Redline, the Japanese animation by Takeshi Koike released in 2010, may be a juvenile car racing movie in a pseudo "Heavy Metal" world, but is a great piece of art and a joy to watch.
After having done a short animation piece for the Animatrix, Koike spent the next 7 years or so on this movie. It reuses similar themes and style of racing, speed, and visuals with those bold dark lines. Yet, surprisingly, Redline's 100 minutes of animation shows a consistent level of visual artistry that doesn't cut corners. Each frame is beautifully hand-drawn in a style that defies the usual tropes we now expect from Japanese anime. The drawings show a level of detail normally reserved only for animation key frames or comic books. The backgrounds do not feel like out-of-place artworks and integrate elegantly in the overall style.
While the story is not quite deep, almost all characters, including the minor ones, are developed well enough to support an entire "Redline" TV series. The races themselves are some of the finest races I've seen seen in a movie, at the same level as Vanishing Point, the Blues Brothers and Death Proof. The first race before the opening titles will keep you at the edge of your seat with its impeccable pacing, editing, music and visuals.
Much had been said already about how this movie seem completely out of place compared to the entire Japanese animation industry. On its own, outside of that context, it still remains an impressive masterpiece of its young director, and an incredibly fun, over-the-top action movie.