Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust (2001)

Remember when vampires weren't the complete laughingstock of the film world because of "Twilight"? Neither do I because I am only 15 and wasn't around for that magical time. First I will mention a few of this film's flaws. The romance between the main villain and the woman he loves isn't really explained or developed that well and at the end I don't understand why D thinks he will still get the reward if he just takes the ring, but those are the only flaws I can remember about this film. The visuals are absolutely gorgeous, so if nothing else about this film works for you your eyes will be entertained from beginning to end. The action is absolutely spectacular. The fights are two-sided, have great suspense, a variety of cool attack and weapons, and are just nice to look at. The characters all have some sort of morals and reason for doing what they do as well as having human flaws which makes all of them very interesting. There are also several great tear jerking moments and this film doesn't insult its audience by making sure all of the good guys get out alive. One common complaint I have heard is that in the original manga the vampire hunters kept the female vampire hunter as a sex slave, but I thought that was a good change because this would probably make them generic terrible people and I genuinely enjoy their characters in this movie. If this was the best film ever, which it isn't, I would be okay with that because it just does so many thing so perfectly.

This anime got based on a novel by Hideyuki Kikuchi and got made into a movie for the first time in 1985. That movie, the anime "Kyûketsuki hantâ D", to me was a great one to watch due to its great dark atmosphere and intriguing characters. This longer and also more expensive movie however could never grab me with its story or even characters.The story felt like a mess at times and was the foremost reason why the movie just couldn't always hold my intension. It also was the reason why the movie really felt like it was dragging at times and was definitely being overlong. With a different and more dark style I'm sure that the movie would had come out as a better one still though.I just wasn't too impressed with the animation style this time, though I can certainly dig a good anime movie from time to time, so I'm familiar with its animation style and are often also quite fond of it. Its action but also its concept and character seemed far from original, which makes this a bit of a redundant movie, especially after the much better 1985 production.Because the movie just never grabbed me, everything else in the movie just basically also fails to fully work out. It wasn't a movie that entertained me or was one that I enjoyed watching, though it's also far from the worst thing that you'll ever see.5/10http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

In the distant future, vampires that once ruled over mankind are slowly dying out, killed by Vampire Hunters for money. One hunter is especially feared, a dunpeal half breed both Vampire and Human yet something much more. His name is "D". As our story opens, a powerful vampire lord named Meier Link kidnaps Charlotte, the daughter of a wealthy family and Vampire Hunter D is hired to get her back. This time however, he's got some serious competition in the form of The Marcus Brothers, a team of cybernetic enhanced vampire hunters who are determined to get the bounty even if it means taking out the competition. But as D learns more about his quarry and his competitors, he starts to see that things might be much more than they seem.Based on the 3rd book of in the Vampire Hunter D novel series "Demon Deathchase", Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust(which is the 2nd Vampire Hunter D anime film following the 1985 "Vampire Hunter D" movie), is a beautifully piece of work. Through the magic of animation, the world as envisioned by novelist Hideyuki Kikuchi, with its foreboding castle spires, post-apocalyptic deserts, hauntingly dark jungles and rundown villages, is given form. With Yoshiaki Kawajiri, the master Director behind Ninja Scroll and Highlander: The Search for Vengeance, at the helm, this anime film establishes a new benchmark of excellence in terms of both animation and art. From the opening scene all the way to the end credits, this movie captivates with its stunning visuals. Everything from the realistic looking backgrounds to the attractive character designs is vividly and painstakingly detailed with heavy blacks and rich shadows lending to a dark Gothic feel for the whole movie. Madhouse has pulled out all the stops with the animation, giving a fluidity the likes of which is rare among Japanese anime and a high frame-rate movements to the characters on screen despite the great amount of detail per frame. At no point in the entire movie are there any visible money-saving short cuts so common in most anime.The story presented in Vampire Hunter D Bloodlust is straight forward and easy to understand, more an action thriller chase movie with romance than a horror movie, going from intense fight sequences to the more subdued character centered moments seamlessly and without losing its sense of pace.It is weird however that in a movie titled "Vampire Hunter D", its eponymous character, D, is easily the most uninteresting of the main cast. We do get some insights into his inner struggle with regard to killing his own vampiric kin and the forsaking of his own happiness to lead the lonely life of an immortal Hunter, but that is about it. Meier Link and Charlotte's character arc comes across as a little cliché (see Romeo and Juliet/ forbidden love) but I do appreciate the twist which lent a whole new emotional level to the "powerful vampire prince" stereotype. Even the Marcus Brothers (who are actually 4 brothers and 1 sister) are not your typical Kawajiri "wise-cracking band of freaks to fight the main character"(see Ninja scroll for an example of what I mean). They are portrayed as very human with a strong sense of loyalty and care toward each other, a stark contrast to the distant and stoic D, despite their numerous cybernetic enhancements. This is actually a big change from how they were portrayed in the original novel (in the novel, the Marcus brothers were cold blooded sadistic degenerates who had an incestuous relationship with their sister), and in my opinion, it is a change for the better.Add in some great acting (I applaud the decision to have this movie's primary language in English as the setting and the characters have western names and appearances.), on par with even live action movies, and a script that even manages to throw in some well placed witty humor(usually in the form of D's talking left hand) without affecting the grim atmosphere of the show, and you have one of the most enjoyable animated movies of its genre. Vampire Hunter D Bloodlust delivers the goods and would exceed any expectations one would have from a movie of the horror/action genre. An excellent blend of action, violence and science fiction with well developed characters, awesome animation and a strong plot. A definite "must have" for the animated movie enthusiast, Vampire Hunter D Bloodlust has all the makings of a true classic.

