Highlander: The Search for Vengeance

Legendary Japanese Anime' director Yoshiaki Kawajiri (the more-than-capable cult talent behind the explicit blood-letters "Ninja Scroll" and "Wicked City") took on the American "Highlander" series with this latest entry "Highlander: The Search for Vengeance." "The Search for Vengeance" is not a sequel per se, but is instead something closer to a Japanese animation re-imagining of the famous fantasy tale that spawned the immortal tag-line, "There can be only one."

For those not versed in "Highlander" mythology, I'll fill you in: "Highlander" first came to be in the mind of writer Gregory Widen, who in turn pitched his idea to studio bosses about an ages-old battle between a group of immortal swordsmen who can only die by one another's hand, specifically by decapitation. When one of these immortals falls, his killer gains his knowledge and strength (such an event is called a "quickening") and he will continue his pursuit of the mystical "prize" during a time called the "gathering" when these epic sword battles take place. There are several rules all immortals must abide by though: never fight on holy ground and, most importantly, never fall in love with a mortal because, then, you will only know pain and suffering.

Widen's script (co-written with Peter Bellwood and Larry Ferguson) was made into the 1986 cult film "Highlander," which starred Christopher Lambert as the Scottish Highlander Connor MacLeod, who discovers his "gift" after suffering a mortal wound on the battlefield and assumes different identities as he descends through the ages with the knowledge of never knowing death. "Highlander" saw three misshapen sequels, a television series (which starred Adrian Paul), and dozens of comic books before we landed at this new Anime' film from Kawajiri. As a fan of Anime' and the first "Highlander" movie, you could expect a little bit of skepticism about a new film, whether animated or not just because we've become so used to expecting so little from the series.

Like the first "Highlander," "The Search for Vengeance" is equal parts present-story and back-story, with sudden, unexpected transitions between the present and the past. In the year 2187, Scotsman Colin MacLeod (with no stated relationship to Connor) meets his fate on the battlefield and discovers his allegiance to the band of immortals. And, Holy Lazarus, he is branded a witch by his former countrymen and is watched over by the wise-cracking spirit of a Druid priest named Amergan. For 2000 years, MacLeod has been searching through the ages chasing his mortal enemy, the Roman general Marcus Octavius, after Octavius crucified MacLeod's wife Moya in the 16th century and in these encounters, MacLeod is always bloodily outmatched and left crippled but alive and ready to fight another time (despite refusing to uphold Moya's dying wish of no retribution for her killing).

Now in a post-apocalyptic New York City, MacLeod arrives on the scene and joins rebel Dahlia and an underground band of freedom fighters in a desperate battle against Octavius, who is now a full-fledged dictator and rules the city from, dare I say, a futuristic version of Trump Tower with his army of robotic sentinels and scientists working on a top-secret project meant to wipe out the underground resistance once and for all. In these battles, we also get flashbacks to Colin's past, the battles he's fought with Octavius, and his undying love for Moya.

While suffering from some script problems, because of the transitions between past and present, "Highlander: The Search for Vengeance" is still one heck of a film experience. This is perhaps because of an outsider's view, Kawajiri's view. In Kawajiri's hands, the series now seems fresh and full of new life, with many new technical innovations on the story and characters. For 21 years now since 1986, we've had to endure one painful "Highlander" experience after the other. Here, it's clear that Kawajiri has a firm grip on the story and knows everywhere the "Highlander" sequels went wrong (and they went wrong in a lot of places).

Another problem the film suffers from are one-dimensional characters. A skilled swordsman like Colin MacLeod, a man who has literally fallen through time and lives with the burden of knowing he will never die, is transformed into more of a one-note, tortured loner, or even a ronin (a master-less samurai). Perhaps the samurai angle is because of the Japanese influence on the story. The only other character who really stands out in any real way is Dahlia, who has a secret connecting her to Macleod's past and eventually becomes his love interest. Octavius is different from most "Highlander" villains in that he is not crazy and all over the place, but is instead soft-spoken, never raises his voice, and highly sexual with his Japanese mistress (is Clancy Brown, who played the Kurgan in the first "Highlander," the best the movies have to offer?). And lastly, am I the only one who thinks Octavius looks like the villain Gemma from Kawajiri's previous "Ninja Scroll"?

Even with its faults, nudity and extremely bloody violence, this is nonetheless a fitting reinvention of a fantasy story that many thought had long outlived its uniqueness in the genre. For many, "Highlander: The Search for Vengeance" is at last the sequel we've been waiting for.

8/10

I have just purchased HIGHLANDER: THE SEARCH FOR Vengeance from my local wally-world and I was blown away from the very beginning.

I'm a bit familiar with the body of work that the crew at madhouse have done (NINJA SCROLL AND X come to mind) and I have to say that this one is the best yet from him. I'm also glad that the guys who brought HIGHLANDER to life in the first place had a hand with it.

I won't ruin the story for those that are reading this review, but if you are familiar with anime and the sweeping style that comes with it, as well as the movies that I've mentioned, then you will not be disappointed.

Watch it, rent it, buy it! Enjoy it.

