The Deposition is a dark and emotional drama written and directed by Eddie Mensore. While the story is very basic at its core, centering around Adam Long (Charles Rashard) who inadvertently kills his lover in a brutal car accident, some stunning cinematography and an incredible score come into play which helps the flow of this very slow paced indie flick.

When I say some stunning cinematography, I really mean the best camera work I think I’ve ever seen in any independent film as long as I can remember.  Some shots are so visually stimulating it really helps with what this film lacks in dialog and action. Some of this gorgeous camera work could be deemed “filler” though I really felt it worked well with the score to simulate all the emotions surrounding Adam and his  phsycological recovery from the accident.

The story is simple, though written masterfully: after the car crash that kills Adam’s girlfriend the whole town vilifies him as a murderer.  Adam has no recollection of the accident and must battle his own inner demon along the way to try and remember the details of that fateful day. With some strong racism and hatred, Adam struggles his day to day life while listening to witness testomony during the deposition.

I can only recall 4-5 scenes in this entire film that didn’t have a soundtrack. The  score is  fantastic, again completely different to that we expect from the indie scene. This, along with the cinematography gives The Deposition a very high quality production value matching almost any of this years biggest blockbuster hits. The small things add up too, like the makeup and VFX of the crash scene were just incredibly well polished and looked like the belonged in a much higher budget movie.

While not giving too many details away, The Deposition is indie film making at it’s finest. It ticks all the right boxes minus one thing.  A slightly higher caliber of actors. While the cast do a great job I couldn’t help but think with such a quality editorial / sound / cinematography team, this movie deserved some better acting. Though it wasn’t bad, it just could have been better.

Having recently found out this is Eddie’s first attempt at film making, I’m truly excited as to what he will bring us in the future.

The Deposition: A solid 8/10

Check out www.thedepositionmovie.com for more information and upcoming screening information and go see this flick!

Writer/Director Alan Gorg

This movie PROPHECY&POLLUTION (80 minutes) was requested by Hopi elder activists a half-century ago, but writer/director/producer Alan Gorg took about fifty years to put together this mix of documentary, docudrama, and animation. Meanwhile, history caught up with the Hopi prophecy that digging out Mother Earth for fuel would bring humankind to disaster. Scenes of what oil and mining companies have done to indigenous peoples around the world preview what could be coming to all of us.

The first part of this trilogy presents the documentary AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A HOPI (9 minutes) to make the point that for a thousand peaceful years the Hopi had been doing all right by themselves out on the high desert in what in now Arizona and, like most indigenous peoples, neither needed nor sought modern industry and so-called civilization.

In the second part, a docudrama entitled EARTH SPIRIT (35 minutes), oil and mining companies come to exploit the land, provoking the kind of conflict and protest many indigenous peoples around the World have endured. Robert Tena brings spirit to the role of a pueblo teenager so corrupted by city life that his mother, played with emotional depth by Betty Matwick, carries him back to the reservation, where, like most indigenous people, she must choose between a simple life and modern convenience and comforts. The shocking death of Forrest Wood as her uncle convinces her to heed the prophecy.

The third part THIRD WORLD INVESTMENT SEMINAR (36 minutes) shows through animation and documentary clips the prophecy fulfilling for indigenous peoples in the Americas and Africa with terrible scenes of suffering and mourning for the ill and dying. The human toll is wide and intense.

This footage does entertain as well as inform. Caricature animations of Milton Friedman and other business leaders who have promoted worldwide investment in energy development should provoke discussion and curiosity, but the tragedies shown here are not entertainment as we see what horrors have been fueling our cars and plans and nuclear reactors and atomic bombs for decades. These stories should be presented in every college classroom and on television for all to see the results of what we are doing here on Earth and what could be coming to us in our turn if we ignore what those Hopi elders have been trying to tell us.

The film has a website:

http://prophecyandpollution.wordpress.com

A trailer can be viewed here:

http://indieflix.com/film/prophecy-pollution-32759/

A dvd can be obtained here

By: Lee Leslie

From its telemovie style opening, to its blatantly obvious-from-the-beginning “ending”, the film plays as an ad-hoc collection of class study scenes. What narrative thread there is to tie all these scenes together is so shallow it would have been better served in a film a quarter of the running time. Though only 73 minutes in length, Fallen Before Falling pads every moment of screen time it can with nonsensical photo montages and fade outs to every single scene. The scenes themselves are rife with dissolves, to the point of lunacy, as if the editor had never used a cross fade before and fell madly in love. The overuse extends every banal shot and grinds the already languid pace to a halt making for a painfully slow movie. Music is splashed over almost every minute of the film, and drowns out the dialogue countless times. For the brief moments the music is gone, usually for the transition to another track, it’s the overbearing foley that drowns the dialogue out. When you are able to make out what the characters are saying, it’s so stilted and trite that it sucks out what little life there is in the film.

