Red Spectacles is an odd mix of film noir, surrealism, slapstick and anime mech(at the beginning and end). As a whole it does not work. I think possibly as a series of vignettes it might work better but collectively the parts do not sit well together and the humour for me at least is sadly lacking. The cinematography ranges for excellent to below par. Some shots are very film noir and others have bad framing with heads cut off and shot without enough shadowplay to justify there lenght. The sound is very poor and distracting. All sound was added in post production so there is a spareness to the sound which makes everything seem overly poignant and frankly off putting. The score is poor for the most part and sometimes inappropriate music is used for a scene, at least inappropriate to western culture.As an art film it does not really compel this viewer, neither does it have any particularly outstanding aspects technically or thematically. It is run of the mill with a few nice visuals.

This is, for lack of a better term, an art film. This should be said from the start, because while many of Oshii's anime films are of a philosophical bent, they hew closely enough to convention to appeal to mainstream movie fans. This film probably does not.Judging the film as a whole, it makes some interesting philosophical points and pays off at the end. The question is whether this payoff is enough to justify what went before. I am not sure about this.Normally one assesses a confusing film that can only be fully grasped at the end by looking at that film's secondary characteristics.Judged as an art film, the movie's technique is expert, but it is not so innovative or visually compelling so as to justify the film by itself. There is nothing wrong with the acting in this movie, but it is not so compelling that it shifts one's focus from the film as a whole.Judged as a more commercial or mainstream film, this movie is distinctive for its emphasis on humor. That humor is an old-fashioned form of slapstick however, and while this will make the film for some people, if you do not especially like this form of humor, then the fact that it is placed in a confusing and rather dark movie will prevent the individual bits of humor from coalescing into a funny unity greater than the sum of the parts.The one thing that cannot be denied or dismissed, is that this film is an original one, and is philosophical without being preachy. If this is enough, then you are certain to be satisfied.

I watched the trilogy by Mamoru Oshii. The words surreal, Orwellian and Kafkaesque come to mind. However, despite all their bizarre aspects I believe they are essentially jokes. The darkness was there as a chiaroscuro backdrop to highlight the humor. The first, Red Spectacles, is about a man who can not let go of his past not matter how painful and dangerous it was because he never felt more alive that when he was facing death. The second, Stray Dog, shows that man during an interim period when he seems to be almost at peace, being brought back to that death-seeking modus operandi which precipitates the events of the first film. The third film, Talking Head, while not directly related to the events of the first two, does refer back to them as a man attempts to create truth out of illusion. The idea is that film, as an art form, is essentially an exercise in madness and that illusion is finally a higher truth, an idea that was touched on in the first film. But it is the humor that is Oshii's ultimate goal. He doesn't want to make highly significant pronouncements on the nature of humanity and reality. He just wants to tell a story, and if the story is funny, all the better. I suppose that many parallels could be drawn between Oshii's work and that of Philip K. Dick.

I recently purchased Mamoru Oshii's Cinema Trilogy Box Set. This was the first film, and I must say that I was more than pleasantly surprised. I was expecting action and sci-fi... and while I got a little of that, I also received a huge helping of intelligent, thought-provoking mystery and a large dose of entertaining slapstick comedy. In truth, this film is a throwback to silent film (Just as Quentin Tarantino's films are often throwbacks to pulp fiction, blaxploitation, chop-socky, spaghetti western etc. films)... It truly is a silent film with dialogue. The actions and expressions of the actors are excessive and exaggerated, techniques commonly thought of as "primitive" in the cinephile community are used, and there's, of course, the sepia tone that covers most of the film.Shigeru Chiba is definitely the shining star of the film, portraying qualities that Hollywood action, drama, and comedy stars would kill to have. Chiba is also featured in the other two films in the box set, and definitely carries all three films with his small yet enormous presence.This film, along with "Stray Dog" and "Talking Head," does not spell out each and every little thing for the viewer... Mr. Oshii trusts the audience to be able to come to its own conclusions. I definitely respect that and would recommend this film to anyone who would listen.