VAMPIRE HUNTER D DVD Review

El Cosmico here, bringing you further word of notable anime.

More and more, my favorite anime titles from years past are coming to DVD. Previously available only on expensive import LaserDiscs, a great lot of wonderful content is becoming accessible to mainstream audiences. Truly, this is a cause for happiness.

I can't remember the last time I saw VAMPIRE HUNTER D. It was a good long time ago. I would guess about ten years ago, on a bootleg VHS copy, fan subtitled. Compared to some of the spectacular titles being put out these days, at first glance, it might seem unremarkable. There's a lot to it, though, it's distinctive and interesting, and while the animation style and quality show this title's age (originally a 1985 release), it represents some of the best anime of its period, and it is to this day an outstanding anime title in my mind.

First of all, VAMPIRE HUNTER D has style. The original designs were done by the noted and deservedly well-known Japanese artist Amano Yoshitaka. Amano, whose exceptional website can be found at http://www.amanosworld.com, is notable for a great lot of cool art, including work on Sandman: The Dream Hunters, the G-Force animated series, conceptual work on the Final Fantasy video games, and tons and TONS of other exceptionally beautiful art, a good sampling of which can be found at his website. If you're not into Amano, you should be.

The VAMPIRE HUNTER D designs were done by Amano based on Kiduchi Hideyaki's popular novel, VAMPIRE D, about a vampire hunter whose blood is half vampire, half human. Movic/Epic/Sony produced the anime title, of which an English adaptation was done by Carl Macek, who is probably best known for his work on Robotech.

Here's the title description from the packaging.

"In the year 12,900 AD, the Earth has fallen into the clutches of ruthless Vampires. Humans are enslaved by a corrupted feudal system, prey to the whims of Vampiric aristocrats. only one being has dared to challenge the cruel authority of these arrogant immortals - the mysterious Vampire Hunter called "D".

Cult classic by any standard, the sophisticated blend of horror and futuristic science fiction distinguishes Vampire Hunter D as a strikingly original gothic thriller. The darkly fantastic imagery and exotic characters help to fully realize the potency of the film, confirming its status as an exceptional accomplishment in animation"

Like I said, the animation style and quality show this title's age, but it is nevertheless an exceptional and notable work in the history of anime. The new DVD version by Urban Vision represents a suitable treatment of this title, including footage of the making of VHD, a preview of the video game, an artwork gallery by Amano, and the trailer. These extras aren't amazing, but to be honest, I'm surprised they found as much extra content as they did for a title this old. There's the original Japanese audio, well done given the original material, as well as a new 5.1 surround mix featuring the English dub, which actually isn't that bad of a dub. As for the video transfer, well, I remembered this title as being dark and muddy, the animation wasn't of the best quality in the first place, with the low cel counts that were typical of this era in anime. I think that given the original material, the video transfer is an acceptable job, and accurately represents the look and feel of this title.

VAMPIRE HUNTER D is not suitable for children, but if you're an anime fan, or just someone who thinks a title like "VAMPIRE HUNTER D" sounds interesting, I think you ought to give this title a look. It's the first title I've seen from Urban Vision, whose website is fairly interesting, if a little confusing.. Another reason to go there, and to get this disc? They've got the theatrical trailer for the new version of VAMPIRE HUNTER D on both the website and DVD, and it looks GREAT. Urban Vision has also produced some other notable titles from the darker, more mature side of anime, including the VERY well-known "Wicked City", and an old favorite of mine, Midnight Eye Goku. I expect to review these soon as well. Ah, fond memories.

Well, there you have it. Go check this title out, and watch the trailer for the new version, which looks SPECTACULAR. It's closer to the Amano style, and looks really beautiful, although you might not be able to tell from the small version on Urban Vision's website. Take my word for it, or get out the version on the VHD DVD. Oh, MAN I can't wait to see the new version. Expect it to hit theatres in 2001.