Odin

I'm a huge fan of the bold and wild imaginative worlds presented by pulp sci-fi. And I'm also a big fan of anime, having watched shows like Yamato/Star Blazers, Galaxy Express 1999, Macross, and a ton of other notable animated epics.

I'd seen the 90-minute U.S. cut of this film a long time ago and thought it was good, but not great. Recently though, I watched the 135-minute Japanese-language version twice in one week (yep, over four hours of viewing). My opinion on this movie has just jumped up a few notches. The more I watch this, the more I appreciate it. The design work is phenomenal and the soundtrack is excellent. In fact, I'm noticing a resurgence in interest in the band Loudness and the album that features songs from this film.

For me, I want a sci-fi film to take me places and this one certainly does. For a movie that has over a 2-hour running time, this one speeds along from location to location. In fact, it could use another hour. Regardless, the quick pace is fine with me, since that's a hallmark of the earlier days of science fiction (with 2001: A Space Odyssey being the exception).

This feature has many many influences, and pretty much every title I've mentioned in this review are among them. I noticed in the FAQ that people criticized this film for treading a similar path to Space Battleship Yamato. However, I don't see people saying the same about Legend of the Galactic Heroes or a few other features that also owe a great deal to Yamato. I'd go as far as to say that Odin actually improves on Yamato in a number of ways while adding in welcome elements like concepts from Fred Saberhagen's Berserker novels.

This movie stays on course and maintains a consistent tone. I can't say enough about the latter, since so very many sci-fi features go off the rails or insert silly characters or scenes for seemingly no reason. Odin, however, keeps things consistent and even manages to end the film on a very emotional and epic note.

I salute the people who made this film possible and all the thought and hard work that they put into it. Bravo!

Thanks also to neo1024. You've done a man's job sir!