`Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust'.(The Dallas Morning News)

Based on the series of novels by Hideyuki Kikuchi, Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust is a Japanese animated feature that's intriguing even though it's often at odds with itself. A mind-blowing amalgamation of unusual elements and ambitious design, its parts are greater than the whole. But oh, what interesting parts they are.

The film is set in the distant future, on a post-post-apocalyptic Earth that's been plagued with vampires for centuries. The number of vampires is dwindling because of efforts by bounty hunters, the deadliest of whom is the half-human, half-vampire D (Andrew Philpot), an intriguing riff on Clint Eastwood's Man-With-No-Name character. D is hired by ...