Revision as of 17:01, 22 September 2014 by TheGrudge154(Message Wall | contribs)(Added mention of status as non-canon thanks to information shown in Bayonetta 2.)
Bayonetta: Bloody Fate (ベヨネッタ ブラッディフェイト Beyonetta Buraddi Feito))is an animated movie released in Japanese theaters on November 23rd, 2013 for a limited two-week run, later receiving a home video release for DVD and Blu-Ray on February 14th, 2014. It is a film adaptation of the first game and was first announced at the Tokyo Game Show 2013. A dubbed release of the movie, handled by FUNimation Entertainment and featuring the majority of the original cast members, is set for release on October 21st, 2014.
Bloody Fate was created by the anime studio Gonzo, a studio responsible for animes such as Hellsing, Rosario + Vampire, and Trinity Blood. The movie was directed and storyboarded by Fuminori Kizaki (Afro Samurai, Basilisk, Super Street Fighter IV, X-Men) to a story based off a screenplay written by Mitsutaka Hirota (The Prince Of Tennis II, Tetsujin 28-go Gao!, X-Men). Ai Yokoyama designed the characters based on Mari Shimizaki's original artwork, whilst Shimizaki also supervised the project. Hiroya Iijima was in charge of angel design and Mai from Avex Entertainment contributed the theme song, titled 'Night, I Stand'. Other music for the film was composed by Jun Abe and Masato Kazune, with some additional pieces being provided by reworked versions of tracks from the game.
Bloody Fate is the first Bayonetta product to have the characters voiced by a Japanese cast. Due to the positive reception of the anime, the cast of Bloody Fate returned to voice the characters in Bayonetta 2 and the new Wii U edition of Bayonetta.
Visuals
As the film is an adaptation of the first game rather than a direct translation, there are some slight visual and location differences in Bloody Fate. Bayonetta's earrings are a crescent moon shape and her overall outfit features some minor differences. Balder now wears gloves on both hands instead of only wearing one on his left and also has additional red highlights on his clothing. The other characters retain their major features. Locale wise, the film has locations from the game such as the Crescent Valley and the Isla Del Sol, but certain events happen in other locations or in brand new ones not featured in the game.
Plot
The story of Bloody Fate follows the general plot of the game, but has various points changed or added as part of the adaptation. Some of these changes are new to the film, such as additional emphasis on certain character traits or they are changes that were originally intended to be part of Bayonetta that had to be cut during production.
After information revealed during the plot of Bayonetta 2, the movie is officially non-canon.
The movie contains an opening similar to the Records Of Time section from the game, explaining the events up until the present day in the form of narration and images in a stained glass window fashion. In one of the windows, demons resembling alternate versions of Affinity shows up next to Malphas. These demons did not make an appearance in the game, but were present in the Eyes Of Bayonetta artbook. Yusuke Hashimoto, the angel designer of the first game and eventual director of Bayonetta 2, claims these designs were originally intended to be used as part of an angel VS demon battle at the beginning of the game but resource restrictions forced them to be cut.
The Vestibule occurs inside a church instead of at a graveyard where Bayonetta leads a double life as a nun. Luka follows a clue about a mass suicide at the church, a reference to the mass suicide onboard the Valkyrie at the beginning of the game, and tries to obtain photographs of Bayonetta's fight and ensuing destruction. After dispatching a Beloved with the help of Gomorrah, she later breaks his camera and destroys his car by landing on it, a reference to Enzo's car in the game.
Scarborough Fair are not Bayonetta's initial weapons. She first wields Elfin Knight, a set of four guns which use the design of Scarborough Fair's fifth concept design. These weapons are later destroyed in a battle with Jeanne and Bayonetta receives Scarborough Fair later. Throughout the course of the film, Bayonetta uses multiple weapons on her enemies rather than just her guns. She usies Shuraba, an Onyx Rose and the Lt. Col. Kilgores, all of which can be seen in the Gates of Hell after Bayonetta loses Elfin Knight along with others from the game such as Sai Fung and Kulshedra.
