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Whistle Stopper - Afro Samurai (Director's Cut)
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List Price: $39.98
Our Price: $21.48
Your Save: $ 18.50 ( 46% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: FUNimation Entertainment
Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Kelly Hu, Ron Perlman, John Di Maggio, Greg Eagles
Directed By: Fuminori Kizaki
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Audience Rating: Unrated
Binding: DVD
Brand: FUNIMATION PRODUCTIONS, LTD
EAN: 0704400079801
Format: Anamorphic
Label: FUNimation Entertainment
Manufacturer: FUNimation Entertainment
Number Of Items: 2
Publisher: FUNimation Entertainment
Region Code: 1
Release Date: 2007-05-22
Running Time: 125
Studio: FUNimation Entertainment
Theatrical Release Date: 2007-01-04
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: Style vs. Substance
Comment: Alright, so Afro Samurai set out to answer the age old question: "If you take an insanely high animation budget, a breathtaking soundtrack, spectacularly choreography fight scenes, and a well-known actor and combine it with a plot that's ludicrously stupid, will the result still be cool?" The answer is yeah... but barely. As the pinnacle of simplistic action samurai movies, this will not disappoint. In ever other way it does. Sadly, just some minimal dialogue edits could have down wonders for the overall story.
So I will assume you both saw the show on Spike TV or Youtube, and still wish to purchase the series. You are now wondering "Is the extra 15 minutes worth double the price of the edited DVDs?" No, not really; however, it does improve the story in the last 2 episodes. Here is a basic breakdown of what you missed on TV.
All the episodes contain small cuts of slightly more excessive gore, a few f-bombs, and long shots of scenery. Small snippets of dialogue were also cut here and there, especially the ninja's.
Episode one- A fallen warrior that just collapses in the edited version gives a really long speech before dropping in the uncut. The bar patrons bicker and threaten each other and a mini fight break out. The Empty Seven talk a bit more about their plans. Overall, I prefer the edited version of this episode. The dead guy talked way too long about Afro's legend and the dialogue seemed really corny and fake. The bar scene makes the whole town appear violent and psychotic. The scene where the Empty Seven talks expands their background, but their story is severely lacking and the more you show the emptier they feel.
Episode two has some additional scenes of Afro in the orphanage that was useful to the story. In a fairly boring scene, we see Afro's first taste of lemonade. There was also a sort of cute but short scene of Afro hanging out with his girl while Kuma learns about sword fighting. Nothing spectacular was cut. There is still no more explanation for how she can read dreams. Ninja Ninja is also slightly more vulgar. You see a few quick shots of the chick's [...] in an expanded sex, shower, and death scene.
Episode 3-Well we learns why the Empty Seven decided to have Afro Droid fight their other assassins. Mostly, just talking was cut. The Empty Seven battle is the same expect we see Number 3 offer Afro tea, and he just walks by.
Episode four-Okay, so important story parts were edited out here. There are some additional scenes in the orphanage where Kuma's own theories help shape Afro's decision. There's a scene were all the kids say what they would like to do before dying, and the girl says see some fireworks. Kuma also tries to persuade Afro to leave the bandanas alone, but fails.
Episode 5-We also see some more of what happened to Kuma after falling off the cliff and getting rebuilt. These scenes were probably wise to cut because they only continue to make Kuma a more sympathetic character than Afro. There is a bunch of additional dialogue regarding Justice, his goals and dreams, and the power of the bandanas. These are really important scenes that should have not been edited out. There were also a few shots of how Afro reached him, and how Justice revived his body to fight Afro. There is a SLIGHTLY expanded ending, but it really adds nothing to the story.
The extras on the second disc total 40 minutes and could easily fit onto the first DVD. The extras are mildly interesting, but if you miss them it doesn't really matter. I think this was included just to try to convince you to shell out the extra bucks.
Are these extra scenes worth the additional $15? No. The entire series, uncut, is only worth about $[...], which is the typical Ebay price.
O, and in case you're wondering, there is no Japanese audio track because this series was made in America. No Japanese language version exists.
Customer Rating:
Summary: A fresh new style of anime
Comment: Sweet. Add Sam Jackson to an anime and -Viola- you have a fresh new anime, like nothing before it.
Customer Rating:
Summary: For maximum enjoyment, null half your grey matter
Comment: Sufficient amount of blood, a dash of unnecessary nudity, one-dimensional characters and out of this world sequences. All the perfect ingredients when you have some time to burn. I bought this mainly to experience the fusion of hip-hop culture and anime, and the result is a mixed bag. After a while, you realise that the core of the story is still pretty much the same protagonist-hell-bent-on-revenge story type, repackaged with slick dialogue and animation but nothing ground-breaking in my opinion.
Customer Rating:
Summary: good anime
Comment: very good action, excellent cgi effects. moves are crisp and quick. great voice-over by sammy l. jackson.
Customer Rating:
Summary: A great movie indeed.
Comment: First, I'll discuss the product. It came in perfect condition and I LOVE the case for this movie. This is the first time I actually "almost" cared more about the case than the DVD's inside.
This movie is fully action packed with blood and gore. The plot is great, and I liked the idea that it had a sense of "future" with cellphones and guns, but with the idea of old samurai times. Those who like much action must see this movie. It definately does not dissappoint.
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Editorial Reviews:
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The violent five-part adventure Afro Samurai marks both the increasing confluence of American and Japanese pop culture and the shift in Japanese depictions of African-Americans. The popularity of hip-hop in Japan has led to more positive images of blacks, including Takashi Okazaki's original manga. The "Director's Cut" contains an additional 15 minutes of footage, and is even gorier than the broadcast version on Spike TV. As a boy, Afro Samurai saw his father beheaded by the maniacal Justice. The murderer sought an ancient headband that marks the wearer as the #1 warrior in the world. As an adult, Afro seeks only revenge, cutting down anyone who blocks his path to Justice. Afro Samurai depicts a oddly anachronistic world that infuses cell phones, cigarette lighters, and cyber technology into traditional Japanese culture. The elongated character designs recall Peter Chung's Aeon Flux, and much of the series is rendered in moody grays, accented by gobbets of scarlet blood. Afro is such a taciturn figure, most of the dialogue goes to his motor-mouth comrade Ninja Ninja. This big budget production features an eclectic score by Wu-Tang Clan co-founder RZA and an A-list vocal cast that includes Samuel L. Jackson and Ron Perlman. But for all its elaborate production values and over-the-top fights, Afro Samurai suffers from a weakness at its core: Afro is so monosyllabic and cold-blooded, he's not very interesting. His inevitable duel-to-the-death with Justice lacks the emotional punch of Spike's face-off against Vicious in Cowboy Bebop or Kenshin's one-on-one with Shishio in Rurouni Kenshin. This extremely violent series is not for the faint of stomach. (Rated TV MA, suitable for ages 17 and older: graphic violence, profanity, sexual activity, grotesque imagery, nudity, risqué humor, alcohol and tobacco use) --Charles Solomon
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