Neo Tokyo (film)
Encyclopedia
, also titled Manie-Manie on its title card, is a 1987 anime
science fiction
anthology film
produced by Project Team Argos and Madhouse
. Conceived and produced by Madhouse founders Masao Maruyama
and Rintarō
, it adapts short stories
by Taku Mayumura
featured in the 1986 collection of the same Japanese title and is executive produced
by publisher Haruki Kadokawa
.
The 50 minute-long film has three segments, each under a different screenwriter
and film director
: Rintarō's "Labyrinth labyrinthos," an exploration into the maze of a little girl's mind, Yoshiaki Kawajiri
's "Running Man," focusing on a deadly auto race
, and Katsuhiro Ōtomo
's "The Order to Stop Construction," is a cautionary tale about man's dependency on technology. In addition to original music by Godiego
's Mickie Yoshino, two prominently feature famous pieces of Western classical music
: the first of Erik Satie
's Gymnopédies and the "Toreador Song
" of Georges Bizet
's Carmen
in "Labyrinth" and "Morning Mood
" from Edvard Grieg
's Peer Gynt score, in an ironic manner, in "The Order."
The film premièred on September 25, 1987, at that year's Tōkyō International Fantastic Film Festival. Other than festival screenings, distributor the Tōhō Company
originally relegated the film direct-to-video
, releasing a VHS on October 10, 1987, but did eventually give it a general cinema release in Japan, on April 15, 1989. In English, the film was licensed, dubbed
and released theatrically (as a double feature
with the first Silent Möbius
film) and to VHS in North America
by Streamline Pictures
, the license later being taken up by the now also out of business ADV Films
.
and animation direction
by Atsuko Fukushima, key
animation by Manabu Ōhashi, Reiko Kurihara and Fukushima and art direction
by Yamako Ishikawa. It serves as the anthology's "top-level" story, a framing device
that leads into the other two works.
/Cheryl Chase
), a girl locked in a game of hide-and-seek with her cat Cicerone
. Her search leads her to an old longcase clock
which doubles as a doorway to a labyrinth
world. The world is filled with supernatural oddities and characters, such as cardboard working class citizens, an invisible dog, a skeleton-led train and a weird circus. Eventually, Sachi and Cicerone arrive at a circus
tent where a viewing screen is displayed, leading to the following segments.
, than Michael McConnohie
's Streamline dub.
) is the titular "Running Man," the undefeated champion of the "Death Circus" racing circuit and has raced for 10 years. Competitors race in high-speed Formula One
-like craft, and spectators bet on the lives of these people for huge winnings. A Marlowe-esque
reporter (Masane Tsukayama
/Michael McConnohie
) is sent to interview the mysterious Zach outside of the track and watches one of his races. He soon discovers Hugh has telekinetic abilities which he uses to destroy the other racers, after quietly observing him in the dark chronically over-using an interface console inside Hugh's penthouse. As the race ends in his favor, Hugh begins to see the spirits of racers who perished on the track and he continues the race until his vehicle goes up in flames. The Death Circus ends shortly afterwards, the reporter believes it was because spectators wanted to see how long Hugh could outlast death.
(note: The French language readout on the dash screen translates as: One of the high points of the Continental
Circuit: The baffle of Assen
, the finish line on certain laps, is a few tens of meters away.)
, key animation by Kōji Morimoto
, Nakamura, Ōtomo and Kunihiko Sakurai and art direction by Takamura Mukuo. This segment's depiction of South America as a dangerous, unstable place is comparable to other depictions in the Japanese media during the 1980s such as Osamu Tezuka
's 1987 comic
Gringo
.
n country of the Aloana Republic has resulted in a new government being installed; this new government refuses to accept a contract detailing the construction of Facility 444. The company responsible for the construction has begun to lose millions, so salaryman
Tsutomu Sugioka (Yū Mizushima
/Robert Axelrod
) is sent to stop production. The work is completely automated, carried out by robots programmed to finish the job no matter the consequences and led by a robot identified as 444-1 (Hiroshi Ōtake/Jeff Winkless
). Witnessing the destruction of several robots and Robot 444-1's refusal to cease operations, Tsutomu begins to lose his patience and is nearly killed by 444-1 who was programmed to eliminate anything that poses a threat to the project. He retaliates by destroying 444-1 and follows its powercord that leads to the energy source of the robots in an attempt to finally end the production. Unknown to Tsutomu, the old government has been restored and they have agreed to honor the contract once more.