Anastasia (Cecile Butt) confronts her demons in Fallen Before Falling.

Fallen Before Falling purports to tell the story of professional actress Anastasia (Cecile Butt) seeking refuge in the country to deal with some form of psychological malady. She rents a dilapidated farm house from cowboy-with-a-heart-of-gold Matthew (Bruno Talotta) and once there proceeds to lose her mind. I used the phrase “purports” due to the film’s entirely inept handling of its own material. If you forgot to read the back of the DVD box you have no idea Butt is a professional actress, it’s not revealed until 47 minutes into the film, then only as a toss-away line. The film starts with a nonsensical scene of Butt gagged and tied to a chair that takes way too long to reveal. When Butt and her surroundings are revealed, a badly over-dubbed masked man enters, says one line, then the scene just slowly fades out. Was it a dream? A portent of future events? A moment from one of her movies? The scene serves as a warning of things to come: the laboriously padded build towards intended, but ultimately sleep-inducing, tension with zero pay-off. Not one thing in the entire running time of the film is paid off. You’re never given insight into Anastasia’s malady or its crucible, and the film doesn’t end so much as run out of steam like a deflating balloon whimpering the last of its air. When the aforementioned scene returns later in the film, once again presented in its entirety, it is neither illuminating nor insightful.

Anastasia (Cecile Butt) and Matthew (Bruno Talotta) try and connect.

Debbeldam makes all the mistakes of a first-time director here. The script is hackney, rice-paper thin and padded to the extreme like a Jess Franco film. His attempts at style fall flat as does the evolution of his characters, their relationships and the central theme of mental deterioration. The camera work in the film is pedestrian and oddly framed; shots don’t cut together well, the image is static and lifeless, we’re shown the back of a featured character’s head through an entire scene when they’re the focus, and more than one scene is played out in a single, terribly long, shot. Technically the shots frequently break line of sight or are edited together haphazard, and the idea of actually composing the frame seems to have eluded the camera operator. The lighting is also overly flat, making the already barren sets all the more deserted and uninteresting.

Still, there was opportunity here to explore some interesting themes. In another rather abrupt moment we’re introduced to one of Anastasia’s symptoms: a high libido. These very rich psychological waters could have been plumbed to wonderful success, had it been allowed. Debbeldam even returns to it a number of times throughout the film, though each time it is handled as feebly as the first. Instead of a welcomed moment of coitus showing Anastasia in full primal bloom, we’re given kissing with a fade out and a forced internal monologue explanation as the liaise drives away. A later pivotal scene, in which this sexual psychosis plays an integral part, just abruptly appears without a much needed lead-in and deflates rather than concludes or resolves. Some kind of scene before was a constituent element, not just to allow the development of key character interaction and tragedy of the aftermath, but to offer crucial insight into Anastasia. The entire film plays out like something written after skimming through a first year psych textbook: just enough to touch upon the subject but not enough to fully develop the subtext and origin of the psychosis to its full cinematic potential.

Anastasia (Cecile Butt) and Susan (Sarah Plummer) have some Mother/Daughter time.

The subject matter Debbeldam and company chose to explore requires one thing sadly lacking from the film: risk. Butt handles herself well in the role, all things considered. There are some rather good scenes here and there, but overall she doesn’t seem to pour herself into the role. Seemingly content to simply play it safe, actress and director askew the inherent demands of the role and subject matter that she be audacious and daring. Though she definitely has some chops, the character portrayal here is far too meek and superficial to be engaging; and engaging the audience is precisely what the film needs. Love interest Talotta is neither convincing nor engaging. There is never a moment where you believe him as Matthew, he’s just there moving through the scene until the inevitable fade out.  As such, you never feel for Butt and Talotta’s relationship, or its growing importance.  In the end it becomes little more than a footnote as the film sputters to a stop.

