Don’t be fooled by her doll like features and action figure physique, beneath “Alita: Battle Angel” lays a Cinderella story as well.
Alita: Battle Angel
20th Century Fox
- Directed by Robert Rodriguez
- Produced by James Cameron, Jon Landau
- Screenplay by James Cameron, Laeta Kalogridis
- Based on Gunnm by Yukito Kishiro
- Starring Rosa Salazar, Christoph Waltz, Jennifer Connelly, Mahershala Ali, Ed Skrein, Jackie Earle Haley and Keean Johnson
Studio Synopsis:
From visionary filmmakers James Cameron (Avatar) and Robert Rodriguez (Sin City), comes Alita: Battle Angel, an epic adventure of hope and empowerment, based upon the Manga graphic novel series by Yukito Kishiro. When Alita (Rosa Salazar) awakens with no memory of who she is in a future world she does not recognize, she is taken in by Ido (Christoph Waltz), a compassionate cyberphysician who realizes that somewhere in this abandoned cyborg core is the heart and soul of a young woman with an extraordinary past. As Alita learns to navigate her new life and the treacherous streets of Iron City, Ido tries to shield her from her mysterious history while her street-smart new friend Hugo (Keean Johnson) offers instead to help trigger her memories. But it is only when the deadly and corrupt forces that run the city, headed by Vector (Mahershala Ali), come after Ido and Alita that she discovers a clue to her past – she has unique fighting abilities ingrained in her that those in power will stop at nothing to control. If she can stay out of their grasp, she could be the key to saving her friends, her family and the world she’s grown to love.
J.P.’s Take:
The dystopian sci-fi flick took 20+ years to bring to the big screen and the results are surprisingly electrifying. James Cameron, who was first attached to the project, relinquished control of directorial duties over to the very capable writer/director/producer Robert Rodriguez, who is the next best choice. Rodriguez delves deep into author Yukito Kishiro’s manga/anime world and pulls out a story that’s not only action packed, but has heart as well.
Although we’re greeted with a heavily CGIed universe, the visuals in “Alita: Battle Angel” never take over the plot at the core. You are given time to invest in the characters without being bombarded with extreme stylized violence. Those moments come later in the film.
Rosa Salazar is mainly the reason this film works on a fairytale like level. She plays the wondrous young cyborg, Alita, who was found in a trash heap and is brought back to life by the disgraced Dr. Dyson Ido (Christoph Waltz). With exaggerated eyes and plastic skin, she gives the impression of a young naive girl who’s trying to discover the world around her, as well as who she once was.
With the environments wonderfully rendered, with its dusty, rustic, hodgepodge structures, you get a since of the characters’ living conditions. Yet, there is an air of hope floating about the streets as it is a lively place to be. Many of its inhabitants look to the ultra-futuristic city in the sky Zalem as being the equivalent of heaven. Additionally, you’re wrapped up in the connection between Dr. Ido and the young female cyborg, as you discover the reason for him giving her the name Alita.
Waltz has the wherewithal to portray a father figure to Alita as he treats her like the typical teenager: giving her curfew, warning her not to hang out with strange boys, etc. Of course, there is good reason for that once she discovers her true past being that she’s a cyborg with immense strength and fighting skills.
This revelation lends itself to Rodriquez pulling out his bag of tricks in the special effects department. Alita flips winds, slides, spins, punches and kicks her way through or around her opponents. It’s like watching a martial artist perform in a Cirque Du Soleil show. Her hits are felt as they land on her enemies, her fierceness is expressed in her anime face, and her speeches inspire confidence with a touch of warrioress pride.
She wouldn’t be able to pull this off without the fervent participation of the rest of the cast.
Mahershala Ali musters up the sly Vector, a slithering entrepreneur who rigs the cyber rollerball games to his advantage. Jennifer Connolly embodies Dr. Chiren, a brilliant cybernetic engineer and the embittered ex-wife of Dr. Ido, who is bent on making Alita her next toy. Connolly is every bit as sly as her employer Vector.
Ed Skrein is the sharp tongued cybernetic bounty hunter with an equally sharp blade out to capitalize on taking in Alita. Keenan Johnson becomes Alita’s love interest Hugo. Jackie Earl Haley lends his voice to the monstrous cyborg Grewishka Vector’s lap dog, so to speak.
If you look closely you’ll catch glimpses of Michelle Rodriguez playing Gelda, the warrior who trains Alita on Mars; Jai Courtney as Joshugan, rollerball champion; Casper Van Dien as Amok; Jeff Fahey as bounty hunter McTeague; and the uncredited Edward Norton as Nova leader of Zalem, a brilliant scientist with the ability to transfer his consciousness into any person champion.
Whether you’re a diehard fan of the Kishiro manga/anime series or new to the whole collection, you’ll be able to follow right along with this cyber-punk feature and not miss a beat. I believe you’ll be just as exhilarated as I was watching this for the first time.