DVD
Upcoming Release Calendar
Film Awards & Top 10s By Year
All-Time High Scores
All-Time Low Scores
Recent DVD/Video Releases
65
Adoration
42
Aliens in the Attic
56
American Violet
48
Angels & Demons
44
Answer Man, The
54
Bruno
55
Casi Divas
63
Cheri
83
Drag Me to Hell![]()
24
Eating Out 3: All You Can Eat
76
Every Little Step
70
Fados
49
Food Beware: The French Organic Revolution
80
Food, Inc.
41
Four Christmases
60
Funny People
87
Gomorrah![]()
74
Humpday
32
I Love You, Beth Cooper
50
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
81
Il Divo![]()
54
Imagine That
54
Is Anybody There?
32
Land of the Lost
74
Lemon Tree
40
Limits of Control, The
43
Love 'N Dancing
63
Medicine for Melancholy
51
My Sister's Keeper
48
Not Forgotten
50
Nothing Like the Holidays
26
Objective, The
42
Orphan
78
Pray the Devil Back to Hell
48
Proposal, The
53
Shorts
39
Spread
83
Star Trek![]()
55
Taking of Pelham 1 2 3, The
72
Thirst
35
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
28
Ugly Truth, The
66
Unmistaken Child
88
Up![]()
45
Whatever Works
Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.
Appleseed
EMAILPRINTGeneon Entertainment

Mixed or average reviews
Based on 17 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 12 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie >
Movie Info
Genre(s): Action | Animation | Foreign | Sci-fi
Written by:
Haruka Handa
Tsutomu Kamishiro
Masamune Shirow (comic)
Directed by: Shinji Aramaki
Release Date:
Theatrical: January 14, 2005
DVD: May 10, 2005
Running Time: 103 minutes, Color
Origin: Japan
Summary
RATING: for some violence
Starring Ai Kobayashi, Jûrôta Kosugi, Yuki Matsuoka, Asumi Miwa, and Akimoto Tsubasa
Inspired by a manga by the legendary Masamune Shirow, this anime is set in the year 2131, after a non-nuclear war has left the earth barren.
Also On The Web: Internet Movie Database View The Trailer Official Studio Site
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Variety Leslie Felperin
Craft connoisseurs won't be disappointed with the splendidly executed result. However, everyone else is likely to wonder what the fuss about given the plot's dated cyborgs-and-supercomputers hijinks.
Read Full Review >The Hollywood Reporter Richard James Havis
The film has enough originality to interest demanding fans of the genre.
Read Full Review >Chicago Reader J.R. Jones
The stock characters and leaden stretches of expository dialogue are welcome evidence that there's still no computer program capable of telling a decent story.
Read Full Review >New York Daily News Elizabeth Weitzman
Only real fans, however, will be willing to slog through the heaping helpings of incomprehensible exposition.
Read Full Review >TV Guide Maitland McDonagh
The film's lingering exploration of their sleek surfaces verges on roboporn.
Read Full Review >Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman
At this point, there's something almost masochistic about the way animators in Japan use cheesy ''Westernized'' heroes to fuel their fantasies.
Read Full Review >Chicago Tribune Robert K. Elder
Whatever is lost in translation can't keep Appleseed from feeling a decade late--and its animation from looking like a relic on arrival.
Read Full Review >Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey
The characters are (hand-painted) so flat that the film looks like a paper-doll convention at Epcot.
Read Full Review >The New York Times Dana Stevens
While there are some genuinely dazzling moments of visual bravura, the marriage of flatness and depth that Mr. Aramaki attempts doesn't quite work.
Read Full Review >Los Angeles Times Kevin Thomas
Dazzling visually but is flattened by corny dialogue better suited to the 1936 "Flash Gordon" serial, a needlessly hard to follow plot and heavy-handed exposition clotted with pseudo-scientific mumbo jumbo.
Read Full Review >LA Weekly David Chute
The film's snazzy new automated animation style falls short: The supposedly human face of our metal-plated robocop's partner -- the inevitable curvy female in a leather jump suit -- is an inexpressive, glossy doll mask, untouched by human hands.
Read Full Review >The Onion (A.V. Club) Tasha Robinson
Its busy, stiff, artificial graphics are a perfect match for its busy, stiff, artificial plot. A simple Shirow pinup parade might almost be preferable.
Read Full Review >Village Voice J. Hoberman
Much of the movie is dull, and as it has been dubbed into English, the blah-blah is impossible to ignore.
Read Full Review >Empire Kim Newman
The characters might physically appear rounded, but are otherwise paper-thin.
Read Full Review >Miami Herald Peter Debruge
The visuals are really the only compelling reason to see Appleseed.
Read Full Review >San Francisco Chronicle G. Allen Johnson
Held back by a story and script that is often silly and confusing.
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this movie is 7.7 (out of 10) based on 12 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Sam gave it a2:
With the exception of Princess Mononoke, I truly despise anime, and Applessed enlarges my grudge against the ridiculous form of art even more.
[Anonymous] gave it a10:
The opening action sequence in this movie is only outdone (in my opinion) by the Omaha Beach sequence in Saving Pvt. Ryan. While I wish the movie would have followed the manga more closely I still thoroughly enjoyed it. I can't wait for the Appleseed series!
[Anonymous] gave it a7:
The story has great premise, but it doesn't take advantages of the prime elements in the best way. Still, it does get you to think about such a system, if only a little bit. If that doesn't please you, there's plenty of graphics to feast on, and the action is among the best i've seen in an animated feature. Not perfect, but definitely worth a watch or two.
me m. gave it a9:
Good thing about manga is that you can just switch your brain off and let the movie take you into its own little strange world. the visuals in this film help u on that little journey to manga land, and its great. reminds me of watching FF spirits within.
JJ R. gave it a10:
This is one of the best movies ever created. I wish that there were more movies like this.
JD gave it a10:
It is a REMAKE. That is why the story seems antiquated. The story holds up perfectly to the orginal and the visuals set a new milestone. This is a wonderful anime and it will serve as a transition point in future retrospection. Don't listen to the haters. It's worth at LEAST a rental!
Cody K. gave it a7:
It’s not a terrible movie, but nothing to write home about either. The new 3D cel-shaded style is a breath of fresh air, but doesn’t make the movie any more or less enjoyable when compared to traditionally animated movies. To give Appleseed anything higher than an 8 is doing a lot of great anime movies an injustice. Appleseed doesn’t even compare to Ghost in the Shell. I give it a 7 because of the awesome mech designs and slick art style. The only thing holding this movie back from greatness is the story; too simple and too many cool concepts that were only touched upon or completely undeveloped.
