Rating: 
Summary: Marginal Patlabor, but intriguing
Review: Like other reviewers, I agree that this anime is only marginally Patlabor, but that is not to say that it is not intriguing. A typical concept about the evils of genetic engineering is given a spin. A mother's love for her dead daughter leads to the creation of a horrifying genetically engineered creature, with the added angst of a young police detective who is attracted to the woman but has to finally confront the unavoidable fact that his object of attraction is responsible for a scourge of death and horror.
Design wise, this film can take its place with some of the best of modern anime. Camera angles, movements once again, make one forget that this is animation. One of my hallmarks of good anime is that the story, design, animation and music draws one into the STORY. Those of you who like me, love the Special Vehicles Group, might be disappointed that they dont make an appearance until the climax, but give this anime a chance. One more note, the music score can take its place with the first two films, some really beautiful cues are simply heartbreaking make this another winner. As I only have the import DVD, i cannot say who does this score, but its sounds mighty like Mr Kawai, who also did the first two films score. If you are the cautious type, by all means, rent this before buying.
Rating: 
Summary: Fascinating and Tragic
Review: No, WXIII doesnÕt have much to do with Patlabor Section 2. Captain Goto and his team make only a short appearance at the end. But that's OK - it's a fascinating movie anyway. If you can't figure out what is going on by the third scene, where detective Hata meets the young woman with her aluminum suitcase, you need your movie watching license revoked. Of course she has something to do with the monster in Tokyo Bay who's eating people -- that's OBVIOUS. But the question isn't What? - it's Why? --- The action is quite slow, and in a real sense WXIII is a police procedural, not a horror flick at all. We follow the two detectives as they slowly close in on a genuinely rotten set of military-industrial types who are making biological weapons with the Americans (the film has a strong political point of view) and simultaneously close in on the monster itself. It comes down to seeing who will reach the creature first - the military who want it dead, or the detectives plus Captain Goto's team, who want to capture it and prevent the suicide of the young mother who used her daughter's DNA to create it. Be forewarned: the film is a tragedy. The detectives and Goto's team fail. --- By focusing the film on the young woman and the detective who is going out with her (her husband is dead), WXIII avoids being a Grade B horror flick, and becomes a tragedy with a distinct moral point of view. "They" -- meaning officialdom -- could have captured the creature, but that isn't the way people who make biological weapons work. People like THAT are killers, and they win in this film. --- So why watch a movie that doesn't have a happy ending? Partly because it's superbly made and partly because sometimes life itself does not have a happy ending. It's worth remembering that.
Rating: 
Summary: Boy this broke my heart
Review: Now, let me start by saying Im a tremendous fan of all things Patlabor, but I think I've found my limit. Im sure by now you know the premise to this film, renegade monster devouring citizens, 2 hours later the SV2 appears and quickly dispatch it etc.. etc.. Perhaps the worst/saddest aspect of this film is that the SV2 squad are minor characters. I'm not sure how much of the series you ladies and gentlemen have seen, but believe me, the two detectives appear two or three times a SEASON. I think roles have switched between the detectives and SV2 here! Dont get me wrong, this isnt a bad film, but it most certaintly doesn't deserve the title patlabor. It chiefly focuses on the two detectives (whose names escape me) on how they solve the mystery concerning the mutant monster. Keeping in mind I love all Patlabor, imagine this scenario: You're a Star Trek fan and you get a new ... dvd movie set. Sadly, it's about how the Romulans deal with the Borg invasion and manage to drag it out for 3 hours. Now I'm sure you'd want to see Pickard/Kirk and crew kick some tail right? They'd only appear 3 times during the movie! Well now you know how I feel! Ya want a refund for this ... movie that has nothing to do with your heroes. You're here for the Enterprise, not the Romulans. I kept waiting and hoping the SV2 would jump in but they only appeared at the very end. Disappointment is at an all-time high, my friends. To me, this movie is a one time see-er and not quite worth the [amount] for the delux set. If you dont care what it is as long it concerns patlabor, get this film for the most complete anime experience ever. I thought MiniPato was a rather funny little set of shorts. The animation was absolutely unique, yet I was disappointed once again. Instead of paroding the series, little SD(super deformed to all you non-anime fanatics) cartoon SV2 characters explainined all about the technical aspects of the Ingram and Revolver Cannon. Then, there was an extremely random episode about Captain Gotoh and how he established the gobi industry within the SV2. Now dont get me wrong; I was pleasantly enchanted by these informative and semi-entertaining shorts but I was looking for the Ingrams' crime-busting action in this cartoon style, not a video about the tehnical aspects. In all, I give this 3 DVD set a 3 out of 5. There are several fine aspects about the film and included shorts, but if you're looking for a godzilla VS Robot type movie (Somethin all about Ota/Izumi VS bio monster) keep lookin. You're gonna be extremely disappointed. The creators wanted to try something new with good old Patlabor, yet I personally feel you shouldn't change something that's genuinely classic. ~Now excuse me while I go watch some Patlabor ; )
Rating:
Summary: Great Movie, bad DVD :(
Review: Ok, first off, let me stress that I LIKED THIS MOVIE! I found it to be enjoyable in a B-movie style, but I would have liked more character development(then again, I love as much of this as I can get) and overall length. I'm a big Production I.G. fan, so I was anxious to see how this one would turn out. I rushed out to buy this DVD and found it to be pretty annoying for two reasons: 1)The animation "runs"(or glitches, it is a weird error) quite a few times during the movie. This isn't something it is supposed to do, it is a messup in the coding as far as I know, and I've never had another high quality anime do this(non-high quality being some hong kong knock-offs I mistakenly ordered). 2) The Japanese 5.1 audio track isn't synched with the video, so you have every sound happening about 1-2 seconds after the motion occurs on screen. These may seem like small things to gripe about, but I've come to expect better anime treatment from Pioneer, and I was hoping for better transfer quality on a 52$ set. I checked it through 2 different DVD players, and both problems occured in both players. If it weren't for these technical flaws, i would have scored it as a 4 or maybe even 5, but they really bummed me out. The extras are cool, if you're an I.G. or Patlabor fan, they are something you can really dig. My biggest problem was that although I love cool extras, I buy a DVD for the movie above all. When the transfer is so flawed that it noticeably distracts me from the movie, I get ticked. :(
Rating:
Summary: Good but slow
Review: Someone should have told the director: Slow pacing <> Drama. This moving is good but it took too long to get to the heart of the story. I liked the animation and the action sequences (when they finally came up), the only negative is that parts of this film will put you right to sleep. Too bad.