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
anthology film
Anthology film
An anthology film is a feature film consisting of several different short films, often tied together by only a single theme, premise, or brief interlocking event . Sometimes each one is directed by a different director...
produced by Project Team Argos and Madhouse
Madhouse (company)
is a Japanese animation studio, founded in 1972 by ex–Mushi Pro animators including Masao Maruyama, Osamu Dezaki, Rintaro, and Yoshiaki Kawajiri. It has created and helped to produce many well known shows, starting with TV anime series Ace o Nerae! in 1973, and including western favourites Ninja...
. Conceived and produced by Madhouse founders Masao Maruyama
Masao Maruyama (film producer)
is a Japanese film producer, animation developer, the co-founder, board of directors member, and producer of Studio Madhouse, one of the leading animation production companies in the world...
and Rintarō
Rintaro
is the pseudonym of , a well-known director of anime. He works frequently with the animation studio Madhouse , though he is a freelance director not employed directly by any one studio. He began working in the animation industry—at age 17—as an in-between animator on the 1958 film Hakujaden...
, it adapts short stories
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
by Taku Mayumura
Taku Mayumura
Taku Mayumura is a Japanese science fiction writer who won the Seiun Award for Novel twice. In 2004 his Shiseikan , written in 1974, was translated into English....
featured in the 1986 collection of the same Japanese title and is executive produced
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
by publisher Haruki Kadokawa
Haruki Kadokawa
is a Japanese publisher, film producer, director and screenwriter. He was the son of Genyoshi Kadokawa and inherited the position of president of the publishing house Kadokawa Shoten in 1975. Under his guidance, the company soon branched into film production, and by 1994 Kadokawa had produced close...
.
The 50 minute-long film has three segments, each under a different screenwriter
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
and film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
: Rintarō's "Labyrinth labyrinthos," an exploration into the maze of a little girl's mind, Yoshiaki Kawajiri
Yoshiaki Kawajiri
is a critically acclaimed writer and director of Japanese animation. He is the creator of titles such as Wicked City, Ninja Scroll, and Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust.-Career:...
's "Running Man," focusing on a deadly auto race
Auto racing
Auto racing is a motorsport involving the racing of cars for competition. It is one of the world's most watched televised sports.-The beginning of racing:...
, and Katsuhiro Ōtomo
Katsuhiro Otomo
is a Japanese comic book creator, screenwriter and film director. He is best known as the creator of the manga Akira and its animated film adaptation. Otomo has also directed several live-action films, such as the 2006 feature film adaptation of the manga Mushishi.-Biography:Katsuhiro Otomo was...
's "The Order to Stop Construction," is a cautionary tale about man's dependency on technology. In addition to original music by Godiego
Godiego
is a popular band from Japan, consisting of the Mickie Yoshino, Yukihide Takekawa, Takami Asano, Steve Fox, and Tommy Snyder...
's Mickie Yoshino, two prominently feature famous pieces of Western classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
: the first of Erik Satie
Erik Satie
Éric Alfred Leslie Satie was a French composer and pianist. Satie was a colourful figure in the early 20th century Parisian avant-garde...
's Gymnopédies and the "Toreador Song
Toreador Song
The Toreador Song is one of the most famous arias from the opera Carmen by Georges Bizet. Sung by the matador Escamillo, it describes various situations in the ring, the cheering of the crowds and the fame that comes with victory.-Text:-In popular culture:* The song is mocked during the "I lost my...
" of Georges Bizet
Georges Bizet
Georges Bizet formally Alexandre César Léopold Bizet, was a French composer, mainly of operas. In a career cut short by his early death, he achieved few successes before his final work, Carmen, became one of the most popular and frequently performed works in the entire opera repertory.During a...
