Galaxy Express 999: The Movie (1979)

This is a sort of Star Wars in Japan, made for 12 year old boys, like Star Wars, but very different in many ways as well. It has some very strange stuff and the plot doesn't make any sense sometimes (note: this is different from not making sense in an art film, such as Tarvovsky's, where it is supposed to not make sense, here we have a traditional linear narrative). The is perhaps the product of the compression of a very complex story into only 128 minutes of film, which forces the movie to use many deux ex machina in several occasions.Also, there are something I find disturbing in the concept exposed in the movie of people having disposable bodies. The character designs also look a bit strange for me, who is not used to 1970's anime.Despite these flaws, however, the movie remains powerful enough to earn a 8/10, a rate score for me to give.

For people like me, growing up was a gradual process which made me take my time, having all the joys as any kid would have but being aware and learn what it meant to be an adult. Sure I'm an adult now but I still feel young inside, and that's the same with a lot of us. This is one of my favorite anime movies and films in general.Based on the long running Manga series/TV series, Leiji Matsumoto always knew how to create Space Operas, the unique thing about them other than the vast fascinating universes he's created he always had human emotion attached to them.The music is just superb, my favorite song no doubt is the ending theme song which is just wonderful. The animation I think is solid, though it may look a little dated but you have to consider this was in the 1970s so you get use to it. But I feel it successful captures a epic pulp sci-fi romanticism that's reminiscent of "Flash Gordon" comics and TV shows like "Space 1999" and "Doctor Who" as we see the endless depth and wonders it has from the different worlds and their features and customs as well as a mix in genre; heroic space pirates and those wonderful ships they roam the galaxy in, a world that looks like something out of a western, locomotives that fly, and others you have to see to believe. It's true there a lot of logic is thrown out the window but the charm of all pulp sci-fi it's not concerned about logic just on creative freedom and that's not a bad thing and something I don't see often anymore.And the film is pretty dark, the fact that humans can buy themselves immortality but the price is their own bodies in exchange for mechanical ones. The mechanical bodied characters look disturbingly creepy almost reminds me those creepy silver faced robot cops from George Lucas's "THX-1138". The creepiest and saddest moment for me and to be Tesuros' journey to Pluto where he sees an ice cemetery filled mostly with human beings that traded their bodies all preserved in ice. Thsi part reminded me of one of Dante's Circles of Hell as well as demonstrates the fundamental problem with immortality.I like the characters, it has two great supporting characters that both had anime franchises of their own. Captain Harlock sort of a John Wayne/Clint Eastwood like character and Queen Emeraldas whom was one of the first femme fatales in the anime world. However two unforgettable characters are Tesuro and Matel. Both of them you feel a deep sense of pathos for, you love them but you also feel sad for what troubles them. Tesuro isn't a stereotypical all smiles kid but actually feels like any other kid his age, however he has a troubled past from the fact his mother was killed out of sick amusement by the machine antagonist Count Mecha which is a scene that's heart wrenching and put tears in my eyes, this is the subplot of the film. But Tesuro also has desires to make his dreams of journeying out among the stars come true but to do this he feels immortality is the only way. Matel is a living enigma throughout the whole film she's almost has that dream like quality of a girl we had in our dreams that feels so close but so far. She is a warm yet detached presence, sweet but you see in her eyes and from what she says and doesn't that there is a deep sadness residing in her like she knows more than Tesuo and we can imagine.I really like the chemistry between both of them, I don't really feel a mother and son dynamic from them but is sort of a Freudian coming of age love story for both of them. There are Freaudian overtones the fact Matel looks a little like his mom it pertains to the psychology that our significant others we love would remind us or even physically resemble a family member. Some pieces of conversation we see at time Tesuo desires to kiss her and even throughout the journey Tesuo become more mature and doesn't even feel like a kid anymore but a man, even Matal cares for him more than just a friend (trust me it's not so strange once you find out her secret which makes it okay).This story has sort of a Philip K Dick like philosophical meditation on life and death and the importance of being human. We see why there is a reason why people have a limited amount of time in their lives, no one can ever truly live as an immortal because then life loses all meaning as well as make the human soul lose value; it's always what we do with our limited amount of time that truly makes us live forever.Galaxy Express isn't just an anime it's an experience. A journey from Childhood's End, destiny and beyond.Rating: 4 stars

This early Anime movie was a rather good film that I caught once on the Science Fiction channel when Anime was actually popular here in America and not the ratings disaster that adult swim claims it is on the cartoon network. I quite frankly think it has less to do with it being less popular and more with the fact people would rather now buy dvds or watch the episodes uncut on the internet. This film though probably did not have all that many cuts and the voice work was okay for a dubbed movie, though I would rather watch the original Japanese version. Americans tend to use some rather annoying voices for children in anything dubbed. This film features a young boy who boards a train called the Galaxy Express in the hopes that he can make it to a planet that has the technology to turn him into a robot. He wishes to become a robot to avenge his mother, who was brutally murdered at the hands of a robot who hunts humans for fun. During the course of his adventures he becomes friends with the various workers aboard the train as well as a woman that resembles his deceased mother, a beautiful woman named Matel, who as with most woman in Anime movies has a secret that could either be really good for our young hero, or really bad. He goes from planet to planet too as the train makes various stops and he runs into a space pirate named Captain Harlock who apparently starred in his own animated cartoon series, so basically the Galaxy Express takes place in that universe. All in all a very good ride with a rather strange and unexpected ending. There would be a sequel to this one, but it was not quite as good as this one, however the ending was a bit more final than it was here.

I saw this as a child in the late eighties and I must say, Galaxy Express is one of those films that sticks in your imagination for a long time. If you've never understood the appeal of anime, discovering this film may be your golden ticket to Otaku-town.The story is as delicate and poetic as Ridley Scott's Blade Runner. The cell animation, while somewhat traditional, possesses a vivid style that explosively portrays Leiji Matsumoto's great talent for character design and visual storytelling.This is one of those unique children's films like Star Wars, The Dark Crystal and The Wizard of Oz that completely transcends 'family entertainment' status and stands as a classic of cinema on its own terms.I highly recommend this film.