38 of 39 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Movie and OAV differences, May 1, 2005
This review is from: Voltage Fighter Gowcaizer (DVD)
There are two versions of this anime. I decided to write this review to help those who may be confused or have questions about them. First, I'll briefly summarize the basic plot of this anime for those who are interested.
First of all, it is based off of a fighting game (from NeoGeo I think). It takes place in the year 2010, in a place called Tron City. In this city, there is a school for special students called the Belnar Institute. Isato Kaiza, the hero of the story, is a student at this school. He also possesses a stone called a Caizer stone which transforms him into a super human fighter named Gowcaizer. The story begins as a new student named Kyosuke Shigure arrives at the school seeking revenge against its president, a mysterious man named Ozaki, who seems to be bent on destroying the world. So it's up to Gowcaizer, Kyosuke, and their allies to stop him.
The OAV version:
It is the exact same story as the movie with the exact same animation, dialogue, etc. However, it has a few scenes that are cut out in the movie version. It's a shame that these scenes were cut too because they acutally provide a little more insight into the characters. They also make the plot, which is very confusing, just a bit clearer. There's also a very cool scene in the openning of the first OAV volume where Gowcaizer trashes a couple of robots that is not in the movie version.
This DVD does NOT have the OAV version. As far as I know, the OAVs are only available on two VHS volumes (called Round 1 and Round 2)
The Movie version:
This is what's on this DVD. As I mentioned, it lacks a few scenes from the OAV, but it does have one brief scene that is not in the OAV where a new character is shown, but it seemed pretty unneccesary to me. If anything it just made things more confusing. The movie version also opens with a cool "music video" where pics and clips from the movie are shown while the catchy theme song plays.
The extra features on this DVD include the trailer, a Japanese promo of the anime, another music video (same song, different pictures) and a picture gallery.
So which version is better? Well, I purchased both, but if I had to pick just one it'd be the OAVs because of all the scenes that the movie leaves out. The main reasons I got the DVD were for the extras, the sound is better, and I do like the opener, but that's about it.
My personal thoughts on this anime: What really makes it worth watching are the fight scenes and the fanservice from the sexy girls. Most of the characters have pretty cool personalities too. As I said, the plot is very confusing. Many things seem to be half-explained or not explained at all, leaving you full of questions at the end (hence the 3 star rating). However, it is based off of a video game, so perhaps some things can be answered from that. Unfortunately, I've never played it. So bascially, if you like super-human fighting and male oriented (mostly) FS, I say it's still worth checking out. I hope I've cleared things up for you.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not so great, August 14, 2000
I can't help comparing this movie to Fatal Fury, since they have similar animation styles and were probably made by the same people. If you liked FF, you MIGHT like this one.
If what you liked about FF were the animation, character designs, and fight scenes, you will probably like this. Also, Voltage Fighters portrays its women the same as FF, that is, with lots of big bouncing breasts and gratuitous nudity. If you like this (as I wholeheartedly do) then this could be the movie for you. (If you don't I don't think anime is the hobby for you.)
If, however, you liked Fatal Fury because it had a well-developed plot, you might want to steer clear of this. The basic story is that there are good guys and bad guys (though which is which is not always clear), the bad guys want to destroy the earth, and the good guys want to stop them. If there was more to it than that (like, say, a reason for any of it) then I missed it completely.
For all its failings, though, this is a Japanese animation. Like almost all of them, it is a primarily visual treat, and in that way it's not half bad.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Well made, Dramatic, November 2, 1999
By A Customer
OK, I was lost for the first half of the movie until i started piecing it all together. Many adult type scenes kept my interest. This movie had a more dramatic approach like Akira and so many other's including Vampire Hunter D.
The film basically breaks down to being simply the story of a man given the gift of changing the worlds fate. He of course has people trying to kill him, fights at nearly every turn and nowhere to really hide. It deals with trust between friends, family and a mysterious exchange student from well, beyond somewhere... I don't wanna give it all away so buy it, it is worth it.
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