In the first scene at the Gates of Hell, Enzo is official stated to be an undertaker and is exploiting the mass suicide in order to make ludicrous profit. He makes a comment about Bayonetta not being able to remember her own name despite being able to remember the details of their deal of her seeing one of the funerals through for information. Rodin states her name is Bayonetta, but Enzo quickly reminds him that it is the name given to her by Rodin. Concept artwork from the Eyes Of Bayonetta prove this was going to be an originally intended plot point in the game.
Enzo's information for Bayonetta involves the Ragna Church's celebrations for the Festival of Ressurection, acting as a replacement for the Ithavoll Group. As observed on a news report from the bar's television, Balder is immediately shown to be the leader of the Ragna and a key component to Bayonetta's memories. It's confirmed when he speaks directly to her through the TV telepathically, just like in the game. The Eyes of the World are never mentioned as being part of Balder's plot of Bayonetta's missing memories until the end of the film.
There is no mention of the Golden LPs or of Rodin fashioning Bayonetta's weapons out of demons captured from Inferno. It is instead assumed that he creates them from scratch using other materials. This explains how the Elfin Knight breaks and crumbles during a battle with Jeanne, while all weapons Rodin crafts from demons have been portrayed as indestructible in the games.
Antonio's death is shown in gruesome detail compared to the game's portrayal of having the camera pan away. Antonio's face is also shown when Luka is searching through his recovered pictures from his broken camera. He bears a strong similarity to Luka's later redesign in Bayonetta 2.
There are extra scenes where Balder talks about his plans with Jeanne on the Isla Del Sol. Jeanne states that she knows Balder is the Right Eye and appears to be merely using Balder as a means to an end to help Bayonetta reawaken her powers. This is in contrast to the game where she was mentally reprogrammed by Balder to lure Bayonetta to the island. In these scenes, Jubileus is shown sleeping in a fetal position in the heavens instead of being formed from a statue. Throughout the film, the goddess makes movements and behaviours to emphasise she is about to awaken.
The angels are all shown to be capable of human speech instead of speaking pure Enochian. They also have a certain amount of martyrdom, claiming that they intend to be the foundations for Jubileus' awakening, even if it results in their deaths.
Most of the angels from the game do not appear in the film. Fortitudo, Temperantia, Affinity, Ardor, Beloved, Irenic and Inspired are the only ones to make an appearance. Iustitia and Sapientia never make an appearance. Fortitudo himself is not fought, appearing only as a 'leader' of the angels. Multiple Temperantias rather than just one are also shown (several appeared with Balder during the Witch Hunts).
Bayonetta and Jeanne's first battle happens during Bayonetta's train journey into Vigrid. Jeanne lures the witch out of the train into some old ruins where she is able to best Bayonetta in combat by destroying her weapons before leaving.
Balder uses his powers frequently to send Bayonetta to new places, such as to the Valley of the Witch & Sage where he has left Cereza. Their meeting plays out in much the same way as the game.
After saving the girl, Bayonetta is nagged into sharing a bath with Cereza at the hotel where she is staying in Vigrid and attempts to learn more about her. Though seeming uncaring in Cereza's attitude of being a crybaby at first, she wins the girl around by using bath foam to imitate snow. Luka attempts to sneak in to plant a bug whilst Bayonetta bonds with the child, but is quickly caught and stumbles out of the window by Bayonetta's lack of clothing. Later, he talks with Bayonetta about his reasons for pursuing her on a balcony before the bug he places there alerts the witch to Cereza crying again. Bayonetta jokes that Luka would be better to babysit than she is and disappears The next morning after sleeping on a bench outside, Luka is left with Cereza the next day after realising Bayonetta was serious in her suggestion.
On Route 666, Bayonetta destroys an Irenic on her motorbike by summoning Scolopendra whilst in an underground tunnel and later arrives at an airport where she makes short work of Temperantia through the summoning of Hekatoncheir. Luka ends up using his own car on the highway rather than taking a vehicle from the guards on the bridge and follows her rather than the other way around. Luka and Cereza catch up to Bayonetta and Luka uses Cereza's glasses to see the angels for the first time.
