Kyousogiga has been mentioned on this blog multiple times, the first was with the ONA that was released back in 2011 followed by a joyous post when I found out that the one-shot ONA was due to get more episodes. I loved it. I hoped for more Kyousogiga and Toei saw fit to give it to us. And thank the anime Gods because this is my second favourite anime of the Autumn season a real breath of fresh air in a season mired with middling shows!
Toei animation have been working at making the movie adaptation of George Akiyama’s manga Asura (1970 – 1971) since they announced its start back in 2010. Now that its release is nearing there are trailers, images, and staff details being released.
Mid-15th Century Japan, the country is suffering war and gripped by drought and famine. When a young child named Asura is born he is plunged into a harsh world of violence and desperation which turns him into a beast that roams the hills. After provoking the rage of a local lord, Asura finds himself being hunted but a young girl named Wakasa comes to his aid. Can Wakasa help rehabilitate him and bring him back to civilisation amidst the suffering and chaos that surrounds them?
Highly controversial at the time of its publication, Asura was an amoral tale that focussed on the will to live but it drew criticism in Japan due to its depiction of violence¹ which got it banned in some prefectures of Japan during its original publication. The film is directed by Keiichi Sato (Tiger & Bunny) with a theme song by Yasuha Kominami.
The voice acting cast is strong with Masako Nozawa (Goku in Dragon Ball and Tetsuro in Adieu Galaxy Express 999) voicing Asura and Megumi Hayashibara (Rei Ayanami in Evangelion) voicing Wakasa. Also in the cast are Hiroaki Hirata (Akihiko in Mōryō no Hako, Sanji in One Piece) and Kaori Yamagata (Chacha in Legend of Basara).
The film gets a theatrical release on the 29th of September. 
Staff: Keiichi Sato (Director), Yasuha Kominami (Theme Song Performance)
Voice Actors: Masako Nozawa, Megumi Hayashibara, Yuu Mizushima, Kinya Kitaōji, Tessho Genda, Kaori Yamagata, Hiroaki Hirata, Bin Shimada, Kappei Yamaguchi,
Studio: Toei
¹ Spoiler/ the manga opens with Asura’s mother starved into madness and throwing Asura onto a fire so she can cook and eat him!
This week I posted some trailers for Another, and Helter Skelter and went to my final Japanese class until September – silly film related story at the bottom of this post. Anyway… The films released last week looked awesome soooo…
What is happening in the Japanese movie box office charts?
Sadako 3D is not number 1. I am genuinely surprised. Japan must really need a comedy because Thermae Romae is at number 1 for a third week in a row with Sadako 3D entering at number 2. While I was not convinced about the latest Ringu film’s ability to scare I thought it would “dominate the Japanese charts for the next few weeks” because Sadako is such an icon and the film looked like fun. The only other new entry is Larry Crowne which has entered at number 5 which Curiosity Kitty recently reviewed and pretty much dismissed. Unfortunately Rent a Cat didn’t chart in the top ten. What’s released today?
Rainbow-Coloured Fireflies – The Eternal Summer Vacation
Japanese Title: Niji-Iro Hotaru: Eien no Natsu Yasumi
Release Date: 19th May 2012 (Japan)
Running Time: N/A
Director: Konosuke Uda
Writer: Kei Kunii (Script), Masayuki Kawaguchi (manga)
Starring: Akashi Takei, Ayumi Kimura, Kairo Nitta, Taro Ishida, Takahiro Sakurai, Kazuya Nakai, Chikao Otsuka
Rainbow-Colored Fireflies: The Eternal Summer Vacation (Niji-iro Hotaru Eien no Natsu Yasumi) is released today by Toei Animation. The film is based on Masayuki Kawaguchi’s 2007 novel of the same name. It is directed by Konosuke Uda who helmed Galaxy Express 999: Eternal Fantasy and the recent TV anime Ginga e Kickoff!!. Other big names involved include Hisashi Mori who has worked on classic movies The Girl Who Leapt Through Time and Tokyo Godfathers. Takaaki Yamashita (Summer Wars) is adding visual art, and Seiki Tamura (K-ON!, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya) is performing duties as art director. Yumi Matsutōya, the artist responsible for the themes to the classic Ghibli movie Kiki’s Delivery Service is providing the theme song for this film while her husband provides music.
Synopsis
The story follows a young boy named Yuuta, who lost his father in a car accident a year ago. One day, all alone, he goes to catch a beetle at a dam deep in the mountains he used to visit with his father. On his journey he meets a strange old man and it starts raining. Yuuta slips, falls off a bridge and passes out. When he wakes up he finds himself in a village that should be under water but he has travelled back 30 years in the past. With children named Saeko and Kenjo he experiences summer activities like collecting fireworks, catching a rare beetle and discovering his first love. These experiences will be part of his precious summer memories.
Streaming the first ten/twenty minutes of a film seems to be happening more and more in Japan. At first we saw it with films released by Warner Bros. Japan like Berserk and now Toei have joined the club by streaming the first twenty minutes of their new movie Rainbow-Colored Fireflies: The Eternal Summer Vacation (Niji-iro Hotaru Eien no Natsu Yasumi). This is being streamed online until the 18th of May, the day before it’s theatrical release in Japan.
Synopsis
The story follows a young boy named Yuuta, who lost his father in a car accident a year ago. One day, all alone, he goes to catch a beetle at a dam deep in the mountains he used to visit with his father. On his journey he meets a strange old man and it starts raining. Yuuta slips, falls off a bridge and passes out. When he wakes up he finds himself in a village that should be under water but he has travelled back 30 years in the past. With children named Saeko and Kenjo he experiences summer activities like collecting fireworks, catching a rare beetle and discovering his first love. These experiences will be part of his precious summer memories.
My initial reactions are mixed. The art direction and music are pretty atmospheric (gorgeous nature scenes, especially the rain and Yuuta search for his mobile) but the character designs left me feeling cold. I’d wager that they will grow on me over time. A look at the staff reveals a lot of industry veterans with interesting titles to their names.
This film is based on Masayuki Kawaguchi’s 2007 novel of the same name. It is directed by Konosuke Uda who helmed Galaxy Express 999: Eternal Fantasy and the recent TV anime Ginga e Kickoff!!. Adapting the story into a script is Kei Kunī. The project has character designs and animation direction from Hisashi Mori who has worked on classic movies The Girl Who Leapt Through Time and Tokyo Godfathers. Takaaki Yamashita (Summer Wars) is adding visual art, and Seiki Tamura (K-ON!, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya) performing duties as art director. Yumi Matsutōya, the artist responsible for the themes to the classic Ghibli movie Kiki’s Delivery Service is providing the theme song for this film.
Staff: Konosuke Uda (Director), Masayuki Kawaguchi (Original Novelist), Kei Kunī (Script), Masataka Matsutōya (Music), Yumi Matsutōya (Theme Song Composition, Performance), Mori Hisashi (Character Design/Animation Director), Seiki Tamura (Art Director), Takaaki Yamashita (Visual Art)
Voice Actors: Akashi Takei, Ayumi Kimura, Kairo Nitta, Taro Ishida, Takahiro Sakurai, Kazuya Nakai, Chikao Otsuka
Studio: Toei Animation
Genkinahito 