I bought a DVD of this movie a few years ago when it was on sale in a local store, even though I didn't know anything else about it than what I'd read from the blurb. My initial reaction to this film was that it was boring, disappointing, and clichéd, and I just didn't like it one bit. So I just hid the DVD in a secluded corner because one look at the cover made me remember that I'd wasted money and a little over an hour of my time for something that failed to entertain me.Nearly two years later, I had a sudden urge to watch the film again. Strangely enough, I really liked it this time. I don't know what had changed, but my opinion of it isn't as harsh as it originally was anymore. I guess I just learned to appreciate things I'd overlooked the firs time I watched it. Or maybe it just took some time for it to grow on me.So, anyways, this movie is based on Hideyuki Kikuchi's series of novels about a brooding half-vampire, half-human vampire hunter known simply as D. Set in a time thousands of years ahead in the future, the lonely rider D hunts down creatures of the underworld for a fee in a world once ruled by a race of elite vampires, who have originally overthrown humans after a nuclear war swept the earth but are now falling into extinction, thanks to merciless hunters such as D himself. The plot isn't hugely original. In fact, it's nothing anyone familiar with half-decent modern vampire fiction hasn't already heard a hundred times. The deadpan D - and a rivaling group of tough vampire hunters - is hired to chase down a powerful vampire by the name of Meier Link, who has kidnapped a human girl called Charlotte. Halfway through the hunt, however, D begins to suspect that the girl has ran away with the vampire out of her own free will, though this doesn't stop D from carrying on with his mission. Enter sword-clanging, gore, big-busted anime babes, monsters, and endless musings about the existential anxiety of being a blood-lusting vampire.Though I quite enjoyed this film on the second viewing, the plot still failed to impress me. However, the charm of this movie isn't in the plot, but in the exquisite animation, and in the "mythology" of this movie. If anyone ever said that combining Western, Gothic horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy was impossible... well, they were wrong. Not only does Vampire Hunter D bring all this sub-genres of pulp fiction together in a convincing manner, it also manages to do it entirely without the aid of parody or self-irony. That's a real achievement, and I failed to appreciate it on the first viewing.I think there is a lot of potential in the whole concept of Vampire Hunter D, though the plot of this particular film is overdone. I gave it quite high a rating mainly because of its visual merits. However, of they ever decide to do another as beautifully animated film based on the series, I'd be sure to check it out.