After Bayonetta takes care of an Inspired, the trio reconvene on a helicopter and head off. The Valkyrie transport plane never makes an appearance. Instead, the helicopter the trio use is their sole method of transport to Isla Del Sol. Here, Bayonetta refers to Luka by his real name and asks him to take them to the Ithavoll tower. Thinking that she is just saying so to wind him up, he insists she stop making fun and stick with Cheshire. On their approach, Jeanne primes a missile and fires it at their helicopter. Though their transport is destroyed, Luka and Cereza are saved by a magical shield and placed safely into the city whilst Bayonetta lands elsewhere.
The second and final battle with Jeanne takes place in both the human world and in Paradiso. The two witches are transported there midway through fighting after Bayonetta's Shuraba sword is broken. Rodin appears and, after taking care of some newly arrived angels, gives Bayonetta Scarborough Fair. Using her new weapons with reawakening of the memories of her past, she is able to win. Through their battle, Jeanne reveals the truth about their past as friends and also Bayonetta's role as the Left Eye the Umbra Witches were tasked with protecting. She implores her to stop Balder and fires at Bayonetta to move away before Balder's magic causes the explosion that presumably kills her.
When Bayonetta, Luka and Cereza arrive at Balder's office, Balder sends Cereza home through the time rift in his window. Bayonetta, having deducted that it was her younger self, is able to save Luka from the angels after he learns the truth about his father's death, but is unable to save him from falling. He later saves himself with his grappling hook. Bayonetta threatens to shoot Balder, but the powers of the Left Eye awaken in her before she can pull the trigger. It is revealed that killing the angels and mastering her abilities was enough to reawaken the Left Eye within, as well as her memories from her time as Cereza. As Jubileus awakens from both Balder and Bayonetta's power (unlike in the game where she was summoned using only the Right Eyes), Fortitudo along with multiple angels commit their life force to the deity and are absorbed to give her strength.
Jeanne comes to Bayonetta's rescue in her Umbran suit like in the game, but does not save Bayonetta directly. She shoots Jubileus' eye open and urges Bayonetta to remember what her mother, Rosa, said to her before she died. It is revealed that Balder personally watched over the destruction of the Umbra Witches during the Witch Hunts and Rosa pleaded with Bayonetta in her last moments to fulfill one request: to 'save' her father from the madness that had gripped his soul from being exiled from his clan. Using Rosa's lipstick as a reminder, Bayonetta uses her own power to break free from Jubileus' eye, scorching the left half of the goddess' body.
Balder remains alive after using his power as the Right Eye to ressurect Jubileus and directly controls her actions through it. He heals the deity back to full strength and clashes with both Bayonetta and Jeanne. After Jubileus makes short work of Gomorrah, the witches summon Queen Sheba together and control her in a similar manner, culminating in a godly clash that sends them fighting and flying across the solar system. Bayonetta uses her magic to perform a Torture Attack on Jubileus, providing Sheba with a whip to bind her to the wooden horse used on the Joys in game. As Jeanne uses her powers to give Sheba a gigantic infernal gun, Bayonetta loads her Scarborough Fair with Rosa's lipstick and fires, claiming that she prefers the chaos of this universe to the ideal utopia that Balder envisions. As the bullet kills Balder, he hallucinates Rosa telling him that she loves him as Jeanne gives the command to Sheba to fire and disintegrate Jubileus into dust.
Due to Jubileus not being summoned from a statue, the pair of witches do not have to break apart the pieces as it fell to Earth.
After the events of the film, a year has passed since Bayonetta disappeared. Rodin and Enzo ponder her whereabouts in the Gates Of Hell and Luka is able to publish a book on the Sages and Witches, lamenting on where she is by his father's graveside. Elsewhere, Bayonetta and Jeanne talk about going back to their other lives as a nun and a school teacher before a flock of angels appear on the horizon. The two witches team up to have one last fight before they go their separate ways.
