Alita: Battle Angel

Plot
In the once-great metropolis of Iron City, a desolate and polluted world on the edge of chaos, the skies are shrouded in perpetual grime and darkness. Amidst the devastation, a young woman with no memory of her past lies in an alleyway, half-buried in trash and rubble, her body - a hulking and battered cyborg shell - left behind by the uncaring streets. Ido, a skilled surgeon and inventor, is out scavenging for scrap metal when he stumbles upon the mysterious figure, her eyes long since frozen, her limbs mangled beyond repair. Yet, as he gazes at her, something about the faint scent of perfumed skin and the tender curves of her face strikes an unexplainable chord within him, drawing him in with an unwavering determination to uncover the truth beneath the surface. Ido is no stranger to the harsh realities of this unforgiving world. He lives in a one-room abode that serves both as his home and his makeshift laboratory, where he continues to tinker with innovative medical technologies to help those in need. When he notices the metal exoskeleton sprouting an unassuming set of facial features, the same resurfacing of emotions he experienced initially reappears, now firmly rooted within him. Perceiving a resplendent gem-like iris and an array of mangled human limbs, Ido deems the figure worth saving and makes his way back to his makeshift home, meticulously intent on reassembling the disheveled cyborg, not merely a discarded piece of machinery, but as if, unbeknownst to him, its internal systems were meant to provide proof of a far greater destiny. Hours passed, eventually turning into an interminable night filled with the wail of the scavenging hawks and relentless pounding of rain. Miraculously, somewhere, deep within the metal lattice of her body, something stirs, animating once-frozen limbs as Ido strains his considerable willpower into reviving, painstakingly implanting a series of electronic components gleaned from his scrap heap. After what seems to be an eternally long night, at last, when the cyborg, rearming her dying circuits, magically swings to life, its initial, eerie sputtering soon gives way to swift awakening, as if bolstered by the resilience of its incredibly resilient metalframe itself. The young cyborg, none the wiser about the past, revoltingly convulses within the limits of her fragile humanoid form. Eventually, however, she settles into awareness as pieces of Ido's mechanical genius harmonize, resulting in a fluid network that is both fragile and formidable at once, propelling unguided natural inclinations and aspirations, driven by emotions that would only seem to surface one by one as memories struggled to be brought back into cohesive remembrance. In that future where chaos lies within every shred, Alita, with her profound in-born talents, somehow displays a unique compatibility with Ido's newly-made cybernetic augmentations, and to him, she awakens to unheralded revelations about who, or what, she truly was in a life she knew not existed yet. As Iron City sits along the edge, anticipating an uncertain time ahead, no more than a scrap metal melting pool away from utter destruction, this cyborg prodigy falls under Ido's devoted care, their symbiotic bond nurturing an elusive and profound mystery of a lost civilization she barely knows anything about, when every moment passes swiftly into another opportunity for this human spirit trapped in cyborg garb - Alita - to take its very unambiguous steps towards claiming back her lost name and reason. Her once frozen memory stirs and stirs as other memories start rising even further from beyond her self-perceived realms. Each one may, over time reformatting a once imperfect metallic husk to a burgeoning, albeit inexplicable aura hint at more: love, power, a long lost empire whose ethereal past continues rising sharply to Ido's diligent eyes as they roam evermore beside her advancing feet.
Reviews
Brooklyn
A very educational movie that tells us: we were indeed picked up from the trash by our parents, not given as a freebie for topping up their phone bill. Following John Wick, here's another "most hardcore dog lover on Earth". You dare kill her dog, and she dares to split you in half with one blow. She's too damn good at fighting; she can burst your eyeballs with her two legs. Ip Man can beat up ten Japanese soldiers, Alita can beat up ten Ip Mans. The "26th Century Fox" intro is quite interesting. I wonder if Fox will still be around in the 26th century. The film's theme still revolves around the awakening of AI's self-awareness, from not knowing who they are to possessing emotions and desires, capable of sleeping...
Ana
Clearly, James Cameron spent 20 years, $200 million, assembled a team of thousands, and utilized over 30,000 computers just to introduce his beloved manga to the world.
Michaela
6-7 out of 10. The visual effects are absolutely stunning. Even though Alita's anime-esque big eyes constantly remind you that she's a CGI character, you'll occasionally mistake her for being real. The technical achievement is the biggest and perhaps only highlight of the film. Apart from a few engaging action sequences, most of the plot is quite dull, especially that cliché love story (the Hugo chapters in the original manga weren't that interesting either). The plot doesn't offer a more surprising or engaging story, and what's more, this is just the first chapter. It doesn't even have a proper climax at the end, it just feels...
Sadie
Growing up under the loving care of her doctor father, it's only natural for a disabled girl to fall for the first delinquent boy who rides past her house on a motorcycle. She dreams of saving enough money with him to go to the big city, leading to daily arguments with her father. The boy helps her discover her talent in Motorball, and they promise to start their New York dream from there. Unexpectedly, on the day of the finals, the boy is targeted by thugs, forcing the girl to rush out of the arena to save her lover. In the end, the boy dies on their journey to chase their dreams, and the girl, carrying both of their aspirations, stands on the Motorball field once again... "Alita: Battle Angel, a Cruel Coming-of-Age Story of the 26th Century." After watching this, I really feel sorry for "Ghost in the Shell: .. "
Alaina
\[B-] A story about a pro gamer smurfing in a noob lobby. The visuals and action choreography are awesome, making it a decent popcorn flick. However, the script and direction fall short. The brilliance of the original "Gunnm" (Battle Angel Alita) manga's early volumes lies in its concrete depiction of class stratification through a "heaven and earth," fighting-for-survival setup, embodied in a bloody, flesh-and-bones battle. The movie awkwardly twists it into a generic, Americanized personal hero's journey of finding power and becoming the ultimate champion. But Alita is already overpowered from the start; she doesn't need to grow in the conventional sense. Her growth should stem from realizing the responsibility that comes with being a Berserker and gradually understanding the structures of human society. Once this is lost...
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