Someone's havin' doubts, huh? Hell, I'm just trying to keep this thing interesting. You can't write me off like that. You're just a voice, pal! YOU DON'T KNOW A DAMN THING ABOUT RACING!
-JP
-JP
Film at-a-glance:
Genres: Racing, Sci-fi
Creators: Takeshi Koike and Katsuhito Ishii
Studio: Madhouse
Length: 102 minutes
Year: 2009
Highlights: White-knuckles racing action
Genres: Racing, Sci-fi
Creators: Takeshi Koike and Katsuhito Ishii
Studio: Madhouse
Length: 102 minutes
Year: 2009
Highlights: White-knuckles racing action
In the world of high-stakes racing, there is one race which towers above all others: Redline. It is the fastest, most prestigious, and most dangerous race held anywhere in the galaxy. It is held only once every five years and always on a different planet. In order to qualify, racers have to win one of the series of preliminary Yellowline races. One such hopeful is a young man called JP, but his hopes are dashed after his car suffers an “accident” 10 feet from the finish line. But as luck would have it, two racers have dropped out of Redline, and JP is voted in through a popularity contest. But the race is going to be held on a fascist, militaristic planet called Roboworld, which has vowed to stop the racers through any means necessary.
The feature-film debut of director Takeshi Koike (he previously directed one segment of the anthology film The Animatrix), Redline is an absurd, over the top racing film produced by Madhouse. Similar to Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann and Kill la Kill, Redline has become known for its insanity. It has been called “Speed Racer on crack” and described as "as if the cast of Top Gear raced through minefields on the North Korean border”. However, despite the gratuitous use of car-mounted weapons, the races are not particularly gory or graphic; this is not the anime equivalent of Death Race. Rather, Redline is simply pure fun, full of unbelievable racing stunts and larger-than-life characters. The cars range from JP’s relatively ordinary TransAM 20000 through cars which float above the ground to cars which transform into small mechas. It does not take itself particularly seriously, but it is not mindless action either, possessing surprisingly well-developed characters and a (mostly) coherent plot. Interestingly though, there is a large section in the middle of the film with no racing, which serves to build up tension for the insanity of the Redline race at the end.
The animation is also highly noteworthy. Unlike virtually all anime made in the present day, Redline was drawn almost completely by hand, with minimal use of CGI technology. This is especially unusual as it has been standard practice among anime producers to animate most vehicles using CGI for about 15 years now. As such, the film took over seven years to complete. The film’s art is of a unique style which combines traditional anime visual conventions with a heavy influence from Western graphic novels, which harkens back to the glory days of science fiction comic books. The high-octane racing recalls live-action race films such as The Cannonball Run and The Fast and the Furious, and the science fiction elements often invoke the spirit of Star Wars and other classic sci-fi action flicks. This creates a visual and narrative style that is at once very familiar and highly original, mixing up its recognizable parts in new and unique ways.
Redline is not only the best anime racing film ever made, but one of the best of all racing films ever made. It’s fast, it’s crazy, and it’s larger than life. And above all, it’s fun. Its white knuckles racing at its fastest and most intense. Between that and its groundbreaking visual style, Redline is set to be a landmark film in the realm of anime for years to come.
The feature-film debut of director Takeshi Koike (he previously directed one segment of the anthology film The Animatrix), Redline is an absurd, over the top racing film produced by Madhouse. Similar to Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann and Kill la Kill, Redline has become known for its insanity. It has been called “Speed Racer on crack” and described as "as if the cast of Top Gear raced through minefields on the North Korean border”. However, despite the gratuitous use of car-mounted weapons, the races are not particularly gory or graphic; this is not the anime equivalent of Death Race. Rather, Redline is simply pure fun, full of unbelievable racing stunts and larger-than-life characters. The cars range from JP’s relatively ordinary TransAM 20000 through cars which float above the ground to cars which transform into small mechas. It does not take itself particularly seriously, but it is not mindless action either, possessing surprisingly well-developed characters and a (mostly) coherent plot. Interestingly though, there is a large section in the middle of the film with no racing, which serves to build up tension for the insanity of the Redline race at the end.
The animation is also highly noteworthy. Unlike virtually all anime made in the present day, Redline was drawn almost completely by hand, with minimal use of CGI technology. This is especially unusual as it has been standard practice among anime producers to animate most vehicles using CGI for about 15 years now. As such, the film took over seven years to complete. The film’s art is of a unique style which combines traditional anime visual conventions with a heavy influence from Western graphic novels, which harkens back to the glory days of science fiction comic books. The high-octane racing recalls live-action race films such as The Cannonball Run and The Fast and the Furious, and the science fiction elements often invoke the spirit of Star Wars and other classic sci-fi action flicks. This creates a visual and narrative style that is at once very familiar and highly original, mixing up its recognizable parts in new and unique ways.
Redline is not only the best anime racing film ever made, but one of the best of all racing films ever made. It’s fast, it’s crazy, and it’s larger than life. And above all, it’s fun. Its white knuckles racing at its fastest and most intense. Between that and its groundbreaking visual style, Redline is set to be a landmark film in the realm of anime for years to come.
This article is part of the Guide to AnimeLand series. Recent entries have included The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Kill la Kill, and Rebuild of Evangelion.
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