If Debbeldam continues making film, he should continue with caution. As a writer he seriously needs a collaborator, or at the very least a good editor with an ear for dialogue. He also needs to do a lot more research before tackling something rooted in such a cinematically rich milieu. As a director he needs to learn the art of risk, both with his cinematic vision and his work with the actors. It is far better to fail reaching for the stars than fail in quiet acquiescence. Maybe with a little time and a lot of work Debbeldam will return with a film that expounds its potential.

With a subject matter rife with potential, and a location that could have been an amazing setting for a decent into madness, Fallen Before Falling is an overly padded and flawed film filled with missed opportunities.

-Vance Garrett.

Official Theatrical Poster

I was reminded of Abel Ferrara’s Body Snatchers (1993), the third film adaption of The Body Snatchers by Jack Finney, when I sat down to write this review. The first film adaption, Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956), though classic in many ways, was a veiled McCathyistic communist nightmare; the Philip Kaufman’s 1978 remake remains to this day a terrifying cinematic fever dream. It is a masterfully textured film about the loss of self, which is far more terrifying and effective than the veiled threats of “them”. Unlike Kaufman’s classic, Ferrara’s film askews the human need to explain the events in lieu of a brief and terrifying certainty of failure for our protagonists. It’s a brilliant ploy by screenwriters. What is happening cannot be rationalized or explained away, it’s just pure chaos. This is all summed up in a beautifully surreal moment where Steve (Terry Kinney), having just escaped being cloned himself, is in a panic to leave his infected home but is unaware that his wife Carol (Meg Tilly) is already a clone herself. In an eerie tender tone Carol attempts to first calm Steve, then rationalize with him about his predicament by stating:

“What happened in your room is not an isolated incident, it’s happening everywhere, to everyone. So, where you gonna go? Where you gonna run? Where you gonna hide? Nowhere. Because there is no one like you left.”

It’s a chilling certainty of doom punctuated further by her stolid demeanour. It’s also all the explanation ever provided. On a primal level alone that moment is the epitome of pure horror: being trapped by indefinable events and thus unable to be resolved, with the loss of self being the end result, not simply death. That theme is so frighteningly rich is has been plumbed by literary luminaries George Orwell, Philip K. Dick and Robert A. Heinlein to great success. Cinematically however the waters are quite shallow, with only a handful of works providing proper counterpoint to their literary kin. Most are content mining just the core concept without fully exploring the depth of the inherent themes; the resulting films ultimately leave viewers pondering the missed opportunities. This superficial plumbing has not been more accurately presented than with the Edmonton-by-way-of-Drayton Valley film The Corrupted (2010).

As a rule I generally dislike tearing into a film. The ability for anyone to complete a feature with a low budget is an admirable success and should be acknowledged as such. Such praise must be tempered with a very real critique of what the filmmaker has chosen to present to their audience. The hope, of course, is not to stifle but to allow the filmmaker to grow.

Co-directors Knighten Richman and John Klappstein soldiered out with a limited budget, time, and expensive RED camera gear to craft a Body Snatcher/Puppet Masters hybrid. The cast is comprised of first time actors, and unfortunately it shows. Save for female leads Keltie Squires and Ashley Tallas, the majority of the dialogue delivery in the film is overlong, painfully stilted, and counter intuitive. Where certain plot and character points are repeated ad nauseum, such as their friend possibly being back on drugs to explain why he’s acting so strange, others are only obtusely hinted at. This counter intuitive nature carries over to the characters themselves and ultimately the structure of the film as a whole. Tallas’ character is blatantly played up as being a lesbian the entire film. Later it is all but confirmed through a quick exchange between male characters as they discuss her perchance for luring only women out to a lake raft. Yet, almost randomly and without explanation of any kind, she suddenly abandons all character development to place herself in coitus with one of the surviving men.

With low-budget or independent films the audience should expect some of the inherent accoutrements; I refer to it as the muting effect for lack of money. There is however a huge difference between drawing out a shot or scene to create tension and padding a films running time. Throughout The Corrupted I questioned why the filmmakers chose to fill so much of the running time with ultimately unnecessary scenes. For example: a trifecta of characters enter the film for an overdrawn party scene only to vanish completely immediately thereafter. Nothing in the party scene hadn’t been presented before, or isn’t repeated after. It possesses no revelations, important character development, or exposition that propels the story. The film just stops dead for 25 minutes presenting instead a montage of drinking and laughing, interrupted only by brief interludes that repeat information already stated many times before. These scenes could have offered character insight to these people so the audience could emotionally connect with them. Instead what dialogue is spoken is so mundane, stilted and badly delivered, that you end up disliking everybody. The whole sequence is capped off with a congregation of key characters on a dock where I assume they talk of important foreshadowing; unfortunately the sound is so horrible at this moment that none of the characters are audible, only the deafening sounds of lapping water.

