Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis
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| Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis | |
|---|---|
| Cinematography | Masao Nakabori |
| Edited by | Keniichi Uraoka |
| Music by | Maki Ishii |
Production company | Exe |
| Distributed by | Toho |
Release date |
|
Running time | 135 minutes |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
| Budget | $ 8,000,000) |
| Box office | ¥1,790,000,000 |
Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis (
The movie went on to become a notable success in Japan. It was one of the top ten highest grossing domestic motion pictures of 1988.[2] It continues to be regarded in the country as a respected cult film.[3] A sequel, Tokyo: The Last War, was released the following year.
Plot
The live-action film is an adaptation of the first 1/3rd of the original novel or the first four volumes (out of a total of 12).[citation needed]
The movie begins in 1912 with
The narrative moves to 1923, Tokyo. Kato retreats to
The setting moves to 1927.
Cast
- Eiichi Shibusawa: The famous industrialist who pioneered Western capitalism in Japan's economy. In the story, he is head of the Tokyo Improvement Project, an ambitious enterprise calling upon the minds of specialists from a variety of fields, with the ultimate goal of making Tokyothe most powerful city in East Asia.
- Yasunori Kato: An evil sorcerer wielding the power of several long dead mystics (such as Abe no Seimei) who wants to destroy Tokyo and cripple the Japanese Empire in order to fulfill a 2000-year-old curse.
- Mieko Harada as Keiko Tatsumiya: A shrine maiden summoned by the spirit of Taira no Masakado to defend the Tatsumiya Family.
- Junichi Ishida as Yoichiro Tatsumiya: An official in the Ministry of Finance. He is the direct descendant of Taira no Masakado, the husband of Keiko Tatsumiya, the brother of Yukari Tatsumiya and the secret father of Yukiko Tatsumiya.
- Shirō Sano as Junichi Narutaki: The close friend of Yoichiro Tatsumiya, he is in love with Yoichiro's sister, Yukari. He participates in the defense of the city by fighting with the Tsuchimikado Clan against Kato as well as joining Koda Rohan in the defense of Masakado's grave.
- Koda Rohan: The famous writer of the Meiji era whose work contributed to the reformation of modern Japanese literature [4] and who also was a renowned scholar of the supernatural.[5] Determined to stop Kato and protect Yukari, he joins the Tsuchimikado Clan as a student of the onmyoji. After the death of Yasumasa Hirai, he spends several years mastering the secret mystical techniques for the purpose of defending Tokyo. During the Year of the Boar, he attempts to halt Kato's advance to Masakado's grave.
- Haruka Sugata as Yukari Tatsumiya: The sister of Yoichiro and also a direct descendant of Taira no Masakado and a psychic. Due to her heritage and supernatural abilities, Kato abducts her and uses her as a medium to communicate with the spirit of Masakado. She gives birth to Yukiko Tatsumiya, who is believed to be the result of Kato using his magic on her, but revealed later to be the consequence of a secret incestuous encounter between her and her brother.
- Kō Nishimura as Makoto Nishimura: The renowned biologist who invented Japan's first functional robot, Gakutensoku. In the story, he uses his creation to help finish the construction of Japan's first subway tunnel. In the film, Makoto is portrayed by his real-life son, Kō Nishimura.
- Ken Teraizumi as Torahiko Terada: The famous physicist and essayist renowned for his eccentric ideas, wide range of studies and considered the father of "nonlinear physics" in Japan.[6] At the Tokyo Improvement Project committee, he suggests the radical concept of creating an underground city as a backup plan in the event earthquakes should strike. He is laughed off by the other members. Later however, Noritsugu Hayakawa hears of his reputation and appoints him as one of the heads of the construction of Japan's first subway system.
- Yasunori Kato, having all his knowledge and understanding of his magics. After the death of the Meiji Emperor, he performs a fatal act of divination to predict year of Tokyo's destruction.
- Feng Shuiexpert, who in investigating strange spiritual disturbances beneath Tokyo. He serves as Keiko's assistant in the final battle against Kato.
- Jo Shishido as Noritsugu Hayakawa: The businessman who founded Japan's first underground railroad system. During construction of the railway, his engineers run afoul of shikigamiset by Kato. Faced with this obstruction, Hayakawa must seek out aid to see his project go through to completion.
- Ogai Mori: Legendary writer and surgeon in the Japanese army. In the story, he performs an unsuccessful abortion on Yukari Tatsumiya after she has supposedly been impregnated with Kato's child.
- Izumi Kyoka: Mysterious writer and fortune teller with cryptic information about Keiko's destiny. Legendary Kabuki performer Bando V is a noted Izumi Kyoka scholar who has produced many plays based on his works.[7]
Other cast members include Seiko Ito as Wajiro Kon, Hideji Ōtaki as Oda Kanno, Hisashi Igawa as Ryokichi Tagami and Ai Yasunaga as Azusa Nishimura. Hiroshi Aramata does a cameo as a brasserie client.
Production
![[icon]](/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (December 2016) |
The film began being produced around early 1987. Swiss artist H. R. Giger was commissioned to design creatures for the movie.[8] Originally, he showed interest in working directly on set, however his schedule would not permit it. His main contribution was the conceptual art for the gohō dōji.