's Carmen
Carmen
Carmen is a French opéra comique by Georges Bizet. The libretto is by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée, first published in 1845, itself possibly influenced by the narrative poem The Gypsies by Alexander Pushkin...
in "Labyrinth" and "Morning Mood
Morning Mood
Morning Mood is a composition belonging to Edvard Grieg's Peer Gynt Suite No. 1, op. 46. This composition is often used in films, television commercials, and shows . The piece depicts the rising of the sun. Along with In the Hall of the Mountain King, Morning Mood is one of Grieg's best known works....
" from Edvard Grieg
Edvard Grieg
Edvard Hagerup Grieg was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is best known for his Piano Concerto in A minor, for his incidental music to Henrik Ibsen's play Peer Gynt , and for his collection of piano miniatures Lyric Pieces.-Biography:Edvard Hagerup Grieg was born in...
's Peer Gynt score, in an ironic manner, in "The Order."
The film premièred on September 25, 1987, at that year's Tōkyō International Fantastic Film Festival. Other than festival screenings, distributor the Tōhō Company
Toho
is a Japanese film, theater production, and distribution company. It is headquartered in Yūrakuchō, Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group...
originally relegated the film direct-to-video
Direct-to-video
Direct-to-video is a term used to describe a film that has been released to the public on home video formats without being released in film theaters or broadcast on television...
, releasing a VHS on October 10, 1987, but did eventually give it a general cinema release in Japan, on April 15, 1989. In English, the film was licensed, dubbed
Dubbing (filmmaking)
Dubbing is the post-production process of recording and replacing voices on a motion picture or television soundtrack subsequent to the original shooting. The term most commonly refers to the substitution of the voices of the actors shown on the screen by those of different performers, who may be...
and released theatrically (as a double feature
Double feature
The double feature, also known as a double bill, was a motion picture industry phenomenon in which theatre managers would exhibit two films for the price of one, supplanting an earlier format in which one feature film and various short subject reels would be shown.The double feature, also known as...
with the first Silent Möbius
Silent Möbius
is a twelve-volume manga, a 26-episode anime series, and a pair of motion pictures, created by manga artist Kia Asamiya. Both anime versions have been licensed by Bandai Entertainment...
film) and to VHS in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
by Streamline Pictures
Streamline Pictures
Streamline Pictures was an American media company that was best known for its distribution of English dubbed Japanese animation. -Founding:Founded in Los Angeles, California, in 1988, Streamline Pictures was one of the first North American companies that was created primarily for the intention of...
, the license later being taken up by the now also out of business ADV Films
A.D. Vision
A.D. Vision was an American international multimedia entertainment company headquartered in Houston, Texas, prior to its collapse and distress sale to four other Houston-based companies in 2009...
.
Labyrinth labyrinthos
is adapted and directed by Rintarō, with character designModel sheet
In animation, a model sheet, also known as a character board, character sheet, character study or simply a study, is a document used to help standardize the appearance, poses, and gestures of an animated character...
and animation direction
Animation director
An animation director is the director in charge of all aspects of the animation process during the production of an animated film or animated segment for a live-action film...
by Atsuko Fukushima, key
Key frame
A key frame in animation and filmmaking is a drawing that defines the starting and ending points of any smooth transition. They are called "frames" because their position in time is measured in frames on a strip of film...
animation by Manabu Ōhashi, Reiko Kurihara and Fukushima and art direction
Art director
The art director is a person who supervise the creative process of a design.The term 'art director' is a blanket title for a variety of similar job functions in advertising, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games....
by Yamako Ishikawa. It serves as the anthology's "top-level" story, a framing device
Framing device
The term framing device refers to the usage of the same single action, scene, event, setting, or any element of significance at both the beginning and end of an artistic, musical, or literary work. The repeated element thus creates a ‘frame’ within which the main body of work can develop.The...
that leads into the other two works.
Plot
The short follows Sachi (Hideko YoshidaHideko Yoshida
is a Japanese actress. She won the award for best supporting actress at the 14th Hochi Film Award for Shaso.-Filmography:* Neo Tokyo * Shaso * The Pillow Book * Cutie Honey -References:...
