Long before he aspirations to make half a dozen movies about tall blue Thundercats record-breaking Canadian director James Cameron planned to direct a live-action adaptation of the renowned Manga series Battle Angel: Alita (based upon Yukito Kishiro's Gunnm), but with up to three more return trips to Pandora planned as well as overseeing a possible Terminator trilogy Cameron has found himself stretched somewhat thinly. Foreseeing this predicament Cameron approached recognized director Robert Rodriguez in 2015 to develop Cameron's 186-page screenplay and over 600 pages of notes into a viable shooting script, before subsequently offering Rodriguez the opportunity to direct the live-action adaptation of Alita...
Starring Rosa Salazar, Christoph Waltz, Jennifer Connolly, Ed Skrein, and Jackie Earle Haley Alita: Battle Angel is produced by James Cameron and Jon Landau. Here is the official synopsis...
Visionary filmmakers James Cameron (AVATAR) and Robert Rodriguez (SIN CITY) create a groundbreaking new heroine in ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL, an action-packed story of hope, love and empowerment. Set several centuries in the future, the abandoned Alita (Rosa Salazar) is found in the scrapyard of Iron City by Ido (Christoph Waltz), a compassionate cyber-doctor who takes the unconscious cyborg Alita to his clinic. When Alita awakens she has no memory of who she is, nor does she have any recognition of the world she finds herself in. Everything is new to Alita, every experience a first. As she learns to navigate her new life and the treacherous streets of Iron City, Ido tries to shield Alita from her mysterious past while her street-smart new friend, Hugo (Keean Johnson), offers instead to help trigger her memories. A growing affection develops between the two until deadly forces come after Alita and threaten her newfound relationships. It is then that Alita discovers she has extraordinary fighting abilities that could be used to save the friends and family she’s grown to love. Determined to uncover the truth behind her origin, Alita sets out on a journey that will lead her to take on the injustices of this dark, corrupt world, and discover that one young woman can change the world in which she lives.
After what seems like forever it is hard to believe that this movie is finally happening. Initially the bug-eyed post-processing of Salazar's face was off-putting, but when considering the huge eyes featured on female characters in many Manga productions and the likely desire the differentiate the character of Alita and make her appearance unique such a small issue can be forgiven, if the effect can be maintained throughout the movie without any jarring moments. Following hot on the heels of the recent though the somewhat underwhelming live-action adaptation of Ghost in the Shell can Alita: Battle Angel deliver or will it just continue to prove that Manga should remain Manga?