The movie was also one of the first Japanese productions to employ Sony HDVS equipment for filming. Approximately six minutes of the final movie was filmed using this technology.[9]
The movie received a great deal of publicity with the media highlighting the grand recreation of circa 1927
The production was plagued by many mysterious accidents, which some attributed to the influence of Taira no Masakado's real life spirit. It is now common practice for Japanese filmmakers and TV crews to pay respect to the burial site of Masakado before bringing him to the screen.[citation needed]
Reception
When Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis was released in Japanese theaters, it quickly became a commercial success and received critical acclaim. Peer Magazine, a prominent cinema publication in Japan, even hailed it as the "best Japanese science fiction production of all time." The film earned an impressive annual revenue of 1.79 billion yen, making it the third highest grossing Japanese-produced film of that year, and the eighth highest-grossing film in Japan overall.
However, the subtitled version of the film received mixed reception in the West. Anthony Romero of Toho Kingdom praised the high production values of the film but criticized it for attempting to cover too much ground in too short a time. GenjiPress, a Japanese enthusiast website, deemed the film "absolutely ridiculous from beginning to end" and criticized its confusing plot.
On the other hand, Ian Shutter of videovista.net gave the film a high rating of 8/10, describing it as a "surreal yet always fascinating gothic urban nightmare" with a blend of urban history and fantasy horror centered on the great disaster of 1923. Lee Broughton of DVD Savant rated it as "Excellent" and commended its highly original mystical epic storyline and great characters. The film's ambition was even compared to Terry Gilliam's Brazil. DeVilDead.com, a French website, found the film's narrative too compressed and dense, but praised its visually elegant production, rich history, and superb scenery and acting. Sarudama, another website, called it an incredibly ambitious and well-cast movie.
In his book Tokyoscope, author Patrick Macias gave the movie a positive review, describing it as "overcooked" but "far from a bust." Jim Harper, in his book Flowers from Hell: The Modern Japanese Horror Film, conceded that the film could have been a "bona fide cult classic" if not for some pacing problems and a ponderous plot.
In a 2015 Blu-ray commentary, the filmmakers compared Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis to David Lynch's 1984 film adaptation of Frank Herbert's Dune, both being ambitious, visually lush, large budget adaptations of dense science fiction works that compressed the source material's narrative to fit a 2-hour time slot.
Accolades
- Wins
- 18th Kyūsaku Shimada, 1988[citation needed]
- Nominations
- Japanese Academy Awards: Award of the Japanese Academy, Best Editing, Keiichi Uraoka; Best Art Direction, Takeo Kimura, Noriyoshi Ikeya; 1989[11]
Legacy
The movie was notable for being the first to visually portray Chinese and Japanese folklore tropes such as
The movie was the first major successful project for Takashige Ichise, the producer who would go on to be responsible for the contemporary
Independent film director Go Shibata has cited Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis as an influence on his work, including his 2009 film Doman Seman.[15]
Home Releases
In Japan, the film is available on VHS, DVD and Blu-ray. In 1995,
The film and its sequel were both released in Japan on Blu-ray on August 8, 2015 in a Special Edition package featuring new cover designs by SPFX artist Shinji Higuchi (who worked on the film).[18]
In 2023, Media Blasters Licensed the Film and Released the film on Blu-Ray under the Title "Doomed Megalopolis: The Last Megalopolis". It features the movie in Japanese with English Subtitles and the English Dub from the Manga UK VHS reconstructed in HD. [19][20]
See also
References
- ^ Review Lee Broughton, DVD Savant, June 30, 2003
- ^ John A. Lent. The Asian Film Industry, pg. 41, Christopher Helm Publishers Ltd, February 22, 1990
- ^ [1] "今は亡き天才漫画家が「世紀末のおもちゃ箱」と批評！原作者が伝説のカルト映画『帝都物語』の裏話を明か" May, 2015
- ^ Koda Rohan: Britannica
- ^ Noriko T. Reider, The Appeal of Kaidan: Tales of the Strange
- ^ Torahiko Terada Archived 2013-12-07 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Kabuki Legend Tamasaburo Bando V to Receive 27th Annual Kyoto Prize for Lifetime Achievement in “Arts and Philosophy”
- ^ ISBN 1883398061)
- ^ Yasuda, Hiroshi. Signal Processing of HDTV.: Proceedings of the Fourth International Workshop on HDTV and beyond, Turin, Italy, 4–6 September 1991. 1992. Pg. 633
- ^ Davis, Julie. "Flesh and Blood" Manga Mania, vol. 23
- ^ IMDB Entry on ‘’Teito Monogatari’’ (1988)
- ^ Japanese Review of TEITO MONOGATARI (1988). Retrieved on 2012-8-07.
- ^ a b Patrick Macias. "Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis", Tokyoscope, page 79-80, VIZ Media LLC., November 2001,
- ^ [2] Keith Aiken and Bob Johnson, "The Passing of a Legend", Sci-Fi Japan
- ^ [3] 柴田剛監督＆主演の石井モタコ登場！狂った世界に立ち向かうバカを描く 映画「堀川中立売」, 2010.11.16
- ^ Review Ian Shutter, videovista.net, November 2002
- ^ Review Anthony Romero, Toho Kingdom, September 22, 2006
- ^ Amazon Page of Blu-ray release. Retrieved on 2015-9-06.
- ^ Doomed Megalopolis: The Last Megalopolis Blu-ray, retrieved 2023-10-15
- ^ "Doomed Megalopolis: Last Tokyo". Media Blasters Storefront. Retrieved 2023-10-15.
- ISBN 0874217938)
Sources
- ISBN 978-0-9536564-7-9
- Weisser, Thomas; Weisser, Yuko Mihara (1998), Japanese Cinema Encyclopedia (2nd ed.), Vital Books, ISBN 1-889288-51-9
External links
- Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis at IMDb
- 帝都物語 (in Japanese). Japanese Movie Database. Retrieved 2012-08-03.
- Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis at Rotten Tomatoes
