Noir Recommended

Publisher
ADV
Director
Koichi Mashimo
Production
Production IG, TV Tokyo, Victor Entertainment
Country of origin
Japan
Format
Series
Running time
26 episodes
Year
2001

Noir Volume 1: Shades of Darkness

By Adam Cook
20th May 04

Noir directed by Koichi Mashimo is about two female assassins. Mireille Bouquet a sexy, long legged blonde woman who has abandoned her past and Kirika Yumara a young school girl who has had her past cruelly stolen from her but still has a great natural ability to be a hitman (or should that be hitwoman?). The two characters are connected by a pocket watch that is in Kirika's possession but is from Mireille's past. The audience are unaware of both characters histories, but we do know these characters must have some bond to each other through this watch.

Noir is a very apt name for this anime series. In many respects it adheres to the conventions of a traditional live action 'film noir' movie. There is an emphasis on shadows and silhouettes to heighten tension and to create uncertainty during the action scenes, and the series uses unusual and distorted camera angles to identify a threat to the lead characters or as a signifier to important and strange events.

The series whilst borrowing techniques from film noir also uses storylines and occurrences from other movies. The idea of an amnesiac that has the seemingly natural ability to kill others is nothing new and most recently could be seen in the Bourne Identity. Secondly, whilst watching this series I was continually reminded of the brilliant movie Leon directed by Luc Besson. Noir and Leon share many similarities. Firstly there is the relationship between the two characters. Mireille is very similar to the Leon character and Kirika shares similar characteristics to Matilda. Secondly the series places greater emphasis on the planning of the 'hits' and the meticulous cleaning of their weapons, both of these ideas are portrayed in Leon. Finally, plant life is used in the same way in Noir and Leon. Mireille and eventually Kirika take great care in looking after a potted plant. As both characters can take human life so easily they need to look after and nurture other types of life.

I guess this is where a big problem for the series lies. There is nothing in any of the episodes that is truly original and can be easily identifiable from other films or series. That is not to say it is without merit, it does have some very good action sequences such as a shoot out in a darkened casino when Noir's only chance of survival is hearing their attackers by carefully placed popcorn and broken glass on the floor. Some of the action sequences are quite balletic in movement; with slow, over exaggerated motions that make the scenes very interesting to watch. Unfortunately the fights scenes only make up a small proportion of the actual series. The rest of the series is rather lacklustre with Spartan dialogue and slow moving scenes, the series can become tiresome relatively quickly. The reliance on flashbacks to explain key moments in past episodes also begins to irritate when it occurs every 5-10 minutes (this is especially evident in episode 4). Some of the flashbacks seem to be a lazy way of explaining parts of the story rather than adding anything to the series as a whole. Another problem with the series is the two lead characters. As their history is hidden from the audience (barring a few small flashbacks) there is a greater need for us to care and be interested in the characters as we can't rely on a back story to flesh out the characters. Sadly the characters are like blank canvases. There is nothing there to keep you interested, but there is always the possibility that in later episodes the characters will begin to develop.

Visually the series is very good, the movements of the characters are believable and the use of light and dark tones creates an interesting setting. There are also nice details in the animation that helps, such as a cars suspension reacting to a passenger getting in and out of the car.

The music and sound effects are also of a high standard. The musical score will often reflect Noir's setting with Parisian accordion music playing during the scenes in Paris. A continuing choral score is used throughout the fight scenes in the series and works adequately with the visuals to heighten the suspense.

In the end Volume 1 is an average anime series. It borrows too heavily from other films and series to be viewed as a groundbreaking piece of animation, and the slowness and over reliance on flashbacks makes the series difficult to watch on occasions. It does however have well executed action sequences, and both the visuals and audio are of a high standard. But I will not be returning to this series until volumes 2 and 3 become budget releases.

-- Adam Cook 20th May 04

Noir Images