Another Lupin film, another artifact of Lupin History. For instance, released in the year 2000, this is the last cel animated Lupin thing ever. After this, Lupin transitioned to digital animation like the rest of anime production. Also, TMS' YouTube channel is giving me a history of anime dubs because this is a Funimation dub. It's a good dub, but it has a lot of usual Funimation suspects from that era as well as everyone pronouncing the name as Loop-in instead of what it actually is. But I can't complain because 90% of the voices fit the cast.
This is not the most political Lupin film or thing, but it is one of the most honest interpretations of Lupin. Also, considering what year this came out and what happened after a major event in 2001, I feel like this film kind of knew the future. The film starts at an auction house in New York with Lupin in disguise and a mysterious auctioneer on the phone betting over a junk ring. The ring is a mysterious object once held by Napoleon, Lenin, and Hitler before it was hidden by a mysterious benefactor. The ring is the clue that leads to it. Of course Lupin loses the auction and steals the ring.
Here is where the political part shows up, the other auctioneer on the phone is owned by the enemy of the film, the Bank of the World. A company owned by a woman named Cynthia. I say enemy of the film because Lupin is pretty scummy in the film, but the goal of the Bank of the World is purchasing oil facilities in some areas of the world and causing a war in the other oil producing areas of the world for maximum profits. Does this sound familiar to anyone else? The only people in the way of this plot are Lupin's gang who scam other people to stop the Bank of the World's plots.
The characterization throughout the film is so interesting for the Lupin crew, because it's about the crew's relationship with money for the most part. Lupin and Jigen are going after the trinket for their own joy of adventure. Goemon is the interesting one because he ends up working for a scammer that is going for inner peace and he needs money for that movement. Fujiko is the interesting one because she starts as an actress on a film set, but decides to chase down the Bank of the World because she had millions of dollars stolen from her.
The opposing multi opponents that the Lupin gang faces off against, because the bank is filled with business people. Cynthia hired former KGB agents as her security force and in terms of arms, they are a slight bit superior to the Lupin crew which makes them formidable foes who have a pretty cliche but believable personality. That's why they are so interesting because their motivating factor is just because they like money and killing. Compare that to the Lupin crew who just want money and it's almost on equal terms.
I do have to mention again that this film isn't a legendary adventure film with Lupin like Castle of Cagliostro. Lupin is a raunchy but fun character and that's what he is here just like the film. There is a part in this film where a magnet is used to steal Jigen and Goemon's weapons, and it also takes Fujiko`s bra after her clothes were shot up. Also, Lupin and Jigen go through a ladies changing room during a heist and he also steals some girl's kiss from a guy who was proposing while in the room. The major thing he does which changes his fate is stealing a kiss from Cynthia who becomes blinded by her infatuation from him and yet Lupin doesn't care. All of Lupin's schemes end up working as a result of that one kiss he never had feelings about.
Once again, the main theme of this film is money and how people are changed by it. The only person who doesn't change is Lupin because of the thrill of the hunt. He's poor, but Happy about it. Every other character ends up poor, poor and in prison, or dead because of their chase of the impossible dream that was never meant to be. Lupin exemplifies freedom in its purest essence. If only he didn't ruin the lives of so many other people, even temporarily, to do it. But that's the wonder of fiction, right? You can watch the worst people ever and still enjoy it quite a bit.
I really like this film. Visually, the best cel animation can be bought for Lupin before it's out the door. It thrives so much by living in the culture of New York just by all the pedestrians that are in the way. It shows the Lupin crew in some interesting ways and the villains are complicated but still evil. It's a very good, multi dimensional film in a lot of ways. It almost is Lupin in its most unfiltered form and pretty unique which is why I enjoy it. Highly recommended.
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