Appleseed Ex Machina, also known as in the original version, is a 2007 Japanese
animated CG science fiction film and is the
sequel to the 2004
Appleseed film, similarly directed by
Shinji Aramaki, and was produced by
Hong Kong director and producer
John Woo. It was released on October 20, 2007 in Japan and made its American premiere at the
Jules Verne Adventures Film Festival in Los Angeles on December 15, 2007. The
MPAA has
Appleseed Ex Machina rated
PG-13 for action violence and brief strong language, though the first film was rated R for some violence. It was released in North America by
Warner Bros. Pictures on March 11, 2008, for
DVD and
Blu-Ray, and released for
HD DVD on April 1, 2008. It was released in Europe on May 30, 2008 on DVD, with
HMV releasing a 2-disc DVD special edition box set in Ireland and the UK, while Blu-Ray edition was released on June 2, 2008. In July 2008, the film was released theatrically in Australia as part of an anime film festival screening known as REEL ANIME hosted by
Madman Entertainment, however it was the Japanese version. The film was shown theatrically along with other films such as
Vexille and
The Girl Who Leapt Through Time in various selected cinemas throughout the country. The film was released on DVD in Australia in September 2008.