Renaissance (2006)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Christian Volckman

Writers:

Alexandre de La Patellière (original story) &
Mathieu Delaporte (original story) ...

Release Date:

15 March 2006 (France)

Genre:

Animation | Action | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Paris 2054. Live forever or die trying.

Plot:

In 2054, Paris is a labyrinth where all movement is monitored and recorded. Casting a shadow over everything is the city's largest company, Avalon, which insinuates itself into every aspect of contemporary life to sell its primary export -- youth and beauty. In this world of stark contrasts and rigid laws the populace is kept in line and accounted for.

Plot Keywords:

Kidnapping | Missing File | 2050s | Monopoly | Aging

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Daniel Craig	...	Barthélémy Karas (voice)
Romola Garai	...	Ilona Tasuiev (voice)
Ian Holm	...	Jonas Muller (voice)
Kevork Malikyan	...	Nusrat Farfella (voice)
Catherine McCormack	...	Bislane Tasuiev (voice)
Jonathan Pryce	...	Paul Dellenbach (voice)
Robert Dauney	...	Karas (voice)
Crystal Shepherd-Cross	...	Bislane (voice)
Isabelle Van Waes	...	Ilona (voice) (as Isabelle Van Waess)
Max Hayter	...	Dellenbach (voice)
Marco Lorenzini	...	Muller (voice)
Jerome Causse	...	Amiel (voice)
Clémentine Baert	...	Nurses (voice)
Chris Bearne	...	Parisian (voice)
David Benito	...	Nayhib (voice)

MPAA:

Rated R for some violent images, sexuality, nudity and language.

Runtime:

105 min

Country:

France | UK | Luxembourg

Language:

English

Color:

Color | Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

UK:15 | Ireland:15A | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | France:U | Australia:M | USA:R | Singapore:NC-16 | Portugal:M/16 | Argentina:13 | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIA | Brazil:12

Company:

Onyx Films

Trivia:

Renaissance took six years to complete on a budget of 15 million dollars.

Quotes:

Barthélémy Karas: First, we find her. And then, we sleep.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Renaissance: Making of promo (2006) (TV)

Don't watch the trailer

If you've ever seen the trailer for the film "The Recruit" with Colin Farrell and Al Pacino, you'll never have to see that film. Sadly, Renaissance has had similarly revelatory trailer makers.

The story of Renaissance is about a detective investigating the kidnapping of a young woman and medical researcher. The setting is a futuristic Paris, and science fiction elements feature throughout. The special thing about Renaissance, though, is its visual style, and not its story. Renaissance is 3D computer animation, like Final Fantasy, but highly stylised into black and white with ultra sharp contrasts. The result looks stunning (although the problems of 3D animation of human beings are still noticeable from time to tome: slightly robotic movements, slightly wooden facial acting, etc) As a highly stylised, beautiful film noir, Renaissance succeeds at stunning the audience, especially visually. The story and writing, though, are not quite at the same level of quality as the visuals. It's not a bad story (and presumably, if you haven't seen the trailer, it's a lot more exciting than it was for me). But it is a story that isn't highly original, and verges on the corny. A few lines of dialogue were painfully corny, making the writing sound like a beginner's first efforts.

I will definitely recommend Renaissance to friends. It's unlike anything I've seen before, visually, and I believe its originality alone makes it a worthwhile experience. It is also a watchable story, even if it isn't perfect.