Lupin the 3rd - The Secret of Twilight Gemini (Edited Version) (1997)
Review by Dindrane
Film:
DVD:

Directed by Gizaburo Sugii
Produced by Funimation Productions

Features:

• Actor profiles
  
• Character profiles
  
• English and Japanese audio
  
• English subtitles
  

Dindrane's Anime Warnings:

• gratuitous nudity
• sand gets in your eyes
• mysteries that aren't very mysterious

Rating: NR, suggest for 13+

Anamorphic: N/A

My Advice: Rent it.

Lupin the 3rd: The Secret of Twilight Gemini brings back one of Japan's most enduring and popular single characters, the thief Lupin. Both a member of the intelligentsia and a cat burglar, Lupin III is a second-story man par excellance. In the movie, Lupin and his friends return to find a legendary diamond known as the Twilight Gemini, which is itself the way to find an even greater treasure. Too bad Lupin and his friends aren't the only ones after the Twilight Gemini: there's also a mysterious desert gypsy who wants the treasure, a large but unknown organization who wants both Lupin's death and the treasure, and Inspector Zenigata is determined to catch Lupin this time.

The characters are interesting and fun. Lupin himself is in some ways a stereotype, but is more an ideal of the type than a cliché, because he works. Goemon the samurai and Lupin's other friend Jigen are also entertaining, though Fujiko is more likely to annoy at least female viewers with her busty stupidity than entertain them.

The plot is unfortunately both cliché and predictable, and there's not enough quality in other areas to make up for this. The desert nomads are just kind of there, and even the hint of a past scandal and a new culture is only barely enough to hold a viewers interest. The weird Japanese assassin out for Lupin's head is the final straw--it just doesn't fit and ends up being more silly than amusing, and it's supposed to be the drama of the film. Had the creators spent more time with the nomads or exploring Morocco in the tradition of Indiana Jones, instead of so much time running from cops, Twilight Gemini might have been a better final movie.

The extras are kind of ordinary and uninspired, but then again, it's nice to actually see the voice actors' profiles. The character profiles will be rather useful to anyone new to the Lupin universe. It would, however, have been nice to have had something like a listing of previous Lupin titles, in case you fall in love with them, or perhaps a comparison of how Lupin's look has changed over the years in the hands of different artists.

The sound and video quality are both solid enough, if not perfect. There were a few problems with loud music, but the dialogue is at least clear and understandable. There was no noticeable crackling or fading. The video was similarly uniformly good, done in an older style visually. There are a few blips in the early scenes and some later artifacting, but the digital transfer is decent overall.

The voice acting does a good job of bringing out the character's personalities, though the Japanese cast is solidly in the "chirpy, shrill camp" of voice acting.

Overall, Twilight Gemini will appeal to die-hard, completist otaku and most fans of B-movie adventure stories. If only the plot were more interesting, I'd have loved this title. As it is, though, the product just doesn't pay the concept justice. It's worth a rental just to see something other than magical girls or space mecha, but other than that, you probably won't want to see it more than once. On the other hand, keep Lupin in mind if the original TV series ever shows up on Western shores.