This is my main point of contention with indie filmmakers: the importance of sound. Sound comprises 85% of the audience’s experience. Without proper sound your audience becomes combative with the film because they want to know what’s happening. The sound in The Corrupted deteriorates fifteen minutes in and from there it’s a tossup of good scene-bad scene. One moment you’ll hear everything, another nothing except the foley. The effects sounds are also embarrassingly bad throughout. With the affordability and accessibility of inexpensive high-quality sound effects online, or in affordable media libraries, to have the booming cannon-gunshot effect for a hunting rifle is insulting. Moreover it rips your audience completely out of the film, shattering whatever hard work you’ve put in to involve them emotionally.

The Corrupted claim another victim.

Through the final act of The Corrupted characters abruptly abandon their own established natures and situations become contrived beyond all sense of reason. Creatures are allowed to get close enough to disarm our protagonists even though it’s been revealed they’re infected. The creatures themselves are all over the map; though all the same species, none of them act the same way or possess the same abilities. Finally there is the protagonists need to talk about what they’re going to do without actually doing it. This happens throughout the film and grinds the already languid pace to a halt. Their main villain, Jeremy Hook, has the stature and ability but not the voice to carry the threat his character needed. Instead of working with their limitations and wisely leaving the explanation a mystery, they give Hook nearly 2 minutes of dialogue and double out his voice Exorcist-style. This was a huge misstep on filmmaker’s part. Referencing my opening statement: the unexplained is horror. It offers no resolution for the protagonists and ultimately the audience.

Samantha (Keltie Squires) gets nasty with a Corrupted.

There are a few things to be noted positively. Keltie Squires is a stand out and handles her role with a wealth of ability. She is a great lead, engaging and charismatic, and the best thing in the film. Ashley Tallas is strong, though at times comes off as she may be just as confused about whom her character is as we are. Jeremy Hook is an amazing physical actor, adding menace in his stillness. One of the best surrealist moments in the film shines mainly because of him. The musical score is also quite brilliant. When I was first informed of this film I watched a teaser trailer, and the use of the music was so masterful I was immediately intrigued. Here the music elevates the film immensely, adding life and needed tension to scenes. The photography for the majority of the film is well composed but it’s the stunning scenery shots which allow the 4K image of the RED to shine.

The Corrupted is a film of mixed blessings, missed opportunities and indicative of the current independent media trends. More and more filmmakers are drinking the Koolaid that all they need for a successful film is the best camera. Time and again it is proven that before the camera, you need a great script. Shooting on the RED does not automatically make it a good film. Good acting, inspired direction, and a solid script make for a good film, the rest is just the medium you use. The truth is that both Richman and Klappstein possess these necessary skills, their teaser trailer is clear evidence of that. There are a few inspired moments in the film when they allow themselves to experiment visually and it belies the film’s overall pandering nature. Finding a solid script editor, working harder in the casting department, and the hiring of an editor would have elevated this piece considerably.

Overall The Corrupted is far too flawed to recommend; it’s not even sleazy enough or campy enough for the bad movie crowd. The filmmakers have shown some hints of talent here. I really hope that they take a lesson from this, correct their course and grow as artists for their inevitable next project. The concept is ripe and there is a good film in there somewhere. It’s truly unfortunate that this wasn’t it.

-Vance Garrett

Check out the Trailer:

Submitted by: Michael Smith

The movie is centered around a passionate film geek “Brad Zhul” played by Daniel Bartkewicz and his movie review website that has so much authority that it can influence Hollywood, think power to the little people. The portrayal of the webmaster come film critic is spot on and resonates with everyone here at independent film reviews, though sometimes a little over the top.

“Spoiler Alert is a black comic/revenge tale from first-time feature filmmaker David Rakowiecki (pronounced Ra-cow-ski). Itʼs about Brad, the operator of a movie scoop website and Harrison, a down on his luck film director who has squandered his artistic abilities in pursuit of easy paydays. One night Harrison shows up on Bradʼs doorstep looking to exact revenge upon him because he feels Brad and his website have ruined his career. Chinese food, movie geek talk and murder ensue.”

