Patlabor 2 - The Movie (Limited Collector's Edition) [DVD]

Description

Product Description The Limited Collector's Edition is a numbered edition with only 10,000 created and boasts an illustrated cover designed especially for this release by illustrator Yutaka Izubuchi (mecha designer of the Patlabor series and creator and director of the hit anime series RahXephon). This impressive Limited Collector's Edition contains:Disc 1: The full-length animated Patlabor 2 The Movie in Japanese and English with optional English subtitles (with new English translation and dubbing), newly remastered anamorphic transfer (first US release), new authentic 5.1 channel sound (first US release) and includes Japanese trailers and assorted television commercials.Disc 2: "Making of Patlabor 2 The Movie" (Japanese with English subtitles) Book 1: Archives (144 pages, 4 color and black & white) containing * Exposition and criticism of the film (character, story background, artwork, etc.) * Interviews with director Mamoru Oshii * Tokyo Location Map, Location Scouting * Key animation drawing samples with explanatory notes and more!Book 2: Storyboard by Mamoru Oshii (300 pages, with English translation) .com The second Patlabor feature shifts the focus from Noa Izumi, the heroine of the previous film and the broadcast series, to Kiichi Gotoh, the understated commander of Division #2. Gotoh may never have been a boy scout, but he believes in being prepared. With the assistance of Commander Shinobu, he outwits the officers of the Japanese Self-Defense Force, the police commanders, and the U.S. military to foil a terrorist's attempt to stage a coup d'etat in Tokyo. Noa and the other irregulars of Division #2 make brief appearances, but Gotoh carries the film in his quiet, unassuming way. If the plot feels less intriguing than the race against the dead genius in the first Patlabor feature, Patlabor 2: The Movie showcases director Mamoru Oshii's skill as a moviemaker. Oshii can make an ordinary conversation fascinating by staging it in a moving car at night, with the lights and shadows playing over the characters' faces. His use of flares and explosions turns a standard mecha battle into a striking visual experience. Oshii once again makes the city of Tokyo as much a part of the story as the characters. But instead of the crumbling warehouses of the first film, he offers peaceful yet ominous shots of the city on a snowy night. The Limited Collectors Edition offers a second disc of making-of interviews originally released in 1993 and 1994. Most of the discussions are narrated by a very young-looking Oshii, a few years beforeGhost in the Shellpropelled him to international fame.(Unrated, suitable for ages 10 and older: occasional profanity and robot vs. robot violence.) --Charles Solomon