Search - Gunhed on DVD

Like model robots or sci-fi action in general? You might lik

chaostheorem | West Coast, USA | 01/24/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Loosely-based on the manga books by Kia Asamiya, the basic premise of this film is that a gang of scavengers lands on what they think is a deserted island that was used to build war machines by automation, with the hope to find a treasure trove in abandoned military hardware that they can resell on the black market.

Unfortunately they don't know that the island is not only still alive with activity, but it is well-guarded by the previous inhabitants, and the survivors end up having to enlist the services of a Gun UNit/Heavy Elimination Device (GUNHED) battle robot in order to fight back against the forces left on the island.

This reminds me a lot of the Toho movies like Godzilla or such. Except instead of giant mutated monsters you have giant autonomous weapons. One thing that was really fun about watching this movie was the amount of effort that was put into the set design. You really get the feeling that the characters have stepped into a large factory that has danger at every turn. The Gunhed robot itself has a real sense of scale, and there are some funny dialogue interchanges between the pilot and the GUNHED AI computer.

There are a couple of scenes which could have been done better, and some of the script is muddled at best. Many of the characters aren't given much development time either, so you wonder if they were needed at all or if somehow they had larger roles but due to budget constraints, they couldn't be given more screen time (as such, they are given quick exits, conveniently provided for by the environment).

In short, if you like Japanese robot design, model robot building, or sci-fi action in general, you might like this film. There is only one volume of this DVD by the way, and this is the complete movie itself."

Monster Machines

P. M. Stratychuk | Canada | 08/22/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I love this. I first saw it as a music video by the band Front Line Assembly, called Mindphaser. I was curious what that movie was about, finally tracked it down and got it. Basically, I would recoomend it to someone interested in mecha style films, giant monster films, and Japanese films. While not in the category of such newer films by studios like Tokyo Shock, it is very good, and draws you in. It reminds me of a dystopic sci-fi film from the 80's called Savannah Electric:Monochrome Dystopia, but far more commercial and palatable to general sci-fi audiences. Fun."