The scene is set, and stays that way throughout, inside a small basement cave – a movie making tactic that hasn’t worked in a very long time, or at least as long as I can remember. The director uses hand held camera work and scene cutaways which help with the flow and overall feel of this film which everyone here at IFR thoroughly enjoyed.

Spoiler Alert deals with something we discuss here on a regular basis, how do you deal with a bad film when you have so much influence at your disposal and you know your review can help make or break that movies chance of success? I’m just thankful right now I actually loved this film and could write an honest review without a knock on the door from the disgruntled director!

For a basically “one scene movie” with virtually no score, Rakowiecki keeps things moving along with some unexpected plot twists and turns that managed to keep us all entertained, when the pace began to slow, another twist comes along at almost exactly the right time, great directing overall and kudos to the camera operators for some stellar hand held work.

Well – no bad reviews over here, or spoilers for that matter. We all thought Spoiler Alert was one of the most well polished, best acted and well written indie flicks we’ve received in a long time. Unfortunately we get a lot of junk sent our way and unlike Brad, we try and stray away from negative reviews, you just never know who will be knocking on your door!

Get your hands on a copy and see for yourself. 7/10

It’s never an enjoyable thing to cut into a film, like natal surgery, it is heart wrenching for all involved. The Gangster does have a lot going for it. The cinematography is top notch as is the sound (the importance of which can never be understated) yet the story is very predictable and by the end credits I was struck with the odd feeling I had just watched a film based on a one note joke. The story centers on three friends, Baden (Justin Scriver), Michelle (Kyra Weisman) and Adam (Lukas Pallotta) who witness a “gangster car” leaving an abandoned house. The children are so enticed by the concept that the house may be a dumping site for dead bodies that they break in to have a look around.

Whereas the concept of childhood projection can be used in wonderful cinematic ways, here it is only hinted at and ultimately discarded for convention. The three child leads handle themselves competently, though at times the pace of their dialogue as well as their performances are stilted and disjointed. Still there is a clever exchange in the opening when Baden and Michelle discuss the presence of the gangster Caddy as being proof of dead bodies. It’s wonderful child logic and the exchange is witty, well paced and hits a high note with Baden exclaiming “Dead bodies. That’s what those cars are for. You pretty much got to kill someone before they’ll sell you one.” When Wilson allows himself to explore these element of child perception, the film shines. The short-lived moments inside the house, when Michelle goes in through a broken window to open the door for the others, are brilliant and expertly handled. They showcase Wilson’s undeniable filmmaking ability which makes his ultimate discarding of them so disappointing. His use of sound, muffled dialogue, lighting, set design and camera are so top notch here it feels like another film entirely. If these elements had been carried further, or explored in more detail, the culmination of the story would have been more satisfying. Yet Wilson tips his hand just a little too soon and gives the punch line of the story away before reveling it on screen.

Wilson definitely has some talent behind the camera, and there is no denying he’s a brave soul. Making a film centered on children is something certain filmmakers will never even attempt. For the most part he nails the logic and heart of a child, and his moments inside the house exploring perception verses reality is a stroke of genius. Yet he also makes the misstep of falling to convention and ultimately pandering to his perceived youth audience. There are ingredients in The Gangster that could make for a truly amazing film, and Wilson most definitely has the chops to do it. Evolving the concept and carrying it through, or even allowing the film to go over the top as in Jacob Two-Two Meets The Hooded Fang (1978), would add immeasurably. Ultimately Wilson has offered us a competent first film rife with potential and possibilities.

The goal of any reviewer is never to stifle creativity like Wilson’s, but to say “Don’t hold back or second guess yourself.” The moments with Michelle inside the house alone harkens to a unique and burgeoning filmmaking talent if allowed to roam free. The Gangster has its flaws as does most first films, but it also has its moments of sly brilliance. Given time and focusing on what really works Wilson will most certainly come into his own. For now though The Gangster stands as an admirable first step.

-Vance Garrett.

Visit the official site: The Gangster on IMDb

It’s Giuliani’s New York. Peep shows are being cleaned out of Times Square; boom boxes and graffiti have become public enemies. Luke Shapiro (Josh Peck) has just graduated high school. In the span of this one summer between his parents’ apartment and his college dorm room he will experience a myriad of life’s firsts.

