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X-Japan Documentary Film We Are X Streams on Hulu
posted on by Rai Kelly
Hulu began streaming the official documentary We Are X about Japanese rock band X Japan on July 2. The stream is available for Hulu members.
The We Are X documentary chronicles the band's 35-year career, and it premiered in January 2016 at the Sundance Film Festival in the festival's World Cinema Documentary Competition, and won the festival's Special Jury Award for Best Editing. It opened in the United States in October 2016.
The documentary screened at Anime Expo on Saturday. Band leader YOSHIKI was scheduled to appear at the event, but had to cancel his appearance to continue recovery from his recent surgery. He was previously diagnosed with cervical foraminal stenosis (narrowing of the cervical disc space) in 2009, and his symptoms reappeared last October.
YOSHIKI and Toshi formed X Japan in 1982 as X. Over the next 13 years, X Japan released five studio albums, six live albums, 10 best hit albums, and 20 DVD releases. The band disbanded in 1997 but reunited in 2007. Original lead guitarist Hide and bassist Taiji Sawada passed away in 1998 and 2011, respectively. The band has sold more than 30 million albums (with singles and videos combined), and has sold out Japan's 55,000-seat Tokyo Dome 18 times.
X Japan's most notable anime contributions were the songs in the X² music video collection and later X movie. The animation Studio Madhouse adapted both productions from CLAMP's X manga. The band's single "Scarlet Love Song" was also used as the theme song for the anime film Buddha: The Great Departure.
