It’s no surprise that fans of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners loved the gun-trotting, all-or-nothing, Rebecca. She feared nothing — from bullet frenzies to enemies afflicted by Cyberpsychosis, and held a genuine love for her allies. Rebecca will be dearly missed by fans of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners all over the world. Luckily, there is one film that helps capture the initiative rowdy, and eccentric spirit that she embodied. Dead Leaves, directed by Hiroyuki Imaishi, the same director of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, and other favorites such as Gurren Lagann and Kill la Kill, introduces two gun-blazing, Bonnie and Clyde, criminals who fans of Rebecca will absolutely adore.
Dead Leaves is a 2004 anime film directed by Hiroyuki Imaishi under Production I.G., who then went on to create Studio Trigger, which co-produced Cyberpunk: Edgerunners alongside CD Projekt Red. The movie has a fifty-two-minute runtime and is pumped full of action. There isn’t a dull moment at all in Dead Leaves.
The Plot of Dead Leaves
Dead Leaves follows two bizarre-looking, seemingly crazed criminals named Retro and Pandy. Aside from their appearances, they resemble a futuristic version of the classic Bonnie and Clyde duo. Retro is the Clyde of the duo, who oddly has a TV for a head and believes himself to be a yakuza member in his past life. While Retro’s partner in crime, Pandy is akin to Bonnie. She bears a purple scar over her eye which makes her resemble a panda.
The movie begins when Retro and Pandy awaken naked together with superhuman physical abilities, with no recollection of their past life. The two immediately team up upon meeting and start on a rampaging crime spree, looting for food and clothes. They are eventually caught by authorities, who throw them in a gigantic space prison located on the moon called Dead Leaves. The film focuses on the pair escaping and fighting the strange and absurd prison facility together — with a beautifully entertaining orchestrated mass prison break.
Why Should Fans of Rebecca’s Edgerunners Watch Dead Leaves?
Like Rebecca, Retro and Pandy both embody a reckless, chaotic, and defiant force of nature similar to the infamous Batman villain, The Joker. They waste no time on emotional moments — or even logical thinking, rather they head straight for the mission causing mayhem and destruction wherever they go.
They both share Rebecca’s love for bombastic fighting as they happily look forward to the next conflict, with no fear or caution given. From their strange appearances to their personalities, Retro and Pandy will remind fans of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners’ Rebecca as they go from fight to fight carrying the determined relentless will of Rebecca with them.
Dead Leaves Possesses a Unique, Memorable Style
Aside from the immense enjoyment fans will get out of the hysterical duo, Dead Leaves is also extremely original with its art and style. The film truly feels as if it’s going through brilliantly animated manga panels flipping by. From the use of strong black shading, quirky coloration, and gun flashes, to the onomatopoeia flying by as the duo wrecks mayhem in the space prison. There are few films in the world that actually look and feel like Dead Leaves.
Dead Leaves is filled with flashy action and comedy, and radiates strong Rebecca vibes through the lunatic duo Retro and Pandy. Just like how fans of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners couldn’t forget the amazing gun-blazing mercenary that Rebecca was, audiences of this 2004 Hiroyuki Imaishi classic won’t be able to forget the unique style and endless fun that Dead Leaves brings.