/Cheryl Chase
Cheryl Chase
Cheryl Chase is an American voice actress best known as the voice of Angelica Pickles on Rugrats, All Grown Up! and Angelica and Susie's Pre-School Daze...
), a girl locked in a game of hide-and-seek with her cat Cicerone
Cicerone
Cicerone is an old term for a guide, one who conducts visitors and sightseers to museums, galleries, etc., and explains matters of archaeological, antiquarian, historic or artistic interest. The word is presumably taken from Marcus Tullius Cicero, as a type of learning and eloquence...
. Her search leads her to an old longcase clock
Longcase clock
A longcase clock, also tall-case clock, floor clock, or grandfather clock, is a tall, freestanding, weight-driven pendulum clock with the pendulum held inside the tower, or waist of the case. Clocks of this style are commonly 1.8–2.4 metres tall...
which doubles as a doorway to a labyrinth
Labyrinth
In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth was an elaborate structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos...
world. The world is filled with supernatural oddities and characters, such as cardboard working class citizens, an invisible dog, a skeleton-led train and a weird circus. Eventually, Sachi and Cicerone arrive at a circus
Circus
A circus is commonly a travelling company of performers that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists...
tent where a viewing screen is displayed, leading to the following segments.
Running Man
is adapted and directed by Yoshiaki Kawajiri, with character design and animation direction by Kawajiri, mechanical design by Takashi Watabe and Satoshi Kumagai, key animation by Shinji Ōtsuka, Nobumasa Shinkawa, Toshio Kawaguchi and Kengo Inagaki and art direction by Katsushi Aoki. The segment also appeared on the fifth second season episode of Liquid Television with a different voice actor, Rafael FerrerRafael Ferrer
Rafael Ferrer is an American actor.Ferrer is the son of José Ferrer and Rosemary Clooney, and the brother of Miguel and Gabriel. He is a cousin of George Clooney. Ferrer is best known for his voiceover work in commercials, trailers and on-air promotions...
, than Michael McConnohie
Michael McConnohie
Michael D. McConnohie is a voice actor and is the President of the Nevada-based Voxworks voice-acting corporation. He is known for his recognizable deep booming voice and is generally known for playing more charismatic characters...
's Streamline dub.
Plot
Zach Hugh (Banjō GingaBanjo Ginga
, sometimes credited as his real name , is a Japanese voice actor who was born in Kofu, Yamanashi. Ginga is currently affiliated with Aoni Production...
) is the titular "Running Man," the undefeated champion of the "Death Circus" racing circuit and has raced for 10 years. Competitors race in high-speed Formula One
Formula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
-like craft, and spectators bet on the lives of these people for huge winnings. A Marlowe-esque
Philip Marlowe
Philip Marlowe is a fictional character created by Raymond Chandler in a series of novels including The Big Sleep and The Long Goodbye. Marlowe first appeared under that name in The Big Sleep published in 1939...
reporter (Masane Tsukayama
Masane Tsukayama
is a Japanese actor, voice actor, and narrator from Naha, Okinawa.-Television animation:*Akagi *Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto *Blocker Gundan 4 Machine Blaster...
/Michael McConnohie
Michael McConnohie
Michael D. McConnohie is a voice actor and is the President of the Nevada-based Voxworks voice-acting corporation. He is known for his recognizable deep booming voice and is generally known for playing more charismatic characters...
) is sent to interview the mysterious Zach outside of the track and watches one of his races. He soon discovers Hugh has telekinetic abilities which he uses to destroy the other racers, after quietly observing him in the dark chronically over-using an interface console inside Hugh's penthouse. As the race ends in his favor, Hugh begins to see the spirits of racers who perished on the track and he continues the race until his vehicle goes up in flames. The Death Circus ends shortly afterwards, the reporter believes it was because spectators wanted to see how long Hugh could outlast death.
(note: The French language readout on the dash screen translates as: One of the high points of the Continental
Continental Europe
Continental Europe, also referred to as mainland Europe or simply the Continent, is the continent of Europe, explicitly excluding European islands....
