Appleseed: Ex Machina

The successful film Appleseed from 2004 introduced several major technical innovations. The makers succeeded in allowing their characters – human, , android or robots – to move in a flowing natural way relatively cheaply. The facial expressions were lively and convincing, certainly in the context of what we were used to in manga, and above all the film was able to surpass its live-action competition in the action scenes. The sequel Appleseed: Ex Machina, again based on original manga comic strips by Masamune Shirow that also formed the inspiration for Ghost in the Shell, goes a step further in the direction of 3D action.
The story is again about Deunan, a young female warrior, and her partner and lover Briareos, who has been converted into a cyborg because of the wounds he has suffered in battle. The setting of this love story is post-apocalyptic: after a non-nuclear war, but nevertheless one that cost half the world population their lives, chaos rules everywhere, except in the utopian city state of Olympus. Deunan and Briareos are part of an elite team that acts when there are problems – from cyborg terrorism and deadly nanotech to fanatical zealots and rioting citizens. They are helped by the latest model of biorobot: Tereus, created by Gaia from the DNA of Briareos. He is new, fresh and looks very much like the old one. No wonder Deunan gets confused. (GT)