Patlabor: The Movie (1989)

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

Director Mamoru Oshii is best known for his 1995 sci-fi landmark piece Ghost in the Shell, and less so for his meditative 1985 arthouse piece Angel's Egg, but Mobile Police Patlabor: The Movie remains as an interesting touchstone for the development of the genius director. Based on the manga and OVA series of the same name, the film takes place in Japan in the near future, where giant robots or 'Patlabors' have revolutionised industry. In the wake of global warming and overpopulation, the Japanese government begins the 'Babylon Project,' which will reclaim thousands of acres of land from the Tokyo seafront by utilising the power of the Patlabors, which are hundreds of times more efficient than human workers. Yet, a series of worrying incidents where Patlabors go berserk and cause great destruction sets Asuma of the 'Mobile Police' - a section of the metropolitan police that utilises the Patlabors to fight crime - on the case, and the mystery he plunges into has far more dangerous consequences than he ever imagined.The rich world building and level of detail in the film that would later play a major part in the appeal of Ghost in the Shell is evident here, even in this early part of Oshii's career. Each line of dialogue is utilised efficiently to discuss geo-politics, bureaucracy and engineering in this fictional future. The level of detail put into the design of the Patlabor's themselves by Yutaka Izubuchi also helps further reinforce this realistic yet relatable tone.Although the film doesn't do a great job getting new viewers of the series up to speed, leaving several blind spots such as the sudden appearance of Kanuka Clancy in the third act, it does a good job of introducing us to the characters of Asuma and Nao, who's chemistry in turns drives the soul of the film, alongside the richly detailed fictional landscape. Asuma's work on solving the mystery is also far from perfect, sometimes overloading viewers with exposition instead of explanation, but for the most part he's an engaging point of focus for the viewer, mainly thanks to Toshio Furukawa's excellent voice work.In terms of Oshii's later career, a lot of his tendencies can be traced back to this formative work. Namely, his eye for detail and preference for dialogue instead of action. Plus, his visual direction is as excellent as you'd expect, giving us striking compositions and engaging framing. Yet, this is at the same time the least Oshii-esque film in his career, since it comes across as less of an Oshii film, like with Ghost in the Shell and Angel's Egg, and more of a Oshii-directed Patlabor film. Even so, whether you're an Oshii newbie or an Oshii expert, a Patlabor newbie or a Patlabor expert, there's definitely something for you here. And who doesn't want to see giant robots duking it out, anyway?

It's worth noting before I begin that this was my first encounter with the Patlabor series - I went in knowing nothing of the characters or overall plot of the series. I mention it because, though it posed absolutely no problems for my understanding of the piece, it does relate to the one criticism I have.Positive things first, though, of which there are many. Most impressive, as with much of Ishii's work, is the scenery. From the highly industrialised city streets to the run-down shacks mastermind Hoba made his homes, each location is fantastically rendered and informs the mood of the piece easily as much as any of the characters. Not that Patlabor - The Movie is really lacking there, though; Both Asuma and Gotoh make for brilliantly likable protagonists, while aforementioned and never-seen villain Hoba is a more than worthy foil. The plot moves along at the right kind of pace - brisk enough to keep the viewer interested, but relaxed enough to allow one to savour the rich atmosphere of the world Ishii creates.If there's a problem, then, it stems simply from the fact that this is what it is; a spin-off movie which is only part of an ongoing series. As such, and great as the characters may be, there is very little in terms of development - next to none, in fact. Yes, this is an expected and necessary result of the movie's very nature (it can't do anything that's really going to significantly affect the plot line of the series); still, it dulls the impact of an otherwise excellent film. Of course, there may be (and I expect there are) many nuances of dialogue, story etc. that are lost on a viewer with no prior knowledge of the series and perhaps viewing the film in context would provide a more rounded experience. Regardless, as a stand-alone film, it's less involving than it could be.Despite this minor quibble, though, Patlabor - The Movie is a great introduction to a series I plan to familiarise myself with further in the future.

I started watching this not expecting too much. I was very pleased when the story turned out to be very tense and the characters quite believable. It was at all time a very entertaining movie, the score consisting of various types of acoustical underlay blended in harmonically with the visual art. Even though the animations look a little aged, they still did not disappoint me. I liked the high degree of details that was put into almost everything. I was surprised several times of the awesomeness, for instance when the rescue-team reaches the arc that lays in the dark. The atmosphere of that particular scene reminded me strongly of "Alien" which is also a very good movie I might add). There were some humorous parts as well that nicely rounded the mood of an otherwise sinister animemovie which I have to consider one of the best ones I've seen. I recommend it to everyone who in the slightest likes anime 9/10

I was fortunate enough to come across this video early in my exploration of Japanese animation. It was also the first video where I began to take notice of the greatly different pacing that the Japanese have in terms of plot & character developement. This is a story about a scientist that commits suicide after creating a virus that will eventually cause giant robots known as Labors to malfunction and lay waste about them. (Labors are manned, humanoid machines used in heavy lifting, construction and peacekeeping (domestic & military) tasks.) The action is split between the policemen who struggle to contain the destruction as the first infected Labors begin to malfunction and a pair of detectives who painstakingly retrace the dead doctors last steps before his suicide. If you're looking for something to cut your anime teeth on that's not too outlandish.. I highly recommend this video!