Metropia

Dark and queer enough to catch your attention but lacking the story power to hold it, Metropia is an aesthetic in search of an author.

The characters at first seem photorealistic, but their faces barely move. There are good, basic sci-fi ideas in the script, but they're not satisfyingly developed.

Technically innovative but narratively moribund, Metropia is all stasis and shadows. Perhaps Mr. Saleh could have listened to a lighter voice.

The colors are mostly gray tones with the sharp, disturbing animation that works well for a thriller. However, Metropia is weighed down by a convoluted plot.

A new kind of animation and probably the only kind to exist. A very unique Scandinavian-English language film from the technical aspect. The only one kind in the whole world which is actually an experimental product from the new productions. It was made primarily using photoshop, and then adobe after effects for animation. If you're wondering what kind it is, actually a 2.5D animation, that means it is neither 2D or 3D, but between those two. Like tricking the 2D object as the 3D material. Well they have succeeded to bring a visually impressive animation that mainly focused on the film character faces. The story was decent which is another dystopian concept where metro trains are the main content, hence it is called 'Metropia'. But the title also means 'visual refraction', that's what the story is slightly related too. Anyway, it was very suspenseful till the final and mostly talking drama than physical action sequences. At some point I felt it was like the recent stop-motion animation 'Anomalisa', but realised that I predicted wrong and the story travelled in a different path to end decently. Though the overall film was very impressive from both technical and narrative wise. One must not miss it, just for a its rare kind, especially you like animations, but best suitable for adults. 7/10

Metropia is dark like a Tim Burton or Terry Gilliam film which has been set in the toilets of an eerily deserted nuclear bunker. It suffocates you with gray monotones and darkened blue/brown hues to enforce an idea of repression which draws you into its soulless, post apocalyptic world where life is never questioned. The story alludes to a fuel shortage, yet trains can run non stop night and day across a whole continent simultaneously, and while portraying astonishing technical innovation the convoluted plot feels largely empty as if examined by an absent author lazily relying on aesthetic to convince. If I was to divide the ratings I would give the art 9/10 (though critically no artistic variety from Paris to Sweden) and the plot 3/10. A big gap which is too large for such an ambitious film to fill.