released 10 aug 04 / last mod 01 jun 07 / greg goebel / public domain
* The original RAHXEPHON anime series was derived from traditional anime mecha series -- it was loudly criticized in some quarters as being too derivative, in fact -- but those such as myself who enjoyed it found it stylish, with good production values, an atmospheric ambience, an intricate and subtle plot, and fascinating characters.
RAHXEPHON THE MOVIE (RXTM) is an attempt to condense the RAHXEPHON series into two hours, and to put it simply, it just doesn't work. What RXTM does is basically chop elements and scenes out of the series and glue them together with clumsy plot improvisations, and in the process it deletes the ambience, the intricate plot, and the character development. These things were what made the series worth watching, and all that's left over are the derivative elements, sequenced by a script held together with scotch tape, rubber bands, chewing gum, old shoelaces, and paper clips.
It would have been smarter to have built a RAHXEPHON movie that explored various side branches of the series, possibly giving the starring roles to secondary characters, but clearly nobody wanted to expend that sort of effort. This is the kind of production that gives the impression that even the people who put it together didn't respect it. The script would seem confusing -- except for the fact that the watcher quickly figures out it's more or less pointless gibberish and realizes that there's no sense there to make out of it. It is watchable in sort of an automatic fashion, but at the end there isn't even a sense of relief that it's over -- just a bad taste in the mouth.