Review of Bio Hunter

Introduction

Tokyo, we have a problem. There`s a virus which is spreading around, altering peoples` DNA and giving them demonic powers. How are people getting infected and where does it come from? It seems that we are all infected on a genetic level. The virus buries itself deep within our genes and controls our genetic structure from within. This virus can bring about a sudden drastic change and create monsters. Ooh.

The Bio Hunters of the title are two molecular biologists, Komada and Koshigaya, who hunt and kill these demons. The problem with Komada is that he`s part demon already and is having difficulty keeping control of himself. He can just about manage it, but it`s only a matter of time before he loses it completely.

Demons aren`t the only problem they come up against however. There`s a series of brutal murders taking place in which Komada and Koshigaya unwittingly get involved.

Video

Presented with a 1.33:1 fullframe transfer, Bio Hunter looks okay. Colours are somewhat understated however and this looks like a lot of the anime from the 80s and 90s. There`s nothing memorable in the style either with generic looking demonic monsters. There`s no sign of compression or defects in the transfer and despite the little flecks of dirt it`s not enough to ruin the film.

Audio

You can pick between Japanese Dolby Digital 2.0 and English Dolby Digital 5.1 (dubbed). The dubbed track sounds clearer than the Japanese in terms of depth with better coverage across the front speakers. That said, English dubbing is English dubbing and while it doesn`t sound too bad, the story sounds better in Japanese. The Japanese soundtrack seems mainly focused on the centre channel with no sound emanating from anywhere else, which is a shame. Ambient sound would have elevated this average film.

Features

Easy to navigate menus with a couple of extras:

• Original Trailer (0:44) - Like some of the old Manga trailers, it`s cut quickly to drum n` bass and leaves a fair impression of intrigue.

• Storyboard Images - You can pick from 10 storyboard images and can jump to see them executed on screen. A nice feature, but sadly these storyboard images are poor. You can`t really make them out as they`re just rough sketches and are almost postage stamp like in size onscreen. I`d rather do without. Far better would have been to have more sketches using the whole TV screen to show them, with perhaps more detail. As it is this is a poorly thought out supplement.

There are English subtitles here, but this works better if you`re listening to the Japanese soundtrack as the English dialogue doesn`t match the English subtitles.

Conclusion

When making comparisons with Bio Hunter, the only old school anime films that come to mind are Wicked City, Monster City and Ninja Scroll. In fact, Bio Hunter comes from the same stable as Wicked City and Ninja Scroll, but it falls short of those two.

Bio Hunter feels incomplete by jumping straight in without any back-story for the characters and how they took it upon themselves to do what they do. I don`t get the impression of how dangerous it is and what our two heroes, Komada and Koshigaya, are up against.

Komada is infected with the virus and in an almost Bruce Banner like rage turns from scientist to winged demon when he gets angry. None of the characters here seem to question him and his `ability`. In addition to his problem, someone is out on the streets killing young women. Adding another element to the story is the ensuing investigation into the whereabouts of a fortune-teller who can lead the men to this murderer. So what happens with this Demon Virus storyline which is played upon as the key part of the film? Your guess is as good as mine.

By the end of the film I get the impression that there`s going to be more, certainly something to expand on the story of this Demon Virus but there`s no conclusion. While this is not a bad thing, I`m left thinking that more would be better as it certainly needs more to balance out the films shortcomings.

Bio Hunter is pure middle of the road anime fare. It`s derivative story and characters do nothing for the anime monster/horror genre and instead of providing intrigue or excitement it simply bores. Yes there are some nice scenes where we don`t have to bother with the contrived dialogue, but these are far and few between and consist of either scantily clad women getting their comeuppance or some action with guns. The film is unfocused.

With a running time of just 58-minutes, I`m not sure why anyone would bother investing hard earned on this. If you`re an anime fan and want to see this for completions sake, rent it. No way is it worth paying for.