro Samurai also contains some brilliant character designs, with the first being Afro himself. But the standout character from the series wHo is likely to leave a lasting impression is Afro's rival Jino (voiced by Yuri Lowenthal who does the voice of Sasuke off Naruto) who wields 2 swords and has a giant teddy bear mask covering his entire head.

Although quite short, Afro Samurai is an excellent watch and is certainly worth the hype. Fans of hip-hop will definetly like the RZA soundtrack, and fans of action are sure to get their fill with this one. So if you like this, you'll be glad to know that there is a sequel and a video game. So prepare your self for more samurai action...Afro style.

- Stylish Fusion Japanese Revenge Tale with a high kill count

Anime Offerings are something that i really tend to pick and choose. I do enjoy some anime but not all is too my liking.
Enter stage right Afro Samurai....

The story is a fairly simple tale of violent revenge, set to the backdrop of a world where 2 headbands and the attaining of them is the warriors dream. If you have headband 1 you are a god to be feared and respected in equal measure, but to challenge for this honour you need to wear headband number 2. Who ever wears the 2nd headband can be challenged by anyone!

This initial installment of the Afro story is broken down into 5 chapters running at round 25 minutes each, following the tale of number 2, the afro samurai, who in the first installment witness's the death of his father who was the current number 1 headband wearer. From there on the tale follows Afro on his violent and bloody trail of revenge.

The Blu ray video and audio is great featuring a true HD soundtrack and a subtle hip hop style sound provided by RZA.
The voice acting talent is par excellence with Samuel L Jackson providing the voice for the almost silent Afro Character but really kicking into gear providing the voice of Ninja Ninja Afros "sidekick" whos role becomes apparent as the episodes unfurl. Samuel L is also onboard as an executive producer but not a suprise as his love of comic books is well known. Ron Pearlman voices Justice who is the new Number 1 and the killer of Afros Father.

Overall this Blu Ray is great and the cell shading which appears less and less in Anime due to the cost and time it takes is really good. You get the feeling they had a good budget to make this and although there is a fusion between the Afro style and the Japanese culture you are in no doubt that Afro is Japenese Samurai 1st and foremost. The period for the setting isn't fixed allowing for the use of modern and ancient technology.

At the crazy low price they are asking here at the moment you can't really go wrong

- Over hyped

I regret to say I was very dissapointed with this Blu-ray. The story is not very good and was not impressed with the Blu-ray.