20th Century Boys-Great Asian Fun

Now on DVD, 20th Century Boys is based on a manga about a group of childhood friends who predict the end of the world, and reunite to save it. At a school reunion they learn of a cult led by a mysterious masked figure named Friend, and is linked to a strange blood draining disease. Can the friends unite and figure out the secret behind the cult in time to save the world from destruction?
The movie is touted as "The most expensive movie ever made in Japan". Most of the money must have been spent in the last 20 minutes of the movie, so most of the beginning of the movie is used to provide a background on the kids. The quirky humor in a lot of Japan cinema is present in abundance here, as is the occasional grandeious melodrama.
If you happen to run across the movie, I would suggest watching it. The final scene of the movie makes the slow parts worth sitting through..