Universal Century 0079.
After successfully repelling a Zeon attack on their home base of Jaburo,
the Earth Federation feels the time is right to push Zeon off the Earth by
launching Operation Odessa. In the build
up to the attack, the Federation begins several mop up operations against
lingering Zeon outposts. The White Base
is assigned to retake “The Island of No Return.” Here, Gundam Pilot Amuro Ray encounters a
lone Zaku defending a group of war orphans.
Up against a Zeon pilot looking for redemption, Amuro must find a way to
defeat this ferocious enemy before time runs out.
Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island is a curious
little project for the Gundam franchise.
It’s based on an episode from the original 1979 TV Series that Tomino
thought was so terrible that he attempted to bury it after its only TV
airing.
Now, I’m all about second
chances with this franchise (still holding out hope for a redo of Gundam
F91).
But the notion of turning a failed
22 minute episode into a two hour feature film seems baffling to me.
And yet here we are, the 6
th
Original Gundam Movie in a nearly 45 year old franchise (btw that’s less than
half of the Compilation Films or OVAs out there).
So does the resurrected failure of Cucuruz
Doan’s Island offer anything new for the franchise or at least redeem this lost
tale?
Right off the bat, this movie looks great.
It’s clear that Sunrise is continuing the
animation style that made Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin, such a success.
All character designs look nice and updated
for modern audiences while still retaining their old school 70’s feel.
And the Mobile Suits, Gundam has always been
one of the few Mecha franchises to utilize 3D CG effects successfully while
other franchises in the genre continue to struggle.
The opening sequence with Doan laying the pain
on a pair of unfortunate GM’s makes the Zaku look the most menacing since its
very first appearance in 1979.
I like
how everything has weight to it when it comes to Mobile Suit movements and
emphasizes these things take effort to pilot.
It adds intensity to the action scenes and each step and attempted blow
with a Beam Saber or Heat Tomahawk feels titanic.
This is probably the most naturally I’ve seen
the original Gundam ever operated in an Anime, it’s fantastic, especially
during the action heavy climax.
I will say that the action scenes aren’t too abundant as
we spend the bulk of the middle portion of the film with Doan and his colony of
war orphans.
This is both a positive and
a negative.
On the one hand, it’s good
to get to know this group (if you can withstand all of the constant crying at
times).
You get the sense that Doan has
worked hard to provide a good life for these kids while keeping the horrors of
war away from them as best he can.
Likewise, Amuro’s time among the group works as a turning point for his
character, moving him from the selfish brat he started out as and into more of
a soldier and protector by films end.
It’s good stuff but the film does slow down tremendously after the first
two action scenes early on.
There’s one
brief battle in Casablanca to introduce the films villains but its over before
you know it and the action doesn’t pick up again until the final thirty
minutes.
And considering how
surprisingly little screentime the OG Gundam itself gets, they could have either
shortened the movie a little or maybe had one extra fight scene to keep things
a little more exciting, especially since this is the first time we’ve seen the
White Base crew on screen like this since 1982’s Mobile Suit Gundam: The Movie
III-Encounters in Space.
One thing that bothers me more is the rearranging of
events from the TV Series to fit the films plot.
The original Doan’s Island episode took place
early on in the original story and involved one character in particular still
around because he hadn’t made his heroic exit.
The Movie instead smashes several story events together rather
unnecessarily.
Why have Slegger Law (one
of my least favorite characters in all of Gundam) around when Ryu Jose is much
more beloved by the fan base?
Why move
the Jaburo defense to just before the Battle of Odessa when it took place way
after (actually if you wanted an extra action sequence, show us the Gundam in
action during that event, you could even get in a Char cameo)?
Why show us Amuro having a nightmare about
his father having become a brain damaged maniac when he hasn’t returned to
space yet?
Point is, the changes are
unnecessary and I wonder if they might’ve upset other Gundam fans.
It doesn’t ruin the overall enjoyment factor
of the film as a whole but yeah…it still bothered me.
Though not as much as Doan’s former Zeon
squadron who act as the primary villains of the movie.
It’s here that some of the out of place,
overly cartoonish characterizations that hindered The Origin pop up again.
Doans’ former CO goes nuts anytime Doan’s
name gets brought up and one team member is so crazy he just wants to fight
Doan for the hell of it (he also thinks Doan’s skill is on par with Char…and I
like Doan but no, Char is Char for a reason).
Still, theyre just annoying and psychotic enough that when they do get
to Doan’s Island, you cant wait to see Doan and Amuro defend their little spot
of paradise from these invaders and kick some serious ass.
Still, inspite of my gripes and what I feel are some
misteps, Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s actually succeeds in giving a
failed initial attempt a strong second chance.
The expanding of Doan’s story and his relationship with the orphans
works just as well as the top notch animation and Mobile Suit action scenes.
It’s good to see the White Base crew together
again and having lost none of their likeablity or top notch character work
(though I do like that Bright is now rightfully and continuously losing his
mind of Amuro’s insubordination, dudes just ready to snap and I love it).
The pacing could have been better and
rewrapping TV Series events does bug me (I know The Origin did a bit of that
towards the end but not like this), but I cant say it made me hate this movie,
not by a long shot. If anything, it makes me think that we’ll hopefully be
getting a new telling of the original series soon (maybe even for the 50
th
Anniversary in the next few years…do I dare say hopefully for the 45
th?).
Best of all, it’s still the Mobile Suit
Gundam that became the legend it is today in the world of Anime.
44 years later and it’s still flying as
strong as ever.
7.5/10
While not the Gundam guy you are, this idea always struck me as odd even as a casual fan. Making a movie out an event from the og series which didn't seem all that important in the scheme of things. Now, I could somewhat understand maybe wanting to give an idea that had a good premise but bad or flawed execution another go (some Star Trek episodes come to mind), but; if the goal is to tell maybe these 'side stories' or insert some events into the main storyline, is this a story that really needed telling?
ReplyDeleteUsing another franchise as an example, Battlestar Galactica: Razor had some elements that worked, like the novelty of having the BSG crew run into old school Cylons, but other larger elements didn't like trying to portray Cain as more complex when in reality, yeah she was pretty much crazy the whole time.
Origin worked overall cause it gave us the story of Char, and as you said, some cartoonish characterizations not withstanding; was an engaging story coupled with modern awesome animation. So, if they do more of these, guess I'd want them to pick something that adds to the universe, story, or characters in a meaningful way.
Cool to hear the animation was good, especially with the mecha having weight and everything. Too often people seem to forget with CGI or whatever, thing have mass and that needs to be conveyed.
Good review dude.