Blu-ray Movie Reviews

Demons have infested the Earth. And only one warrior stands between the dark and the light: Saya, a half-human, half-vampire samurai who preys on those who feast on human blood. Joining forces with the shadowy society known as the Council, Saya is dispatched to an American military base, where an intense series of swordfights leads her to the deadliest vampire of all. And now after 400 years, Saya's greatest hunt is about to begin.

Anyone familiar with anime is sure to recognize the title of this film. Production I.G., one of the best animation houses in the industry, made what I would call a short feature length film under the same name about a young girl/vampire that put the hurting on some demons. This popular anime is now expanded into not only live form but a significantly longer story with more character development. Unfortunately not all is well here. The storyline is similar but the production values of this film are pretty bad, and the script is down right horrible. The special effects were almost painful to watch at times and reminded me of the old stop motion clay effects of my father’s childhood. Couple that with tedious lines that are reminiscent of several popular sagas already on film and you have a film that could have been good but instead becomes painful. Stick to the anime.

While I didn’t care for the film there isn’t much not to like about the HD transfer from Sony. They continue to impress with outstanding depth and detail. Contrast looks exceptional in this one and the color pallete provides plenty of pop. Fine object detail is outstanding and almost works against the horrible SFX. An eye pleaser for sure.

This is one of the first films I’ve seen from Sony released with a DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack. Seems as though the studios are starting to shift to DTS more and more lately. The mix is very aggressive with plenty of surround use. The action sequences deliver a decent sound design, but nothing new and exciting. Low bass extension is pretty impressive though and the mix has a very open and airy sound that lends to the illusion of being in the film. Dialogue is clean and detailed and imaging across the main soundstage was excellent.

Extras include a look at the production of the film and the stunts involved. You also get some storyboards and BD-Live connectivity.

This is a disappointing live action translation of the popular anime feature. While fans of the film will be impressed with the A/V presentation, I would have a hard time recommending it for the curious viewer.