Review | Netflix movie review: Bubble – cyberpunk The Little Mermaid by Japanese anime director Tetsuro Araki is shamelessly derivative
- Tetsuro Araki has worked on some of the biggest shows in anime, including Attack on Titan, but his latest effort in Netflix’s Bubble is something of a letdown
- The themes, plot strands and romantic entanglements in this cyberpunk retelling of The Little Mermaid have been presented numerous times before in better ways
2/5 stars
Even the most casual anime fan should recognise Tetsuro Araki’s latest offering, Bubble, for the shamelessly derivative enterprise that it is.
Set in a generically dystopian future, ravaged by a non-specific apocalyptic event that has left a gang of indistinguishable orphans to fend for themselves, this cyberpunk retelling of The Little Mermaid boasts as much substance and narrative depth as the celestial bubbles that litter the dilapidated cityscape.
Araki has worked on some of the biggest shows in anime, including Attack on Titan and Death Note, while screenwriter Gen Urobuchi’s résumé is arguably even more impressive, as co-creator of Puella Magi Madoka Magica and writer of Psycho Pass and Fate/Zero, as well as its source novel.
In Bubble, the animation is effective without being especially memorable while the score features a recurring musical motif that recalls Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Throughout its breezy 100 minutes, the film is buoyed by an unshakeable sense of déjà vu.
Its themes, plot strands and romantic entanglements have been addressed numerous times before, and in almost every instance, with more passion, imagination and vigour.