Contemporary horror has been a genre oft explored in both modern text and film. The grimoire romance of decadent society and the inhuman incarnations of its bestial desire has fascinated artists the world over. Anime has often been the vehicle for tales of the dark supernatural, espousing the evil lurking within our Ikea dining rooms and Scotch Guard loveseats. Manga Entertainment's latest foray into your pocketbook dares to enjoin masterful horror and bleeding-edge digital animation into what is poised to be the year's most talked-about feature.

Blessed by the talents of Mamoru Oshii and Production I.G., creators of the anime "Ghost in the Shell", "Blood: The Last Vampire" has already garnered much critical praise having won "Best Theatrical Feature Film" at the 2001 World Animation Celebration. Can pedigree and professional accolades make this bittersweet foray into darkness an equitable burden on your purse strings? I had my doubts at first.

The movie opens in classic film noir style: a suicide. The typical collage of police shots: eyewitness interviews and local gossip, contrasted against an abrupt darkness with gothic crimson production credits. The crime scene is classically brutal, a fresh razor lying unfettered and awash in congealing rinse water and plasma. The abrasive bulbs flash haphazardly over a body in a bath: a woman, wrists agape. Once the clutter of the police drama concludes, the viewer is taken into the subway to meet the film's chilly protagonist: a young woman named Saya. Her introduction manages to be both placid and ferocious. Sitting quietly in a lonely subway car, bathed in a white noise of florescent lights, she watches a lone passenger half-asleep in his seat. The train's wiring faults and the car looses illumination for a moment. The frigidly beautiful Saya unsheathes an ancient blade hidden within her scroll case, and charges the now terrified passenger. His futile attempts at egress are met only with the cold and unmoving glass and steel of the cab's portal. He is struck in the back, splayed like an insect across the glass, sliding sickly from view. The halogen intensity of the lights resumes. The cab is quiet and alone, save a calm beauty sitting in solitude.

Meet Saya, Production I.G.'s latest femme fatale and Chiropteran hunter extraordinaire.	"Blood: The Last Vampire" is a brief recount of a night of carnage occurring on the U.S.Yokota Air Force Base in 1966

Upon arrival to the station, two black-suited operatives met the demure figure for debriefing. Following the discovery of her unprecedented display of carnage, and her subsequent act of nearly crushing the jaw of one of the operatives, Saya is asked to investigate a rash of deaths at an Air Force Base in Japan. Apparently, the brazen blade-wielding beauty is a hunter of creatures known as "chiropterans", and she herself is regarded as the only remaining "original". Though Saya's secret is not explained until the film's resolution, and piecemeal at that. What ensues in the rest of the film needs to be witnessed.

Startling introduction aside, "Blood: The Last Vampire" is a brief recount of a night of carnage occurring on the U.S.Yokota Air Force Base in 1966. Saya is asked to investigate. Though I can't consider the film a period piece, Art Director Yusuke Takeda used a respectable amount of detail in accurately representing hairstyles, clothing and music of the pre-Vietnam War Era. There was no evidence of over-romanticizing the setting, as "Blood" disowns the propaganda and oversized beehives of similar wartime films. The film managed to present enough dated material to convince the viewer of the timeline without being tacky.

My congratulations to Production I.G. and CGI Director Tokumitsu Kifuni for creating some of the most dazzling displays of digital animation and CGI since their opus: "Ghost in the Shell". From the flying panorama of the airbase to the breathtaking dance sequence, "Blood" showcases the seamless integration of digital celluloid animation rendered into a 3D environment. The uninitiated may disagree, but the difference between digital and traditional animation quality is staggering. All images in this anime are crisp with no debris, spills, distortion, or shadowing that are evident in most traditionally animated films, though most VHS viewers will hardly notice. "Blood" boasts a much cleaner color spectrum and higher resolution than traditional anime. This film was crafted to be on DVD, and I wouldn't recommend seeing it any other way.

If the list of talent behind the film wasn't long enough, "Blood" even boasts its own color designer: the very talented Katsue Inoue. Why would I mention a color designer? What could I possibly ramble on about? Who cares about tones, tint, and hues? Simply put: "Blood" is a work of art, and as such uses color as a medium for mood and storytelling. Using predominantly bold colors, the environments are either quite dark or brilliantly illuminated. In "Blood", there are seldom moments of daylight, and those infrequent scenes are displayed in very drab, muted shades. The film's implementation of contrasting colors is directly related to the atmosphere of the scene, and perfectly complements some of the more grisly sequences. Thanks to the brilliance of an entirely digitally animated production, the illumination of light, either by lamp or by explosion is crisply done with excellent use of shade and shadow. In a film this pyrotechnic, accurate lighting is paramount. The art direction in "Blood" is brilliant and only adds to an already breathtaking experience.

Now that I've finished praising the film, surely I've found some minute flaw to expound upon. There must be something than can soften such resounding praise to a golf-clap? Where is this fatal flaw? I'm happy to say the film's only crime is its length, and the lack thereof. Ringing in at roughly over an hour (the 85 minutes displayed on the DVD includes the documentary), the adventure concludes when you least expect it. The viewer, now genuinely entranced by the enigmatic huntress and her dark past will cry bitter tears as the screen fades as abruptly as it came to life. The onlooker must then accept an anticlimactic resolution to a tale that literally screamed for continuation. I felt helpless as I watched the movie's conclusion, leaving threads and implications haplessly blowing in the wind.

On a similar note, the aucoustical selection in "Blood" is limited. In between the classically suspenseful riffs found in most horror films, there is a surprising lack of music. The dance sequence has the pumping beat of a live 60's big band and is executed with skill. The lack of sweeping ochestration hurts "Blood" slightly, but the musical choices during scenes of combat and fright are acceptable. Overall, the audio is effective, but forgettable.

Blessed by their definitive penchant for producing die-hard heroines, Production I.G. created the uber femme fatale in Saya, giving her enough presence to command your unwavering attention. Though bittersweet, this foray into her singular adventure is an experience you won't want to miss. I strongly urge everyone with a passing interest in anime or gothic horror to view this seminal piece of work. Though short, the film needs to be savored until another round is poured. "Blood: The Last Vampire" clutches you by the throat, seduces you with style, but then leaves you feeling drained, hollow and hungry, as you crave more of its visceral secrets.

Distributor: Manga Entertainment
Creator: Production I.G.
Released: 2000

Plot: B+
Character Design: A
Animation Quality: A+
Music: C+
Overall: B+