Battle Angel (1992)
[director Hiroshi Fukutomi]
Color, Animated
A little two-part miniseries about a young female cyborg, whose heart and soul, while expansive, are constantly challenged by her ability and her willingness to create hideous violence. Galli, the diminuitive robot/girl, is built out of warrior parts. She is designed to be a great fighter, one of the greatest ever, but her creator (a kind man himself, shackled with the monstrous job of killing out-of-control cyborgs) built her so she could live the life of a compassionate human being.
But in a world where cyborgs fight like gladiators in betting arenas, where all the priveliged humans have retreated to cities in the clouds, leaving the refuse down on Earth, how can Galli live at peace? In the world this series paints, there doesn’t seem to be any way. The series is dark and woeful, as if it is bemoaning the ineffectiveness of love and compassion in an increasingly mechanical society. It has moments of stark beauty that, mixed with the scorching violence, makes for an affecting, if horribly bittersweet, trip to the future.
Related Posts
About the Author: Vogue Fish
