I watched Steamboy with The BF today and really really enjoyed it. It’s directed by Katsuhiro Otomo, who also directed Metropolis and Akira. While I liked the previous two movies he made, I have to say that Steamboy is my new favorite.

The movie takes place before the first World Expo in London in the mid 19th century. The protagonist, Ray, is a young inventor with the cliched “whole lotta heart” thing going on, but that’s not a bad thing. There’s also this thing called a “Steamball” that seems to power a whole bunch of stuff and most of the movie has people struggling for possession of it.

However, that’s not the “big picture” with this movie. The timing of the release of this movie and what’s going on in the world (primarily, the US vs. Iraq thing) is great. Without sounding too preachy, the movie makes people think about the true purpose of science and progress.

Things I loved about the movie:

• machines
• detailing in every scene
• music
• plot
• chihuahua bashing

Thing I did not like about the movie:

• In one scene, the subtitle referred to the energy stored in the Steam Ball as kinetic energy. I think the subbers made a mistake and got it confused with potential energy. Inside the Steam Ball, the energy isn’t doing anything or powering anything. It’s not till the ball is connected to a bunch of pipes and moving machinery that it starts to do any work. Wouldn’t that mean the Steam Ball has potential energy inside?