This movie spent seven years hand-drawing every frame of motion you see, and it shows in ways that make computer animation look static by comparison. JP careens through a universe that moves like liquid neon, a racer too reckless to notice the corporate warfare happening around him until it's too late. Romance blooms in the margins of a tournament designed to destroy you, and by the time you realize what the movie is actually about, you're already committed to a man driving toward something he doesn't understand. The animation isn't flashy for flashiness' sake, it's the point. This is what happens when obsessive craft becomes the story itself.

JP is a reckless daredevil who ignores speed limits and drives a heavily customized car. When Redline, the universe's most dangerous race, comes around once every five years, he qualifies and sets his sights on first place and the glory that comes with it. The race has no rules, and many rivals arm their vehicles with destructive weapons. Among the elite drivers is Sonoshee McLaren, a rising star and the only other human to qualify, and JP secretly falls for her. This year's event is set on Roboworld, where a trigger-happy military and criminal groups hope to exploit the race for their own purposes. Takeshi Koike's first animated feature blends sci-fi racing, action and romance.