Circuit: The baffle of Assen
Assen
Assen is a municipality and a city in the north eastern Netherlands, capital of the province of Drenthe. It received city rights in 1809. Assen's main claim to fame is the TT Circuit Assen the motorcycle racing circuit, where on the last Saturday in June the Dutch TT is run...
, the finish line on certain laps, is a few tens of meters away.)
The Order to Stop Construction
, more literally "Construction Suspension Order," is adapted and directed by Katsuhiro Ōtomo, with character design by Ōtomo, animation direction by Takashi NakamuraTakashi Nakamura
, is an accomplished Japanese animator and anime director. It was his work on Ōgon Senshi Gold Lightan that helped inspire fellow animator Koji Morimoto.His 2001 film A Tree of Palme was an official selection of the Berlin Film Festival....
, key animation by Kōji Morimoto
Koji Morimoto
, born December 26, 1959) is an animator and one of Japan’s premier anime directors.- Biography :Born in Wakayama, Japan, he graduated from the Osaka School of Design in 1979 and a couple years later joined the studio Annapuru as an animator for the TV series “Tomorrow's Joe”...
, Nakamura, Ōtomo and Kunihiko Sakurai and art direction by Takamura Mukuo. This segment's depiction of South America as a dangerous, unstable place is comparable to other depictions in the Japanese media during the 1980s such as Osamu Tezuka
Osamu Tezuka
was a Japanese cartoonist, manga artist, animator, producer, activist and medical doctor, although he never practiced medicine. Born in Osaka Prefecture, he is best known as the creator of Astro Boy, Kimba the White Lion and Black Jack...
's 1987 comic
Comics
Comics denotes a hybrid medium having verbal side of its vocabulary tightly tied to its visual side in order to convey narrative or information only, the latter in case of non-fiction comics, seeking synergy by using both visual and verbal side in...
Gringo
Gringo (manga)
is a manga by Osamu Tezuka that began serialization in 1987 in the Shogakukan manga magazine Big Comic.-Plot:In 1982, the Edo Shoji Corporation is a large Japanese trading company that has created a new branch in the fictional country of Cannibalia...
.
Plot
A revolution in the fictional South AmericaSouth America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
n country of the Aloana Republic has resulted in a new government being installed; this new government refuses to accept a contract detailing the construction of Facility 444. The company responsible for the construction has begun to lose millions, so salaryman
Salaryman
refers to someone whose income is salary based; particularly those working for corporations. Its frequent use by Japanese corporations, and its prevalence in Japanese manga and anime has gradually led to its acceptance in English-speaking countries as a noun for a Japanese white-collar...
Tsutomu Sugioka (Yū Mizushima
Yu Mizushima
is a Japanese voice actor. He is the Japanese voice-over for Sammo Hung, and is the Japanese voice of Wakko.-Notable roles:* .hack//Intermezzo as Male Heavyblade* Black Cat as Doctor * Black Jack* Black Magic M-66 as Leakey...
/Robert Axelrod
Robert Axelrod (actor)
Robert Axelrod is a U.S. actor who has been in several movies and lent his voice to countless televisual shows including Digimon, having started vocal acting for the English versions of Japanese cartoons in 1980...
) is sent to stop production. The work is completely automated, carried out by robots programmed to finish the job no matter the consequences and led by a robot identified as 444-1 (Hiroshi Ōtake/Jeff Winkless
Jeff Winkless
Jeffrey Alan Winkless was an American film and voice actor and music composer. He was born in Springfield, Massachusetts. Two of his younger brothers, Terence H. Winkless and Daniel Owen Winkless, worked with him on The Banana Splits Adventure Hour. He was also credited as Jeffrey Brock...
). Witnessing the destruction of several robots and Robot 444-1's refusal to cease operations, Tsutomu begins to lose his patience and is nearly killed by 444-1 who was programmed to eliminate anything that poses a threat to the project. He retaliates by destroying 444-1 and follows its powercord that leads to the energy source of the robots in an attempt to finally end the production. Unknown to Tsutomu, the old government has been restored and they have agreed to honor the contract once more.