It seems nowadays that anime has been saturated with all sorts of cutesy, bubblegum shows about girls playing in school bands or chibi-fied Sherlock Holmes. Crashing onto the scene is REDLINE, a high speed visual orgy of nonstop adrenaline. Produced by famed Japanese animation studio MADHOUSE (the same studio behind amazing works such as Girl who Lept Through Time & Millennium Actress), it is the first movie debut by Takeshi Koike, who also worked on the Animatrix’s World Record.  I first caught wind of REDLINE when after hearing it being premiered at the Lorcano International Film Festival. Since then, I’ve waited patiently as REDLINE slowly made screenings in film festivals all over the states. After showings in film festivals in Austin, Minneapolis, Honolulu, and San Francisco, it finally made its way to Los Angeles at The LA Animation Film Festival International. It’s Star Wars Pod Racing meets Wacky Racers infused with stunning Japanese absurdity.

REDLINE is a famous intergalactic (albeit highly illegal) race that takes place every five years. JP is a flamboyant racer (sporting a duckbill do’ that would make Elvis and Johnny Cash proud) known for his fair play & miraculous comebacks, giving him the nickname “Sweet” JP. The movie begins with a qualification race known as the Yellow Line. Just before the finish line, JP suffers an unfortunate engine accident, leaving the win to Crab Sonoshee, a sexy and spunky, yet determined newcomer. The winner then goes on to participate in the REDLINE. While JP recovers in the hospital, he is bombarded by the media that two qualifiers have dropped out due to personal reasons with the stage of the next REDLINE, Roboworld; Its government refuses to let the vulgar race take place on their planet, threatening to make an “early retirement” out of anyone dumb enough to set foot on the planet  A fan poll unsurprisingly selects JP as one of the replacements. Much to the dismay of his partner mechanic Frisbee, JP sets his sights on the REDLINE.

Before any critical thing should be said about REDLINE, yes, the movie is as every ridiculous and mind blowing as it came expected to be. The main draw of REDLINE is naturally the visuals. Despite being a Japanese production, it carries a distinctive western style that reminiscent of bold outlines in DC western cartoons such as The Batman, Justice League, etc. Instead of gritty brown desolate landscapes, each car in the race brings something colorful to the frame. The line ends there as REDLINE reels you back into your seat at full throttle with its impossible car dancing choreography (Carography?). REDLINE embraces its genre’s unlimited potential to the extreme. Stunts will throw curves and straights at you one after another leaving you to wonder how in the world will the next stunt top the previous one.  It would be near impossible to recreate these extraordinary face-melting moments in Live Action or even CGI.  Cars (or what looks like cars) will flip, spin, roll, explode, transform you got a verb in mind? REDLINE has it covered. And that’s only half the reason why REDLINE is so engrossing.

James Shimoji brings a electronic soundtrack that rocks the nerves as if you were in the driver seat. Bass pulses through the seats during the movie’s high tempo moments. Heck, even most of the minor characters get their own theme! (My favorite is Gori-Rider, A terminator-like Robocop with a spaghetti western-inspired theme that would fit nicely into a Clint Eastwood film). Perhaps the film’s weakest department amidst its own insanity is its plot structure. After an electrifying open, the movie sulks into an rather long exposition without much depth at all. Some scenes feel painfully dragged out to where one would think they were doing it just to converse its budget. None of the characters are really shelled out, even much of the back story behind JP and Sonoshee’s relationship is ambiguous at most. There are no explanations for any phenomena that happens, it’s all just a part of the ride. However, once the credits roll, you may be willing to accept it as what it is. Trust me.

With so much resources and time thrown into the projects, Original Movies like REDLINE are financial gambles. MADHOUSE has had several hits in the past years with Summer Wars and Paprika, but while these were critically successful, the commercial successes have fared much better in familiar series such as One Piece: Strong World (produced by Toei). Anyone with a passing interest in Science Fiction, Cars, Anime, or just want to delight in visual euphoria should check out REDLINE when it hits theaters next year.

Nonetheless, once the REDLINE starts, don’t blink because you don’t want to miss a single chrome frame of this sleeper hit.

Grade: A-

Trailer:

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