Vampire Hunter D (1985) ****

I have never been a big anime watcher but Vampire Hunter D (1985), along with Fist Of The North Star (1986) (my review here), and Akira (1988) (my review here), were the three that I watched the most as a teenager. I only just realized that VHD and FOTNS were made by the same director, Toyoo Ashida. While the animation in VHD is a bit less refined, it's still enjoyable, and the genre/folklore mashup (gothic horror, post-apocalyptic sci-fi, western/chanbara) satisfies a very specific need. 

As with FOTNS, I've never read any of the novels that VHD is based on, but I love the story and the characters—though Doris' outfit is perhaps a bit of an outdated, eye-roll-inducing, male teenage fantasy and it's irksome how strong she is in the opening scene, only to become progressively weaker as the film goes on (save her holding her ground against the creeper Greco). The titular D is of the stoic western lead variety and thankfully—partially due to his lack of dialogue—the usual overt show of macho tendencies is basically absent here.

There's plenty of monsters, a nice smattering of gore, and lots of iconic genre imagery on display in VHD, which could come off a bit tropey to some, but it's all blended so well that it never feels derivative, even today. Toyoo Ashida stated that his intention for the film was to create an OVA that people who had been tired from studying or working hard would enjoy watching, instead of watching something that would make them "feel even more tired" and that is exactly what he accomplished. Vampire Hunter D is a pulpy, fun, and unchallenging view, but not one dumbed down to the lowest common denominator—there is plenty to continually appreciate.