Tezuka Kids' Flicks

Alakazam the Great  (Saiyu-Ki) 1961 All ages 12.30pm Monday 9 April / Cinema A 1’ TAPE, 88 MINS, COLOUR, MONO, JAPAN/USA, ENGLISH / DIRECTORS: DAISAKU SHIRAKAWA, TAIJI YABUSHITA / PRINT SOURCE/RIGHTS: MGM, CHAPEL DISTRIBUTION / SCREENING FORMAT: DIGITAL BETACAM Generally, American-dubbed versions of anime leave much to be desired through their draining of the anime’s original Japanese aura. Yet, this early ‘60s animated musical based on Tezuka’s manga Saiyu-Ki (itself based on Tales from the East) surprisingly benefits from Les Baxter songs sung by Frankie Avalon. It’s Beach Blanket Bingo1965 meets Monkey – a cocktail perfectly matching Tezuka’s own heady mix-and-match narratives. Sterling Holloway (the voice of Winnie the Pooh) narrates.

Astro Boy (Tetsuwan Atomu) [original] 1963 G 6.00pm Thursday 5 April  (with Metropolis) / Cinema A 11.00am Saturday 7 + Sunday 8 April (with Astro Boy [remake] + Kimba the White Lion) / Cinema A 11.00am Monday 9 April / Cinema A 11.00am Thursday 12 April (with Astro Boy [remake]) / Cinema A 1’ TAPE, 24 MINS, B. & W., MONO, JAPAN, ENGLISH / DIRECTOR: OSAMU TEZUKA / PRINT SOURCE/RIGHTS: TEZUKA PRODUCTIONS, MADMAN ENTERTAINMENT / SCREENING FORMAT: DIGITAL BETACAM

Astro Boy (Tetsuwan Atomu) [Remake] 1980 G 11.00am Saturday 7 + Sunday 8 April (with Astro Boy [original] + Kimba the White Lion) / Cinema A 11.00am Tuesday 10 April / Cinema A 11.00am Thursday 12 + Friday 13 April (with Astro Boy [original]) / Cinema A 1’ TAPE, 25 MINS, COLOUR, MONO, JAPAN, ENGLISH / DIRECTOR: NOBORU ISHIGURO / ORIGINAL MANGA: OSAMU TEZUKA / PRINT SOURCE/RIGHTS: TEZUKA PRODUCTIONS, MADMAN ENTERTAINMENT / SCREENING FORMAT: DIGITAL BETACAM

 

Kimba the White Lion 1980 G  11.00am Saturday 7 + Sunday 8 April (with Astro Boy [original] + Astro Boy [remake]) / Cinema A 11.00am Wednesday 11 April / Cinema A 1’ TAPE, 23 MINS, COLOUR, MONO, JAPAN, ENGLISH / DIRECTOR: EIICHI YAMAMOTO / ORIGINAL MANGA: OSAMU TEZUKA / PRINT SOURCE/RIGHTS: TEZUKA PRODUCTIONS, MADMAN ENTERTAINMENT / SCREENING FORMAT: DIGITAL BETACAM This program features three opening episodes of anime TV series starring Tezuka’s definitive characters. Astro Boy has been made into three series. The first version, from 1963, is the landmark series that broke Tezuka into the US market. Black-and-white and cute all over, the sadness of Astro as the robot pondering his existence rings clearly in this and the colour series from 1980; the latter series is also distinguished by a karaoke-disco version of the signature theme. One of the first generation anime classics produced for television (and the first in colour), Tezuka’s hugely appealing Kimba the White Lion series 1965-67 went on to inspire Disney’sThe Lion King 1994.

 

The Fantastic Adventures of Unico 1981 G  12.30pm Saturday 7 + Wednesday 11 April / Cinema A 35MM, 90 MINS, COLOUR, MONO, JAPAN, ENGLISH (ENGLISH DUBBING) / DIRECTOR: TOSHIO HIRATA / PRINT SOURCE/RIGHTS: TEZUKA PRODUCTIONS / SCREENING FORMAT: DIGITAL BETACAM Dripping with Euro-kitsch, Unico exemplifies the definition of kawaii (cute) in audiovisual terms. Stylistically leaning toward shojo manga (girls’ comics), Unico’s accent on dizzying visual sensations depicts romantic and gothic emotional tropes in the story of a baby unicorn befriended by an adorable (if occasionally petulant) kitten with transformative powers, a young girl and her aging grandmother. A handsome prince is a menacing yet seductive force who propels the melodramatic action in this darkly fantastic – and irresistibly cute – story.

Jungle Emperor Leo (Junguru Taitei) 1997 PG  12.30pm Sunday 8 + Tuesday 10 April / Cinema A 35MM, 90 MINS, COLOUR, STEREO, JAPAN, ENGLISH / DIRECTOR: YOSHIO TAKEUICI / ORIGINAL MANGA: OZAMU TEZUKA / PRINT SOURCE/RIGHTS: TEZUKA PRODUCTIONS, MADMAN ENTERTAINMENT / SCREENING FORMAT: DIGITAL BETACAM A remake of the earlier TV series based on Tezuka’s manga, this version of Jungle Emperor is a muted response to Disney Studios’ The Lion King 1994. Many key scenes from The Lion King were lifted without credit from Tezuka’s original work. This version of Kimba the White Lion’s struggle to claim his rightful place in the animal kingdom echoes Tezuka Productions’ attempt to reinstate Tezuka’s authorial voice in creating this landmark family entertainment. copyrighted article by http://www.qag.qld.gov.au/cinematheque/past_programs/2007/japan_fantastic_focus_on_tezuka/tezuka_kidrsquos_flicks