Movies - Blood: The Last Vampire

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	Movies - Blood: The Last Vampire

Blood: The Last Vampire (2000) is a Japanese animated film produced by animation studio Production I.G. It was distributed in North America by Manga Entertainment. The film has been praised for its blend of 2D and 3D elements.

Director James Cameron:

:"Digital imaging has entered a new era. The world will come to consider this work as the standard of top quality in digital animation."

The film has also drawn some criticism for its brief runtime, 48 minutes, and resulting lack in character development. Many people have also complained that the DVD packaging for the film is misleading, as it lists the program run time as 83 minutes; this is technically true if you watch both the 48 minute movie and the 35 minutes of special features afterwards.

The story is set in Yokota Airbase in Japan, during the Vietnam War. Its main protagonist is a girl named Saya, who hunts vampiric demons (referred to as Chiroptera) using a katana; she works for the United States government. The title of the film implies that she is the last remaining vampire, and in the movie, Saya is referred to as "the last remaining original" (possibly referring to what are sometimes known as "shinso vampires" in Japanese fiction). Her disdain for humans is evident early in the film. Saya has no weakness to sunlight, although whether she has any of the other vulnerablities commonly associated with vampires is virtually unknown, she does become distressed when she encounters religious paraphanelia (she becomes nervous when seeing a nurse wearing a small cross and nearly strangles a government agent for uttering "Jesus Christ"). Saya displays superhuman senses and strength, as well as cunning, resourcefulness, and skill. Saya's voice actress in the movie was Youki Kudoh.

Franchise and Spinoffs

After the film's success as a cult hit, Production I.G. built up a franchise around the film which involved games, novels, and a manga. Initially only released in Japan, the manga and novel have since seen a North American print in English.

Kudoh reprised the role of Saya in a follow-up two-part PlayStation 2 game, which saw a Japanese-only release in 2000. It featured the same animation quality as the film, a host of new characters, and a score composed by Yuki Kajiura. Due to the game being divided over two discs (which led to a final price of ¥6000), retail sales were not as high as anticipated. In late 2005, with the airing of the new Blood+ anime (see below), Production I.G. and Sony announced a Japanese release of a "Blood" game on a single disc for both PS2 and PSP platforms. Though at first uncertain whether the intent was to re-release the 2000 game, or design completely new adventures based on the anime, clarification revealed both scenarios were the case. The 2000 re-release for PSP on the Japanese retail market is set for January 26, 2006, as the fifth of Production I.G.'s popular Yarudora series.

The manga, entitled Blood: The last Vampire 2002, is set in Yokohama. It was written and drawn by hentai artist Benkyo Tamaoki.

In 2005, Production IG announced the creation of a TV series entitled Blood+ based on the original movie. It is held to be an alternate universe, as the series does not follow the events of the PS2 game or subsequent manga, both held to be sequels of the film. Saya's voice actress for this series will be a relative newcomer, Eri Kitamura. Production I.G. and SCEJ announced in early December 2005 that the Blood+ video games, based on the anime, will be released in Japan. Two versions of the games for both of Sony's PS2 and PSP platforms are scheduled, with a tentative release date of December 31, 2006.

There is, of January 2006, no word on whether Sony or Production I.G. will bringing either game to the North American or European markets.

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for Blood: The Last Vampire ]

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