Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust

Alternate Titles:  None

Original Japanese Release Date: 2000

Episode Length/Run-time: 102 Minutes

Summary:

The Half-Human Half-Vampire Vampire Hunter who goes simply by ‘D’ is continuing his quest to fight against the vampire nobility that rules over a far-future post-apocalyptic world.  Because of his reputation he is called upon by the Elbourne family to rescue their daughter, Charlotte, from the clutches of Meier Link.  But D is not the only one on the hunt, and seperating Charlotte from her new love may prove more difficult than D originally expected.

Review:

A long awaited follow-up to the classic movie Vampire Hunter D, Bloodlust is a worthwhile addition to the family.

The Vampire Hunter D series is based on a series of novels by Hideyuki Kikuchi, this particular movie is based off the third book. Acclaimed artist Yoshitaka Amano’s wisdom is drawn from yet again to bring the pages of the novel to life on the screen and his dark style creates artistic poetry on the screen.  Angular features, dark odd creatures, and towering spires adorn the movie in a distinct style that one has to see to believe.

Unlike the first movie the storytelling in Bloodlust does become slightly muddled.  Which is not helped by the somewhat confusing and uncertain dialogue.  The finale of the movie is also somewhat of a letdown, ruining the otherwise perfect pacing the film had all the way through.

Despite that the film has all the surprises, twists, action and pleasant oddities as the first film.  It remains a worthwhile watch to be enjoyed more by adults than kids.  This film, while not perfect, stands as a strong follow-up to a classic and should be on any anime fan’s must-watch list.

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