Mars Express

Its a cyberpunk noir about a detective hired to track down a missing student from a prestigious tech university. Set in a future where humans have spread across the solar system, some people are a cyborg or synthetic or just augmented and computers are fleshy biocreatures with a single eye. Robots, synthetic humans, holograms and AI are just part of daily life. People can even upload and backup their personalities into robots when they die, sort of like digital immortality.

In this futuristic cyberpunk thriller with parts of detective noir, the rich have settled on the neighboring planet.

If youre familiar with Blade Runner or Ghost in the Shell, theres not much here that will surprise you. The scifi concepts feel a bit dated like the T-1000, but the animation looks great, the action is fun and the plot is decent though nothing groundbreaking, love the aesthetics/world building.

Should have been a miniseries!

I wasn't prepared for the level of attention to detail and plot in this adult animated thriller sci-fi. The Three Laws of Robotics, which are included in Asimov's Robots novel series, were even used by the writers to explain the behaviour and interactions of the robots with humans.

There is a lot to enjoy about this movie even though it may not be a genre-bending one. Let's start with the exquisite animation style, which is incredibly colourful, flowing, and detailed throughout. I thought Carlos was one of the best-written and most well-designed characters. A lot of attention has gone into creating the futuristic environment, down to the smallest elements, which provide realism to the film.

However, everything happens very quickly, and several significant personalities or events are merely skimmed over. 'Mars Express' needed a bit more screen time to better develop these elements, but official sellection of the Cannes Film Festival usually doesn't like overlong animations, and this was one of those films in 2023!

Overall, it was a great animated feature to enjoy!

The world building really elevated this movie. It felt like there was a tv season's worth of material compressed into a 1.5 hour movie, but it worked, and it worked wonderfully. The world world was well thought-out, everything fit together well.

It's about a private investigator and her robot partner investigating the disappearance of a college student. As we learn more about the case, we also learn about the world this story is set in. This movie is like a perfect showcase for "show, don't tell". There's very little exposition, if any.

It's one of the best sci-fi movies I've watched recently, animated or otherwise. Highly recommended.

For many sci-fi animated movies, audience captivation is driven purely by world building. Neon scenes and expansive horizons are often used to draw attention from a weak story. Not so in this beautifully animated sci-fi detective drama. The story finds the perfect balance between much loved detective clichés and unexpected turns in a story line, that has no need for smoothing by over hyped futurism. Despite this, the imaginative graphics cleanly place the viewer into the future, pushing us just far enough into the 'what could be' to retain a believability that compliments the story. This should be on your list of sci-fi movies to see before you die.

While this might not be a genre bending film there is much to like about it. Starting with the beautiful animation style that is very fluid, colorful and detailed at every turn. The 2D art style meshes well with the story and its futuristic vibe. The music and sounds also compliment the overall feel of the film. The English dubbed version is well done with each voice suiting the characters perfectly. The dialogue is always purposeful providing context or aiding in the characters development. The characters however are not strong enough to be memorable. Even the villain is very stereotypical.

There are some funny moments but just enough to keep things light hearted. The pacing and structure allow for an easy viewing experience. There are some action and chase sequences which break up the exposition but nothing too over the top. The film was fine when it was a mystery thriller but when it changes course to try and be something with a deeper meaning it takes a plunge. Ultimately the ending was a letdown leading to a lower rating. This is still a good film but the ending was underwhelming.