Twilight of the Dark Master

     Twilight of the Dark Master is a flick that takes us on a strange dark look at the future- in a way that could only be captured by Japanese Animation.

     From the first look at this fifty-minute animated feature, one becomes immediately confused, but strongly drawn to the storyline. A man asks a young woman to marry him then out of nowhere, he morphs into this demon and attacks the woman ripping her arm off. Talk about a cheap? He could have asked for the ring back and not take the arm off with it. Anyway, this was an excellent way to get you into the film, which continually builds on this opening scene, bringing everything to light in the end.

     The main story of Twilight of the Dark Master is that demons have been running amok on our world since the beginning of time. Their mission is to destroy humanity. But another Supreme Being had a plan as well, and created a group of beings aptly called Guardians to balance the playing field. The Supreme Demon, upset that he still has not destroyed humanity, has devised a sure means of controlling humans. He devises a way to alter human DNA and turn humans into full fledge demons.

     One Super Guardian is sought to help end The Supreme Demon's plans and what ensues is some intense action complete with horrific violence and more than a few moments of nudity. The battles scenes are pretty intense as no fists are thrown, but people still get jacked up. The ending will leave you asking questions and leave you wanting more. I have to admit to being confused at the end, but after watching this film for the third time, I think I have a handle on what went down.

     This version is the new DVD put out by Urban Vision, and was re-mastered in 5.1, and contains some cool extras not seen on the video. I liked the extensive amount of trailers for other Urban Vision products, as well as, the art gallery. The best part of this DVD, besides the movie itself, was the really cool look at Hisashi Abe, the Animation Director and Character Designer, at work. Abe is shown in fast motion, skillfully drawing the cover box art for the DVD. I was mesmerized by the skill this man possesses. Abe has a long history of film work (X, Vampire Hunter D, Pet Shop of Horrors, and more), and really deserves this kind of acknowledgement for his efforts.

     Of course, the other features on the DVD include screen select, English dubbed, Japanese or subtitle options, which are actually pretty cool in itself if you are an anime buff and want to see the difference between the languages the film is presented in. Still, no matter how you watch it, the important thing is to watch it. Twilight of the Dark Master may be the dawning of a new day for the partnership between the gothic arts and Japanese Animation.

     Send your comments and or questions about this article to Blackhart@ybfree.com.

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