This version is an alternative of the original Highlander movie! The rules (concerning immortals) are the same and the story involves a character originated from the Highlands (Scotland)! His name is Colin Mcleod from the clan Mcleod! Other than this there is no relation to the film series or the TV show! But I have to say I enjoyed this a whole lot better than any sequel made after the original Highlander! The animation is beautiful and there is plenty of action! Even the story (simple but effective) is enjoyable! As a first animated movie this is a great one! This anime revives the "Highlander" myth in such a way that movie producers of any sequel from the Higlander film series should wonder what they are doing wrong! I don't know if there are plans to make a sequel! But if there aren't any there should be!

By pure coincidence, I've stumbled along most of Yoshiaki Kawajiri's filmography. His Lensman kickstarted my desire to find lesser-known animated films. But I'd never say it was a great movie. The only film I'd seriously recommend would be Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust, his magnum opus.

Highlander: Search for Vengeance is not an exception to the rule. While it may legitimately be the best Highlander sequel, it falls back on tired tropes seen in his previous films, yet takes itself too seriously.

It tries to tell a tragic tale, Colin MacLeod hunting his arch-nemesis for twenty centuries, wasting his immortality for a pursuit he always fails. The scenes in the past are actually not too bad, honestly. Unfortunately, the plot in the present future is by the numbers. In post-apocalypse, Colin finds love and revenge, leading a rebellion against a force less accurate than Stormtroopers, ascending a towering skyscraper to the final showdown. It brings up the negative effect of hatred, but after briefly contemplating, Colin still earns his revenge. Why he succeeds this time is beyond me.

It is kinda fun, though. The animation is fairly good, the action fast. Most importantly, there are dozens of cheesy moments. Giant chainsaws and gators, bad-ass chicks, delayed sword slashes...the clichés show little restraint. The World War II scene should be legendary. I'd compare it to Goku Midnight Eye, but at least GME was consistently campy - Highlander's failure to be a good, serious action film reduces its enjoyment as a bad, funny action film. There's still a lot of dumb fun to be had, if you can tolerate a generic plot, a bad ending, and a pretty gruesome crucifixion.

It gets 4 out of 10 for sheer ineptitude. It may be a good anime for Bad Movie Night, but there's a chance that choice will backfire.

Ah, 'Highlander.' A fairly big franchise. A fairly big franchise that I couldn't say one word about beyond "I once watched the first film." I don't think it's unfair to suppose that much the same could probably be said for any average bloke. So what about an anime rendition, and at that one from the same visionary filmmaker who gave us the hyper-violent genre fare of 'Wicked City,' and 'Ninja Scroll?' Well, before five minutes have passed we get repetition of the immortal line (sorry) that will have fanboys and meme generators yipping, and the moment that our protagonist announces himself is accompanied by pathetic fallacy and a big, rock-driven surge in the score. Within a matter of minutes it becomes very clear that 'The search for vengeance' is full of style; the question is, can it claim any substance?

Proliferate flashbacks telling of a journey through time - golly gee! - check. Sexy women and tough-talking, square-jawed men, check. A plucky wannabe-sidekick kid, check. Graphic violence, blood, and gore, check (and bonus slow motion). Dystopia, intractable societal inequality, and a madman lusting for absolute power and dominion, check. Beyond those first touches of rock the music is reliably dramatic, dynamic, flavorful, and invigorating, a deft complement to the proceedings. The animation of Madhouse is reliably superb, as one expects of anime: rich detail and texture; nice consideration for lighting, shading, color, and perspective; gorgeous backgrounds and environments, and eye-catching designs for active elements including characters and creatures; sharp effects, and fluid movement and action sequences; duly keen implementation of 3D digital rendering to supplement or augment the dominant 2D style. The story is complete and duly engaging, the scene writing is strong, and filmmaker Kawajiri Yoshiaki unquestionably had a firm vision for his picture.

Yes, this flick looks good and sounds good. It's quite solid and well made. While style is foremost it can, in fact, claim substance, not least while spending some time in passing on the idea of living a life for vengeance alone, and what that means for one's proverbial soul. Ironically, evil as the villain is, he demonstrates a kernel of wisdom that the protagonist lacks, and won't necessarily learn in ninety-five minutes. So with one question answered, here's another: is all this enough? We can get all these qualities elsewhere; what makes this 2007 release special? In what way does 'The search for vengeance' stand out from the crowd, making it something we should seek out over any comparable fare? The kindred answers to these questions, I think, is in the eyes of the beholder. Some viewers will watch this and find it a terrific experience. Some will watch and find it dull and trifling, or simply too extreme. For my part I believe the movie is just swell, a darkly enjoyable slice of sci-fi, fantasy, and action. Only, I'm also unlikely to remember much about it hereafter.

That's fine, though. Not every title needs to be a revelation. It doesn't seem to me that Kawajiri or anyone else involved had any illusions about what this was; it wanted to entertain while expanding the Highlander saga after its own fashion, and it ably achieves these goals. Maybe this is enough, after all. Even with a grand finale it's not majorly stunning, or essential, and unless one has an overriding impetus of some sort, there's no need to go out of your way for it. But all told the feature is pretty good, worth checking out for those who are open to all it represents, and such as it is 'The search for vengeance' is suitably fun and well done to earn a fair recommendation.