Wanpaku Ōji no Orochi Taiji

Wanpaku Ōji no Orochi Taiji

Scene from the film
Directed by Yūgo Serikawa
Screenplay by Ichirō Ikeda
Takashi Iijima
Starring Morio Kazama
Yukiko Okada
Chiharu Kuri
Music by Akira Ifukube
Cinematography Mitsuaki Ishikawa
Hideaki Sugawara
Edited by Ikuzō Inaba
Production
company
Distributed by Tōei Company (Japan)
Columbia Pictures (United States)
Release dates
  • March 24, 1963 (1963-03-24)
Running time
 86 minutes
Country Japan
Language Japanese

Wanpaku Ōji no Orochi Taiji (わんぱく王子の大蛇退治, literally The Naughty Prince's Orochi Slaying) is a Japanese animated fantasy adventure feature film, the 6th feature produced by Tōei Animation (then Tōei Dōga), released in Japan on March 24, 1963. English-dubbed versions have been released under several titles, including The Little Prince and the Eight-Headed Dragon, Prince in Wonderland and Rainbow Bridge.[1]

Based on the Shintō myth of the storm god Susanoo's battle with the Yamata no Orochi, the color, "TōeiScope" anamorphic format film is scripted by Ichirō Ikeda and Takashi Iijima and directed by Yūgo Serikawa. It is considered one of the very best of the Tōei Dōga features and a landmark in anime and animated features in general,[2] placing 10th in the list of the 150 best animated films and series of all time compiled by Tokyo's Laputa Animation Festival from an international survey of animation staff and critics in 2003.[3] It features distinctively modernist, abstracted character, background and color design, formalised the role of animation director, performed here by Yasuji Mori, in the Japanese system and drew attention to the talents of key animators Yasuo Ōtsuka and Yōichi Kotabe (whose key animation for the film, though he is credited in it as an in-betweener, is his first)[4] and assistant directors Isao Takahata and Kimio Yabuki. The score, composed by Akira Ifukube, is also acclaimed.[5]

Plot

This anime film tells the story of the god Susano'o (as a cute boy), whose mother Izanami has died. He is deeply hurt by the loss of his mother but his father Izanagi tells him that his mother is now in heaven. Despite Izanagi's warnings, Susano'o eventually sets off to find her. Along with his companions, Akahana (a little talking rabbit) and Titan Bō (a strong but friendly giant from the Land of Fire), Susano'o overcomes all obstacles in his long voyage. He eventually comes to the Izumo Province, where he meets Princess Kushinada, a little girl whom he becomes friends with (he also thinks that she is so beautiful that she looks like his mother). Kushinada's family tells Susano'o that their other seven daughters were sacrificed to the fearsome eight-headed serpent, the Yamata no Orochi. Susano'o is so infatuated with Kushinada that he decides to help her family protect her and slay the Orochi once and for all and he, Akahana and Bō prepare for the showdown.

Notes

This movie eschewed the soft, rounded look of previous Tōei animated features for a more stylized one. It is also one of the few animated films to have music by famed composer Akira Ifukube, the other being the posthumously-released Tetsujin Nijūhachi-gō feature Hakuchū no Zangetsu. A symphonic suite of five movements based on the score's cues was created by Ifukube in 2003, the first recording of which was performed by the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Tetsuji Honna and released on Compact Disc by King Records within the same year. Some of the film's music was also redeployed in the 1st and 32nd episodes,[6] first broadcast in 1972 and 1973 respectively, of the Tōei Animation television series Mazinger Z.

The film's theme song, "Haha no Nai Ko no Komoriuta" (母のない子の子守歌, "Lullaby for a Motherless Child"), is also composed by Ifukube, with lyrics by Takashi Morishima, and is sung by Setsuko Watabe. The original, monaural soundtrack recording has at least twice been released on Compact Disc, both now out of print: first in a two-disc set released by Futureland in 1992, which paired it with a disc of alternate takes and Ifukube's music for Mitsubishi's Expo '70 exhibit,[5] and latterly in better quality but without the alternate takes as one of a 10-disc collection of Tōei Animation soundtracks released by Nippon Columbia in 1996.[7]

Release

The film was distributed in the United States, as The Little Prince and the Eight-Headed Dragon, as a matinée feature by Columbia Pictures, opening January 1, 1964.[8] Its Japanese origin was downplayed, as was standard practice at the time,[9] with William Ross, the director of the English dubbing, credited as director and Fujifilm and Tōei's color and widescreen processes rebranded as "MagiColor" and "WonderScope" respectively.[6]

Though still highly regarded in animation circles, the film is now little-known outside of them and as of April 2011 the most recent home video edition is an out of print Japanese DVD-Video released in 2002 and reissued in limited quantity in 2008.

Reception

Accolades received by Wanpaku at the time of its release including being honoured with a Bronze Osella at the Venice Film Festival and the Ōfuji Noburō Award at the 1963 Mainichi Film Awards[10] and making it into the official recommendations of the Japanese Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health's Central Child Welfare Council. More recently, Genndy Tartakovsky watched the film and identifies it as a primary influence on the direction and design of his Samurai Jack.[6]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Stanley, John (2000). Creature Features: The Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Movie Guide. New York: Berkley Books. p. 312.
  2. ↑ Ettinger, Benjamin. "Tōei Dōga". AniPages Daily. Retrieved 3 April 2011.
  3. ↑ "150 best animations of all time (from 2003 Laputa Festival)". Animatsiya in English. May 29, 2008. Retrieved 3 April 2011.
  4. ↑ Ettinger, Benjamin (October 29, 2011). "The seconding system at Toei Doga". Anipages. Retrieved 31 October 2011.
  5. 1 2 "COMPLETE RECORDINGS: AKIRA IFUKUBE TOEI-DOGA FILM MUSIC". godzillamonstermusic.com. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  6. 1 2 3 "Cartoon Brew". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  7. ↑ "Prince Wanpaku Slays the Great Serpent (COCC-13504)". godzillamonstermusic.com. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  8. ↑ Wanpaku Ōji no Orochi Taiji at the Internet Movie Database
  9. ↑ The Mile Toole Show, Anime news network, Mar 27, 2011.
  10. ↑ Hotes, Cathy Munroe. "Nishikata Film Review: The Noburo Ofuji Award (大藤信郎賞)" (Blogspot). Nishikata eiga. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
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