"Alita: Battle Angel" (2019)

Set in the the future after a worldwide disaster known as "The Fall", Iron City stands as the last safe haven for humans while being eclipsed by Zolom, the last of the sky cities. Alita: Battle Angel has the feel of a crossover between steampunk, anime, and cybernetic futurism.

Only bits of the conflict between Earth, Mars, and the sky cities is revealed as the story unfolds; and you never fully understand the reasons for the devastation. I found that the antagonists of the story became fairly clear through their own actions rather than the narrative telling me explicitly. I did not expect myself to feel so emotionally charged towards a being that was literally "almost" human. However, let's dive into the review and then I will progress into the lessons that I believe should be learned from a story such as this.

Dr. Dyson Ido (Christoph Waltz) is searching for parts in a salvage dump. He uses these scrapyard parts to repair the damaged parts of his patients as he specializes in the repair of cybernetic upgrades and attachments. He is also widely considered to be the most proficient repairman in all of Iron City. On this particular morning he comes across the apparent corpse of a trashed cyborg. Little does he know that he has just found the heart and mind of the most important project of his life. Upon returning home he places the salvaged upper torso into the cybernetic body that he built for his late daughter. When the cyborg awakes, she has no memory of how she ended up where she did or any clue as to who or what she even is. Dr. Ido names her after his beloved daughter and thus Alita (Rose Salazar) is born.

As you could expect, she is very curious about this new world she is taking in for the first time. Around every turn she is having virgin experiences, which is exciting for her but concerning to those that care about her. For a time you think and feel that she is a simple, naive, but sweet teenage girl that is trying to make her way in this new life, but after a short lesson in a game called Motorball, you see that there is much more to her than meets the eye. The next day she has a brief run into Dr. Ido's ex-wife and mother of the daughter whose body she now inhabits. Chiren (Jennifer Connelly) is a known former resident of the sky city of Zolom, whose sole mission is to find a way back into her cities gates by any means necessary. She is also the lead technician to the owner of the professional motorball players. Her and Ido separated after the sudden death of their daughter, but you can tell that they are still in love with each other and still love their daughter. The next day after that fateful meeting is when this story truly begins to unfold. Ido mysteriously strolls out into the darkness one night after telling Alita it was too dangerous to be out after nightfall. The next morning she notices he has a fresh wound on his forearm, but he refuses to speak on how or why he received it. Her teenage mind is overpowered by her curiosity and she follows him the next night he leaves in a similar fashion. What she soon discovers changes the course of the film, and it was an absolute pleasure to watch multiple times. Each time with the same electric feeling of the hair on my neck standing on end. I enjoyed Alita to the point that I added it to my library so that I could enjoy it over and over again. I won't spoil what happens after that pivotal moment, but you will not be disappointed.

The film is apparently set up for at least one sequel that is currently being filmed, which explains the clandestine method in which the key elements of the story were unveiled. You don't actually see the real face of the main villain until the closing scenes. I thought that this was a clever way to build a character profile. What you know of the titan named Nova (Edward Norton) and his agenda is portrayed through those that work for him. You can clearly recognize his level of humanity by what happens to the former Motorball champion Grewishka (Jackie Earle Haley). You do get to hear him speak, but he never uses his own voice; which left me feeling like I was witnessing a more sinister version of the Wizard of Oz. Although I thoroughly enjoyed this film. I needed to understand that this was not a stand alone origin story. This is the first of many movies that will tell the full story of the battle angel. The first time I finished it, I was left feeling empty and unfulfilled. You felt Alita's anger, her love, and her passion but you never saw her satisfied, so those feelings stayed with you.

The morals of this story are very sad, however. It tells of how humans mistreat and abuse each other for their own ambitions. This is the most evident through the budding relationship between Alita and Hugo (Keean Johnson), but the circumstances change them both, forever. Maybe it says something about the level of my trust or respect for my fellow human beings, when I sympathize with the machine rather than the flesh. It could simply be an emotional response to a wonderfully written screenplay, but it is a blight that I do not believe is solely lost on myself. Why is it that we, the most superior race of mental and spiritual beings, refuse to look beyond our own selfishness in an attempt to make this planet the absolute envy of the universe? Of course it would be naive to think that one act of generosity can change the world because that is an impossibility, but it isn't about the act itself. The entire idea of world change is the mindset. If no one believes that change is possible then change will forever be unattainable. However, if every individual believes that they can make a difference and makes the choice to have an impact; well...that mindset will catch fire and burn into the pages of history. We are only ever a short fraction of time away from disaster or redemption. The wake of choices you make collides with the sum of tidal waves that are every others' individual choices being made simultaneously. Let us not forget that a flood once changed the surface of the earth. I believe that we could change that world with a similar mental and empathetically charged typhoon. It all come down to the one thing that you have control over in your life: choice.