Alita: Battle Angel

This fast-paced action sci-fi fairy-tale with heart is held together by Alita, who is surprisingly the most vivid of the characters. Super cute! The nice daddy Waltz was also fine. Other character would benefit from more screen time, as that would give the movie more complexity, which it slightly lacks. And I’m not talking only about deepening the character of super MILF Connelly and similarly important characters, but also about some space for funny supporting types like the cowboy Fahey. He definitely had more space in the screenplay. Anyhow, the movie is a roller-coaster ride alternating emotions with spectacular action, and the fights leading to the transition of a fragile girl into the ultimate fighter will take your breath away. I was completely satisfied and am willing to watch it again in Atmos or IMAX. The Japanese are going to love this. (08/02/2019)

Alita pushes computer acting to a new level, aided by a story whose straightforwardness and naivety (most painfully rising to the fore in the development of an extremely hollow romantic subplot) that have their charm, but it’s not enough for a two-hour film. I would rather suppose the basis of the film to be a young adult novel by an American author who loves Japanese culture and James Cameron films (at least the latter bit about James Cameron, who wrote the screenplay, is probably true), rather than a Japanese cyberpunk manga comic book. Christoph Waltz with a rocket-powered pickaxe, describing a martial art called Panzerkunst, philosophising about whether one can love a cyborg, and Mahershala Ali as Blade don't help much. Nevertheless, Rodriguez has not been so focused in his storytelling for a long time. Even more so than in the patient building (or revealing) of the world from the lowest floor, this can be seen in the uncluttered action sequences with very complex choreography (I would not shy away from a comparison with Ready Player One). I wouldn’t be surprised if it is such a failure that we won’t see a follow-up, but I also wouldn’t mind if a sequel was made. 65% (08/02/2019)

A tarted-up lot of nothing that’s nice to look at. The visuals are unsurprisingly superb, Rodríguez’s direction is surprisingly solid and focused, and the robotic/computer generated main character is very likeable. I wouldn’t have a problem with it overall, if, somewhere in the middle, I hadn’t realised that the film not only wasn’t moving towards the central clash, but that it would also elegantly avoid it. To be continued, basically. (08/02/2019)

I think that on paper, it must have seemed as a huge risk to put Robert Rodriguez in charge of such a gigantic project with a gigantic budget. But taking risks sometimes pays off, and I must say that Rodriguez has done a really good job with Alita. A beautiful cyberpunk movie from the distant future, which is imaginative, beautifully animated and, above all, full of bizarre (almost b-rated) ideas, which no one else but Rodriguez would have come up with. I had a great time and I think this movie turned out really well. An exemplary blockbuster with all the goodies that a blockbuster can offer. This includes actors, where I was the most pleased with, albeit animated, the leading actress Rosa Salazar, as well as her dad played by Christoph Waltz. Rodriguez put a bit of everything he’s made so far into this film. Absurdity, emotions, animated beauty, but also some Spy Kids vibe which I can forgive him for. Alitais simply a success and I enjoyed it to the fullest. (22/11/2019)

I wasn't expecting much, but I was hoping it would turn out to be a fun and nice looking piece of crap. And in the end, it did. Alita probably won't appear on my list of the best films of the year, but the two hours in the cinema went by faster and more pleasantly than I would have guessed a few weeks ago. The visual effects and production design are top-notch and it's a really good watch, but this sci-fi epic gets the most points for its heroine. Rosa Salazar is great as Alita, she's both endearingly freaky and spectacularly deadly at the right moments. Robert Rodriguez keeps a surprisingly low profile and his action scenes are lucid and milk Hollywood's current technological capabilities to the max. The whole thing may be a little cheesy and 90s in both the good and bad sense of the word, but they are clearly aware of that. A lot of the themes aren't fleshed out enough (and shouldn't have been) and at times Alita turns into a sci-fi romance for teenage girls, but it still works. Personally, I had no problem tuning in on the same wavelength as Rodriguez and Cameron and enjoying the fact that it's big, beautiful, action-packed and fun. And basically, that was enough to satisfy me. (13/02/2019)

A sympathetic, nicely designed sci-fi fairy tale with bloody roots, from which, however, narration chaos is literally apparent. Lots of things are somehow provisionally sketched out and do not led anywhere, awkward zigzagging between a dystopian global story and a love story, the absence of a strong finale, which the film owes to a slightly overly optimistic intention to serialize it... The more promising ideas there are, the more of an unpleasant taste they leave. (24/07/2019)

Robert Rodriguez is back after a long hiatus and unexpectedly at full strength, aided by James Cameron as writer. Alita is a visual juggernaut much like last year's Ready Player One and I have to say that even though I initially approached the film as an outsider, I was very pleased with the end result and left the cinema satisfied as I haven't been in a long time. The film is set in the 26th century, so it's Cyberpunk, with a very likeable lead, a solid as usual Christoph Waltz, with good pace, uncompromising action , and I roared through the cinema with happiness and emotion at the grand finale. The diverse villains, the music and most importantly the rollercoaster pace made you wish it had an extra half hour. I didn't mind at all that Rodriguez stayed away from violence, and story-wise it could have also been stronger, but I was so blown away by everything that I didn’t feel like thinking about it like, when Megan Fox strips in front of you, so staring open-mouthed is richly enough. This is one of the best adaptations of Japanese Manga I've ever seen, and it will shake Japan to its foundations. Seen at IMAX with massage seats and eight scoops of ice cream and bliss. Serve the trilogy immediately without hesitation. 85% (10/02/2019)

Alita is a pretty good movie. Nice effects, nicely shot, great action. Alita isn't a whiny girl and to some extent the heroes are appealing. The Dolby Atmos worked well for it. It was just a little too shallow for my taste; it basically didn't give you the space to like anyone. Those who know the source material might like it. If they can get over the inevitable loss of information. A better 3 stars. (09/02/2019)

