Overview
LaMB is a 2009 Singaporean-Japanese animated film directed by Ryosuke Tei based on a script written by Carmelo S. J. Juinio and illustrated by Yasufumi Soejima, produced by Animax. The film tells the story of a futuristic inhabited planet that has seemingly perfected a system of justice and imprisonment, called "Lamination". Individuals convicted of serious crimes are encased in laminated suits, which results in virtual slavery. The criminals are referred to as "LaMBs". The protagonists struggle with the political and ethical system of laminated imprisonment, leading to the eventual development of a romantic relationship between a free citizen and a LaMB.
It is the first Animax original production that provided two different songs for the opening and ending themes of the movie, featuring the music of Simple Plan and The Click Five.
Plot summary
LaMB takes place in the distant future on a desert planet called Cerra. The story features a prison system, in which prisoners are sealed in personal containment systems known as "laminated suits" and used for labor. Prisoners go through a "Lamination" process, where they are fitted with cybernetic, laminated skin-tight suits. In these suits, they can move around and completed work assignments that cannot be done by machine or robots. Law-abiding citizens are protected, while the criminals become members of society in a futuristic prison system. This process ensures that convicted criminals remain productive members in a system of virtual slavery. The story encompasses the dichotomy between the theory and practice of a futuristic society's justice system.
The lamination process and system of virtual slavery has made both jails and the death penalty obsolete in a world where human ingenuity, creativity, and labor continue to be precious commodities that cannot be replaced by robots or any form of artificial intelligence. The system also sparks off philosophical debates among citizens presenting pros and cons of the ethical feasibility of "Lamination".
From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).