Steamboy

A lavishly filmed animated feature film that can be considered a perfect example of the steampunk genre. The director goes to its roots and there are all sorts of steam clouds, gear mechanisms, crankshafts, and complex mechanisms. Visually, it is stunning, and Steamboy would definitely look much better on the big screen than on a TV. In my eyes, Steamboy is slightly undermined by the simple story, excessive pathos, noble phrases, and overly straightforward depiction of the conflict between greed and militarism on one side and humanistic ideals on the other, and I would have appreciated more shades of gray in the characters and their conflicts. Overall impression: 75%. (01.02.2015)

I don't like anime, but I kind of expected Steamboy to be an exception thanks to steampunk, Victorian England, an interesting story and Jablonsky's good soundtrack... Unfortunately, it was not. The animation didn't charm me at all, and because of the ugly awkwardness of the characters and the constant awkward expressions on their faces, I couldn't even concentrate on the story. And when I started to perceive it, I found it bland, long-winded and uninteresting. I praise especially the soundtrack (probably the best Jablonsky ever) and the idea. If Steamboy were live-action or (classically non-Japanese) animated, I would probably rate it better. (07.12.2011)