Lady Death: The Movie
| Lady Death | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Andy Orjuela |
| Produced by | Andy Orjuela |
| Screenplay by | Brian Pulido |
| Story by | Carl Macek |
| Starring | Christine M. Auten |
| Music by | Bill Brown |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | ADV Films |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 80 minutes |
| Country |
United States Japan |
| Language | English |
Lady Death: The Movie is a 2004 American-produced, Japanese animated film based on the comic book character Lady Death. This film was the first animation project produced by now-defunct anime distributor A.D. Vision. It had premiered at the 2004 Comic-Con convention.[1] The film was released on DVD October 9, 2004, and had been aired on A.D. Vision's Anime Network. This film has not been rated. A Blu-ray Disc edition of the film was released by AEsir Holdings and Section23 Films on September 20, 2011.[2]
Plot synopsis
The movie begins in 15th century Sweden. Hope, the beautiful and innocent daughter of Matthias (a skilled mercenary who is in actuality Lucifer himself), is accused of being the devil's consort. Hope is sentenced by the town priest to be burned at the stake. Matthias, through a proxy, offers her life if she surrenders herself to him and joins him in Hell. At first she agrees to his terms, but Matthias's plan to corrupt her is soon met with unanticipated resistance, as Hope rejects his scheme and eventually finds herself transformed into the powerful warrior Lady Death, who challenges Lucifer for control of Hell itself.
Differences between the film and Comic
Many of the events from the comics are altered in the animated film. Instead of summoning a demon with whom she bargains for her life, Hope's spell summons a pair of flying demons that carry her physically to Hell (restoring her badly burned body in the process), dropping her in the court of her father, who intends for her to join him by his side. When she refuses, he casts her out, only for her to side with the master blacksmith Cremator, an escaped slave of his, and to lead an army of hellspawn creatures against him. In this continuity, her curse is to be trapped in Hell for as long as one of Lucifer's allies remains alive. Unlike in the comic, Lady Death is presented as more of a heroine whose goal isn't to destroy all life on earth, but to liberate Hell from Lucifer's tyranny.
Cast
- Christine M. Auten as Lady Death/Hope
- Mike Kleinhenz as Lucifer/Matthias
- Andy McAvin as Pagan
- Rob Mungle as Cremator
- Mike MacRae as Asmodeus, Large Torture Troll
- Chris Patton as Niccolo
- Dwight Clark as Father Orbec
- Maureen McCullough as Marion
- Ted Pfister as Elderly Man
- Marcy Rae as Elderly Woman
- Greg Ayres as Young Man
- Jason Douglas as Matthias Guards, Stable Demons
- Ben Pronsky as Matthias Guards
- John Swasey as General Ahriman, Torture Guards, Demon Priest
- James Reed Faulkner as General Utuk Xul
- Laura Butcher as Lucifer's Concubines
- Marizol Cabrera-Ojeda as Lucifer's Concubines
- Shelley Calene-Black as Lucifer's Concubines
- Geana Lewis as Lucifer's Concubines
- Mary Marquez as Lucifer's Concubines
- Adam Colon as Small Tortue Troll
Reception
General reception has mostly been negative. Mike Dungan of Mania.com (then known as AnimeOnDvd.com) gave the film a C. Dungan states that the script limits the appeal of the movie. However, the animation and acting were fine in that this was a good first effort for ADV.[3]
References
- ↑ "Lady Death: The Motion Picture at Comic-Con". DigitalMedia.com. Retrieved June 22, 2011.
- ↑ "Section23 Films Announces September Slate". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 22, 2011.
- ↑ Dungan, Mike. "Lady Death: The Movie". Mania.com. Retrieved June 22, 2011.
External links
- Lady Death at the Internet Movie Database
- Lady Death (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia