The animated sci-fi mystery Mars Express aims high and lands among the stars

Science fiction has always been a fertile genre for telling stories that revolve around mysteries. From Ridley Scott’s classic Blade Runner based on Mamoru Oshii’s 1995 anime Ghost in the shellsci-fi and mystery go together as perfectly as a perpetrator’s hand in a blood-stained glove. Mars Expressthe feature debut of French animator-director Jérémie Périn, is further evidence of the connection, by drawing from the basic elements of a Chinatown-esque story about a missing person and a deadly conspiracy, repeating it in the far-flung world of colonized space full of sentient machines and cutting-edge technology.

Set in the 23rd century, the film follows Aline Ruby and Carlos Rivera, a pair of private detectives sent to Earth to bring in a hacker accused of jailbreaking robots, effectively breaking them free from the safeguards created to keep them docile and submissive to humans. When their investigation unexpectedly reaches a dead end, Aline and Carlos accept another case, this one about a student who mysteriously went missing after her roommate was murdered in their dorm room. In true noir fashion, the pair steadily discover that the two seemingly separate cases are not only in fact deeply intertwined, but also relevant to a plot that threatens the foundations of human-robot society.

Since the late 2000s, Périn has steadily made a name for himself as one of the most creative, groundbreaking directors in French animation for his work on shows like Last manthe short animated series Thanks Satanand NSFW music videos for artists like Flaming Lips, DyE, and Flairs. Of Mars Express, Périn leans fully into his anime-inspired sensibilities and aesthetics to create a mature, grounded, and thoroughly imagined cyberpunk universe full of dark characters, dazzling metropolitan vistas, and thrilling action sequences. Not only is it an entertaining sci-fi thriller, it’s a thoughtful meditation on the future of human labor, planned obsolescence, and the uneasy potential of the technological singularity.

2023 fans Scavengers rule will undoubtedly be included Mars Expressart direction. While the movie is far from it Scavengers rule‘s ecologically focused survival thriller, both Périn’s film and Joe Bennett and Charles Huettner’s animated series share a common point in their line claire-influenced character designs and environments. Mars Express‘ vision of the distant future is heavily indebted to our present, the modernist Zaha Hadid-like architecture of Mars’ capital, Noctis, juxtaposed against Earth’s pollution-choked urban sprawl.

Image: Everyone on Deck/GKIDS

The attention to detail put into the film’s world-building also extends to the many android characters, each with their own unique design and personality. The comparison with Scavengers rule is not random: Jonathan Djob Nkondo, who worked as a character artist and designer on that series, also contributed robot designs for Mars Express.

The film’s protagonists are compelling and charismatic, but also reflect the filmmakers’ intentions to create a sci-fi noir mystery that pushes the genre forward. Aline Ruby is a lovable mess in a way that is unusual for animated female characters. A recovering alcoholic with a deadpan sense of humor and a dogged dedication to her work, Aline exudes loneliness and longing for human connection in a way that makes her fascinating to watch.

Image: Everyone on Deck/GKIDS

The same appeal is matched, if not completely eclipsed, by her partner Carlos, if only because he is the resurrected consciousness of her deceased partner, holographically preserved in an android body. Carlos, for all intents and purposes, still is Carlos, but his new life as a cybernetic entity complicates his material existence and rights in human-robot society, as well as his overall sense of identity. Estranged from his ex-wife and haunted by insecurities about his place in the world, Carlos plays a crucial role in anchoring the audience’s understanding. Mars Express‘themes and ideas.

Mars Express is the rare example of an animated film that requires almost immediate rewatch upon completion, if only to appreciate the craftsmanship of its presentation. It is a densely layered science fiction story that contains few proper names, but a lot of subtext. It’s set in a world that doesn’t tell so much as it shows the depth of the story and world-building by relying on the audience to pay close attention and connect the dots with the film’s characters. In short, it’s a rare example of “adult” animation that treats audiences like adults, and its execution elevates the premise until it stands confidently as one of the best animated films of the year.

Mars Express opens inside selected theaters across the country on May 3.