It’s weird that I keep on forgetting about Alita: Battle Angel. At the beginning of the year, I couldn’t wait to get the chance to see this movie for a whole host of reasons. Not only has it been a passion project for James Cameron and Robert Rodriguez for nearly two decades, but it’s an adaptation of a classic anime from the 90’s that I happen to like. It’s a bit hard to track down a physical copy of the anime nowadays, but I recommend trying to do so since it’s one of the more underrated titles of the decade. Fast forward 11 months later, and I completely forgot that this movie existed, let alone had a solid release date.
The movie was originally slated to be released last summer, only for it to be delayed until Christmas of this year. However, it was announced a few months ago that it would be delayed yet again, this time to February of 2019. I kept hoping and praying that it was because of minor, negligible reasons, but after watching this recent trailer, I’m starting to fear for the worst.
I can’t quite put my finger on what I don’t like about it, but it just feels… safe. It feels like Blade Runner mixed with a generic YA novel about a teenage girl that doesn’t fit in because she’s different, in this case a robot, only this time its ANIME! There are some truly fantastic actors involved in this movie, like Christoph Waltz and Mahershala Ali, but I can’t just shake the feeling that this is another watered down Hollywood adaptation of a beloved anime property diluted to a form that the “average American” viewer can understand and not be weirded out by. Except for those eyes. Who thought it was a good idea to give Alita those garish, terrifying, soul-crushing eyes?
Alita: Battle Angel releases February 8th, 2019.
