News

Japanese Box Office, August 17-18

Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki's The Wind Rises (Kaze Tachinu) anime film stayed at #1 during its fifth weekend. The film centers on Jirō Horikoshi (played by Evangelion director Hideaki Anno), the designer of Japan's famed Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter plane of World War II. The film earned 473,552,381 yen (US$4,798,979) on 454 screens for a new total of 7,229,137,076 yen (US$73,260,075).

The Pokémon the Movie: ExtremeSpeed Genesect film stayed at #9 in its sixth weekend. Kunihiko Yuyama's feature film is billed as the final chapter of Pocket Monsters: Best Wishes! (Pokemon: Black and White!). It features a confrontation between the legendary Pokémon ExtremeSpeed Red Genesect and Mewtwo, who returns in this installment in an alternate form. The film earned 103,553,491 yen (US$1,049,411) on 345 screens for a new total of 2,627,136,982 yen (US$26,623,406).

The Kamen Rider Wizard in Magic Land and Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger: Gaburincho of Music films fell from #8 to #10 in its third weekend. Kamen Rider Wizard, the latest live-action tokusatsu (special-effects) television series in the long-running Kamen Rider franchise, premiered in Japan last year. The film follows the protagonist Haruto, Koyomi, and a boy named Shiina after they are transported to "Land of Magic" by a rainbow-colored whirlwind. There, they meet Kamen Rider Sorcerer (Takanori Jinnai). The films earned 101,552,227 yen (US$1,029,130) on 303 screens for a new total of 919,878,793 yen (US$9,322,051).

The Gekijōban Gintama Kanketsu-hen: Yorozuya yo Eien Nare (Final Gintama: The Movie: Be Forever Yorozuya) film fell from #10 to #12 on Box Office Mojo's chart in its seventh weekend. The film has a brand-new story written by original manga creator Hideaki Sorachi. The main cast for the original anime is returning once again for the movie. The film earned 27,360,296 yen (US$277,269) on 118 screens for a new total of 1,538,837,021 yen (US$15,594,574).

Soreike! Anpanman: Tobase! Kibō no Handkerchief, the 25th Anpanman film, fell from #13 to #15 on Box Office Mojo's chart in its seventh weekend. The film's theme is "hope" and it continues the theme of cheering up those affected by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami disaster. The film is screening simultaneously with the "Minna de Teasobi: Anpanman to Itazura Obake" (Playtime for Everyone: Anpanman and the Mischievous Ghost) short. The film earned 11,877,548 yen (US$120,367) on 141 screens for a new total of 369,101,196 yen (US$3,740,471).

Gekijō-ban Toriko Bishokushin no Special Menu, the first film based on Mitsutoshi Shimabukuro's Toriko manga, fell from Box Office Mojo's chart during its fourth weekend.

Sources: Kogyo Tsushinsha, Box Office Mojo