Sci-fi for girls, in a good way. At least for girls who want to be like Ripley. Rodriguez populates Cameron’s fantasy world with living, breathing characters with the soul of a cyborg. The action is coherent and easy to follow; the fight in the bar is just genius. The romantic storyline is pretty weird, but it works well. Rosa Salazar grabs you with her big eyes and doesn’t let go. This is evidently just the first episode, as it is obviously a prelude, and I want to see more, so I hope Alita is a hit. (19/02/2019)

A surprisingly dynamic and compact film peppered with sci-fi flourishes and clear action from a trash director who took a break from his typically familiar garage movies. You can see the typical B-movie feeling of a dirty city and all those strange robo-human creatures, but at the same time there is Cameron's supervision, especially during the key parts of the main story, or when the camera pans over the city in the sky, or the wild car track. I wish all those wannabe sci-fi/cyberpunk creations of recent years, led by Ghost in the Shell, looked this lush and fresh. (22/07/2019)

I was a little worried about Robert Rodriguez, but James Cameron's name carefully balanced them, I don't know the original, and I generally don't like manga too much, but I did like the teasers... So I went into Alita thinking that it could turn out any way possible. And it turned out so great! The biggest trump card is definitely the main protagonist, because the viewer, or perhaps everyone, must surely fall in love with Alita. The animation is as perfect as it can be, and although I initially stared at it with my mouth open, I gradually stopped seeing it, taking Alita as a completely normal character whose digital likeness was only reminded of every now and then. I trusted her every emotion, every smile or frown, anger and sadness - it really needs to be seen. It is perhaps even a small step higher than the digital characters in Ready Player One. And for many other characters, the special effects were similar - maybe for Ed Skrein, playing the role of the hired hunter, only a face mounted on a “terminator" (er) body was left... And it doesn't feel odd for even a second. But what would be the point without a good story, right? And here, there is thankfully also a good story. I enjoyed gradually revealing what was going on in that unknown and new world (26th Century Fox), what happened to it and why. I liked Christoph Waltz's paternal character and the motorball got to me like the glider races in Star Wars. The pleasant thing was that the script didn't need to slavishly explain everything and hid a lot of it in for the next film. And I hope there will be a sequel, because I haven't wished good things this much for a long time on a new film (a non-established brand). (14/02/2019)

Narratively, it’s old-school sci-fi that caresses the soul with the awesome imagery of a rich world, catchy action set-pieces and likeable and, in some cases, strong characters. And even though it lacks a major twist or the power of a mythology of adventure like Star Wars or Avatar, it can still surprise at times. Alita is lovely and it’s impossible not to for her, because her personality and the reveal of her own possibilities and her past has franchise potential that compensates for the rather unremarkable villains, whose motivations remain quite fragmented (and what could have been the most interesting secondary character, the outrageously attractive stepmom Jennifer Connely, wasn’t given time to properly develop). I want a sequel, and it could be again with Rodriguez, who after a long time has recovered his narrative stability and his heart. (20/02/2019)

Alita is an engaging and brisk post-apocalyptic sci-fi movie wrapped in a flashy audiovisual guise, led by a protagonist who is brimming with infinite humanity, courage and a desire to know herself. You can tell right away James Cameron was behind the script (strong female character, locations, some of the lines), I quite wonder what the film would have looked like if he had also sat on the director's chair and not fully committed himself to the sequels to Avatar. All in all, it's a proper action romp where you're not sure who's the bad guy and who's the good guy, and even a bittersweet romantic storyline finds its place. A film that must be seen in the cinema, where it rightfully belongs – and I certainly wouldn't be averse to a sequel if a similarly good script is available, as the open ending was very encouraging. (14/02/2019)

I actually had no idea what to expect from Alita, but I certainly wasn't disappointed. The protagonist amused me just by opening her eyes for the first time. I had seen Christoph Waltz in Big Eyes, so when Alita first looked at him, I couldn’t help laughing. But seriously now, the action scenes were decent, I didn’t mind the CGI, and I would have given the film five stars, if it hadn’t been for all those unnecessary clichés and melodrama. Based on the ending, I would say that the authors were preparing themselves for a potential second installment. If there is one, I definitely want to see it. (08/08/2019)

Alita: Battle Angel has excellent fight scenes with totally professional choreography. Surprisingly, the film devotes quite a bit of space to the romantic storyline, which isn't emotionally crushing in the truest sense, but works well as part of the whole. Honestly, I was actually expecting the whole thing to be a bit more wild and crazy. Except that it's both appealingly down-to-earth and at the same time cautiously earnest, resulting in an immensely enjoyable romp with a touch of 90s camp in a futuristic setting. Plus, the main character is very convincing indeed (which is true of both the CGI and the acting imprint of Rosa Salazar) and comes across as a nice girl who might be impossible not to root for. For Robert Rodriguez, it's actually an unexpectedly smooth and compact spectacle, in which he capitalizes on the best of his directorial skills. (23/02/2019)

Technically brilliant, but in terms of storytelling, I’m sorry, but I can't think of a better description than moronic. Predictable, zero emotions, bad cast of supporting characters, absence of logic and absolutely no chemistry between the characters. I just about managed to swallow a similarly silly plot in Avatar or Valerian on account of the visuals. This time, the great effects only saved it from falling to the level of Mortal Engines. As is often the case in such movies, there were so many story lines and such a huge number of characters that, logically, in those two hours none of them could get enough space or a satisfactory ending. It all seemed unfinished and half-baked. I just felt that the film targeted a completely different demographic than the one I am in (20-30) but, based on the box office sales, it was a miss on multiple fronts. (09/07/2019)