Rating: **
Review Date: 7/19/08
"Parasite Dolls" revisits the "Bubblegum Crisis" spin-off series "AD Police Files," which gives the world of Boomer crimes a grittier and more adult treatment. Unfortunately, it's neither sexy, shocking, or thought provoking, and simply comes across as standard sci-fi fare. The Advanced Police were created to deal with Boomer related crimes and cyber-terrorism in Genom City, and within them is a secret group called Branch that deals with politically messy situations. The film is divided into three parts, each dealing with a different case. The first case involves Boomers being incited into madness while pleasure seekers get off on their highly adrenalized reactions. The second case follows a serial killer who murders Boomer prostitutes and an illegally modified pleasure model named Eve, who is oddly humanized. Finally, Genom City erupts into chaos as an insane politician unleashes his plan for Boomer genocide and sets up Branch to take the fall for it. It's a good looking production, but it pulls its punches and never manages to engage the viewer either viscerally or intellectually. Or am I just getting really old and jaded?