Memories

Mesmerizing and sometimes staggeringly beautiful, this anime anthology comprised of three shorts produced by Katsuhiro Otomo (Akira) is equal parts The Twilight Zone and Kafka. "Magnetic Rose," based on an Otomo manga short and directed by Koji Morimoto (The Animatrix), finds space salvagers answering an interplanetary distress call only to discover a fantastic, synthetic world constructed from a woman's memories. Tensai Okamura's (Wolf's Rain) shocking "Stink Bomb" revolves around a young chemist who swallows the wrong pill and becomes a walking bio-weapon, killing everyone, and altering the weather. Finally, Otomo's own "Cannon Fodder" is a breathtaking, Metropolis-like vision of a city whose entire civic purpose seems to be firing enormous cannons at an unidentified enemy. Even for anime, this is superior art and drama. Rated PG-13, this disc's--in Japanese w/English subtitles--extras include a trio of interviews and an unfortunate, self-aggrandizing featurette about Otomo. Highly recommended. Editor's Choice. Aud: P. (T. Keogh)