Interest
Manga Artists Express Admiration for Live-Action Adaptation of Kite
posted on by Eric Stimson
Four manga artists and a voice actress — Marina Inoue — have expressed their admiration for the live-action American adaptation of Kite, which opens in Japan on April 11. Hiroya Oku, the creator of the similarly violent Gantz, wrote, "I was more than a little nervous about an original Japanese anime being adapted as a Hollywood film, but I felt their staff's deep respect for the original work." Masakazu Katsura, the man behind Video Girl Ai and I"s, wrote simply, "Incredibly lovable, brutal and ephemeral."
Masamune Shirow (Appleseed, Ghost in the Shell) thinks Kite could be a template for future anime adaptations:
A somewhat European air is carefully incorporated, and I had a favorable impression of it — I felt the love and respect for the original anime. The parts that followed the original anime and the elements unique to the live-action version were also flawlessly blended. It might be weird for me to say, since I like doing things the wrong way, but it feels like the right way to proceed from an original Japanese work.
Suzuhito Yasuda (Yozakura Quartet, illustrator of Durarara!!) was pleasantly surprised by the film:
Even though I understand movies are different from the original works, I'm always on my guard when I hear that works I like are being adapted to live-action. All the more for [Yasuomi] Umetsu works, since I love them. When I finished watching it, I liked the movie and liked the original work even more. I think it was a fortunate adaptation.
Marina Inoue (Kana from Minami-ke, Yoko in Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann) also enjoyed Kite:
It was fun seeing how a cute girl shining among Umetsu's unique action elements would look in live-action. I could accept Sawa's mismatched personality existing in such a degenerate worldview without a sense of mystery or incongruity. It was interesting to experience the adaptation of an original work through this movie.
Yasuda also contributed this drawing of the two Sawas (the one on the left is the American film version, while the one on the right is the original).
"Congratulations on the premiere!"
Kite was originally released as a short film in 1999. It tells of a girl who is exploited as a daring assassin and personal sex slave by two renegade detectives. Its American adaptation was released in August in the United States.
[Via Comic Natalie; Image from pixshark.com]