Set on the Upper East Side, “The Wackness”, is a new twist on the common coming of age theme. “What new twists?” you ask. Well, while many of us had a summer job, I don’t know anyone who sold marijuana out of an ice cream pushcart.

Luke does his part to keep New York City the way many non-New Yorkers envision it. He plays a soundtrack of early 90’s rap on his walk-man as he sells drugs to Manhattanites. Luke trades drugs and candid conversation with his Therapist, Dr. Squires played by Ben Kingsley.

The relationship between Luke and Dr. Squires takes on new meaning as the doctor gives Luke frank advice about living in the moment and enjoying his youth through sex and drug use. His advice comes back to bite him though when Luke begins a relationship with his stepdaughter, Stephanie (Olivia Thirlby). We watch Luke grow and learn the lessons we all had to learn the hard way. I felt a connection with the main character as he described his place in the striated society of an American High School’s population.

Director and writer, Jonathan Levine, does an excellent job getting his audience involved with his characters. Each one was developed with enough texture to make us care about the events in their lives. The addition of some offbeat talent (cameos by Method Man and an Olsen twin) made for a unique cast that did a great job with their acting duties. The general feel of the city and the time period came through to the audience on an appropriate level. This type of movie has the potential to become a kitschy rendition of what it is trying to portray. “The Wackness” did not come off in that manner. Much of the credit for this accurate rendition must be given to the music. I enjoyed the soundtrack immensely and it brought me back to my days listening to A Tribe Called Quest and Notorious B.I.G. The music really set the tone for the entire movie.

If you are a 30 to 35-year-old man who grew up in America, you will have an immediate attachment to many of the themes in this movie. I’m sure you will root for Luke in his final throws of adolescence. While he’s no Holden Caulfield, Luke does a good job as an anti-hero that we can relate to.

Best line (that is not representative of the rest of the dialog): “I got mad love for you, Shorty. That’s on the real. I like… I wanna like listen to Boys II Men when I’m with you.” – Luke Shapiro

The film has some dramatic moments, like when entertainment lawyer Marilyn Marsden confronts her ex-lover and his new boyfriend.  It also includes several laugh out loud scenarios including deluded Ashley pouring her heart out to her sex addict lover, Todd.

Three stories run parallel over a period of time in the film and all come together in the dramatic climax.

The writers made me care about the characters and left me wanting more so I would have to give this film a big thumbs up.

User Review Submitted By: Aaron Kreider

The scene starts as Captain Toshiro Hitsugaya and his vice captain are escorting a relic called the “King’s Seal” across the real world when suddenly they are assualted by a masked soul reaper and two viazards ( viazards are soul reapers who are able to maifest their hollow energy into physical form thus increasing their power). Hitsugaya takes on the masked Soul Reaper and is fatally wounded by his sword. He is suddenly reminded of his past. As the masked Reaper runs away Hitsugaya abandons his transport to chase after this person whom he believes is a diseased friend from his early days named Kusaka. The entire 10th division (his squad of soul reapers) is placed under arrest until Hitsugaya is found. It is Ichigo who finds him and seeks answers to the strange behavior that Hitsugaya is showing.

Toshiro leaves Ichigo to find the truth. Meanwhile, the entire Soul Society is in pursuit with some for truth others for capture. Kusaka is revealed to be the devious Soul Reaper who has taken the “King’s Seal” and has a dangerous plot to not only Toshiro but the entire Soul Society in a whole. Will Captain Toshiro Hitsugaya be able to see the reason for this whole sordid affair? Will Soul Society ever begin to understand that duty is two fold? And will Ichigo ever hook up with one of his many admirers? Well the first two can be answered, unfortunately the third will have to wait!

The animation is crisp in this movie. Noriyuki Abe really put a lot of work into displaying all the emotion and raw feeling of battle and honor that has made Bleach fans fall in love with the series. Michiko Yokote and Masahiro Ōkubo wrote a very deep and in depth plot line that is not cut up and flows very well. Fans of Shonen Jump and mangas alike will enjoy the cleverness and deep rooted themes. Those who enjoy the visual art will not be disappointed either with the gorgeous display of colors, no choppiness, and emotional actions that is sometimes left out inside full length features (Naruto can sometimes be called on for this).

So in closing definitely see this movie. It is a nice display of all the Bleach animators and their capabilities, as well as ingrain you into a story that if you haven’t been following you will want to. A 5/5