Rating:
Summary: Different but interesting plot of Patlabor
Review: The first twenty minutes of WXIII are a bit ponderous. Although the story is set up quite well. This all changes about a half hour into the film when the main threat of the show is revealed. From that point, the movie becomes a tense, taut work. The slow opening then makes perfect sense in retrospect. I strongly suspect many viewers might get bored and turn off the movie right before the lid flies off; my suggestion is to stay with it. Otherwise, though, I'm sold. What's so great about WXIII is the visual look combined with a solid story and nuanced participants. WXIII is marvelous to look at, a wonderful treat of animation. Its sense of utter realism is virtually unparalleled, and yet it looks so good at the same time.
Rating:
Summary: Mini-Pato is worth the price of admission
Review: The movie itself is... pretty good. A cross between a thriller, suspense and Robot vs. Monster movie, we see detectives Katsumi and Hata investigate several acts of destruction and murder along the Tokyo bay area. An exercise in slow burn, definitely, and a well done one at that. It was annouced years ago that the third Patlabor movie wouldn't concentrate on SVU 2, and I was prepared for this. But what baffled me was Katsumi and Hata; Patlabor already has a great detective character in Matsui, who's appeared in the TV series, OAVs, and both movies. Why these guys? As stated, I knew SVU 2 wouldn't be the main characters, but I was suprised at how little screen time they had. And anyway, what happened to Takeo Kumagami? We haven't seen her since the end of the 2nd OAVs. How is Kanuka Clancy? She was my favorite character... To continue, the second disk is Pat 3 extras, with what you'd expect - interviews, behind the scenes, trailers - and something unexpected: a radio drama. This was an excellent move on Pioneer's part, but I really wish they had it translated and subtitled. I had to find an English translation online. Now we come to Mini-pato... awesome! A laugh a minute. Three vignettes narrarated by Gotoh, Shige and Shinobu, with a highly entertaining behind-the-scenes extra. The most entertaining part of this collection. A good grab-bag of Patlabor goodness. Worth a shot, especially if you're a fan.
Rating:
Summary: Superbly Animated
Review: This edition to the Patlabor saga adds a well-crafted, visually striking, and throught-provoking look at two detective's case on a biogenetically constructed monster who is on the loose and is destroying submarines and airplanes left and right. The movie is very slow-paced, and will leave some viewers shaking their heads at the lack of action and violence, however it must be noted that this edition of the Patlabor saga is not for the hardcore fan of nonstop action which previous episodes may have accustomed them to seeing. The action, though not nonexistant, is sparse and often short in its duration. However, to fully appreciate the beauty of this masterpiece one must break out of the need to have action and look at the deeper aspects of the movie. The psychological problems that a mother of a recently deceased daughter and husband endures propels her to use some of child's cancer cells in order to "revive" her daughter into the form of a monster capable of regenerating its body parts. One of the lead detectives investigating the monster's rampage has trouble believing this paradox at first, but soon realizes that her isolation has pushed her to the brink of insanity towards the end of the movie. This, in turn, leads to the cataclysmic ending in which we see some startling revelations as well as the final confrontation between the monster and the police who're trying to stop it. Throughout its entirety, the movie is extremely realistic. I was pleased to see that the characters actually resemble Japanese people with a darker skin tone rather than a bleach white color. The fact that the movie most completely revolves around the investigation makes it a little boring, however this only adds to its climax and can fully be appreciated and recognized as a mature anime. In sum, this edition to the Patlabor saga ultimately has to be the finest of them all. The caliber of its animation and the way in which the director was able to keep the storyline realistic while using a bit of fiction with the monster really helped to deveop a top-notch plot. For those looking for a great anime minus the forced humor via sexual puns and overly exaggerated emotions, then by all means check this out.
Rating:
Summary: Different but interesting view of Patlabor
Review: True, it is a slow-pace movie. However, that aspect is major part of the story. In this movie, action is not the genre. So if you assume this is another mech action flick, it will disappoint you so badly and make you say it aint worth to buying or even watching. Because unlike other 2 movies and TV episodes, camera focuses on two detectives not 2nd team of labor department to lead. Pro:
1. Beautiful and stuning visual
2. Nice study of biology
3. Detail background of both surroundings and characters
4. Great story line
Con:
1. No memorable music score
2. Mixed genre to may confuse most American audiences
3. Less action than any other I waould say this is another master piece from Patlabor saga, and give it 5 stars without any question.
This review is based on theatrical release.
Rating: 
Summary: Not worth it
Review: When u think patlabor, u think cops and big 'ol robots. Well that is far from what u get in this movie. The animation is good, but the pace is slower than a snail. Waiting five minutes for a character to turn off a car, unbuckle, open the door, etc... is a good way to describe the general speed of the movie. Also, the soundtrack is very lacking, too much silence. You don't even get decent action till the VERY end. Spend your money on something like Cowboy Bebop or RahXephon before even thinking about purchasing this
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