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Live-Action Don't Call It Mystery Film Stays at #1 for 2nd Straight Weekend
posted on by Adriana Hazra
The film centers on the manga's "Hiroshima Arc," which appears in the manga's second to fourth volumes. The "Hiroshima Arc" begins when Kunō travels to Hiroshima, and gets involved in a fight for the Kariatsumari family's inheritance.
The film opened on September 15, and sold 609,600 tickets to earn 850,483,760 yen (about US$5.71 million) in its first three days. Masaki Suda reprised his role as protagonist Totonō Kunō from the manga's live-action series.
Hiroaki Matsuyama, Tomoko Aizawa, and Ken Arai all return from the series as director, scriptwriter, and music composer, respectively.
The manga follows mystery-solving college student Totonō Kunō. At the beginning of the story, the police bring him in for questioning on suspicion of the murder of his classmate.
Eiga Precure All Stars F opened on September 15, and features all 77 Precure magical girls, from the franchise's first installment in Futari wa Pretty Cure, to the latest ongoing installment Soaring Sky! Precure (Hirogaru Sky! Precure).
The film sold about 357,000 tickets to earn 437,456,060 yen (about US$2.93 million) at the Japanese box office in its opening three-day weekend. This is the highest opening weekend box office for the Precure franchise.
Maaya Sakamoto and Atsumi Tanezaki play characters that were newly created for the film. Sakamoto plays Cure Supreme/Prim, while Tanezaki plays Pūka.
The last time that the film series gathered characters from the entire franchise's history was 2018's Hugtto! Precure Futari wa Precure All Stars Memories.
A new Precure film will open in 2024.
The concert opened in Japan on May 20 and earned 220 million yen (about US$1.58 million) in its opening weekend. The 16 cast members of the IDOLiSH7, TRIGGER, Re: vale, and ŹOOĻ units reprised their roles from the anime series and games.
Hiroshi Nishikiori (Argonavis from BanG Dream!) and Kensuke Yamamoto (Trigun Stampede VFX art director) directed the anime at Orange. IDOLiSH7 creator Bunta Tsushimi wrote the screenplay. Arina Tanemura (IDOLiSH7, Full Moon O Sagashite) is credited for the original character design. Hitomi Miyazaki designed the characters. Eiji Inomoto (Trigun Stampede) was the CG chief director.
Columbia Pictures developed the film. Jason Hall (American Sniper) penned the script. Asad Qizilbash and Carter Swan from PlayStation Productions are producers alongside Doug Belgrad and Dana Brunetti. The film stars David Harbour, Orlando Bloom, Archie Madekwe, Darren Barnet, Geri Halliwell Horner, and Djimon Hounsou.
The film ranked at #1 in its opening weekend. The film sold 210,000 tickets for 324,949,388 yen (about US$2.21 million) in its first three days. The film open in Japan on September 8.
Returning voice actors include Akira Kamiya as Ryo Saeba, Kazue Ikura as Kaori Makimura, Harumi Ichiryūsai as Saeko Nogami, Tesshō Genda as Umibozu, and Mami Koyama as Miki. Also returning in the film are the three Kisugi thief sisters from the Cat's Eye anime. Keiko Toda and Chika Sakamoto are returning from the original Cat's Eye television anime as Hitomi and Ai. Rica Fukami plays Rui. (Toshiko Fujita, who played Rui in the original Cat's Eye anime, passed away in December 2018.)
City Hunter franchise director Kenji Kodama directied the new film at Sunrise and The Answer Studio Co., Ltd. Yasuyuki Mutō (Deadman Wonderland) wrote the screenplay. Aniplex is distributing the film.
The film revolves around the past of Ryo Saeba and the death of his old partner Hideyuki Makimura. It will also revolve around Angel Dust, which was also important in the original series.
It is now the #75 highest-grossing film in Japan, and the #20 highest-grossing anime film in Japan. It surpassed Tales from Earthsea, Yo-kai Watch: The Movie, and the live-action Hana Yori Dango Final film.
The film sold 1.003 million tickets and earned about US$13.2 million in its first three days in Japan. The film sold 1.353 million tickets and earned 2.149 billion yen (about US$15.53 million) in its Friday-Monday long weekend (July 17 was the Marine Day holiday in Japan).
The film opened simultaneously on IMAX with its general release in Japan on July 14. The film earned more than Miyazaki's celebrated Academy Award-winning 2001 film Spirited Away in its first four days, and earned 50% more than his 2013 film The Wind Rises. The film exceeded US$1.7 million from 44 IMAX screens, which is a new three-day opening record, according to entertainment news website Deadline.
The film is the first Studio Ghibli film to get a simultaneous IMAX release. The film is also screening in Dolby Atmos, Dolby Cinema, and DTS:X.
GKIDS licensed the film, and it will release it in North American theaters later this year.
Miyazaki is credited with the original work, in addition to directing the film and writing the script. Takeshi Honda (Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea, Rebuild of Evangelion films) is the animation director. Joe Hisaishi (Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, My Neighbor Totoro) composed the music. Studio Ghibli co-founder Toshio Suzuki is the producer. Kenshi Yonezu (Chainsaw Man, My Hero Academia, March comes in like a lion) performs the theme song "Chikyūgi" (Globe).
The film opened in Japan on July 28 and sold 703,530 tickets to earn 1,050,708,610 yen (about US$7.39 million) in its first three days. The film now has the best opening weekend among all three Kingdom films, and now also has the best opening (in terms of ticket sales) among live-action films in Japan in 2023.
The film covers the manga's Shi Ka (Zi Xia) arc and the Battle of Bayou — the first time Shin (Xin) and Ō Ki (Wang Qi) stood on the battlefield together, to fend off the invasion by the mighty Chō (Zhao) from the north. Anne (Anne Watanabe) joined the cast as the pivotal character Shi Ka (Zi Xia). Other new cast members include Kataoka Ainosuke VI as Fuu Ki (Feng Ji), Kōji Yamamoto as Chō Sō (Zhao Zhuang), Yuki Yamada as Man Goku (Wan Ji), Eri Murakawa as You Li (Yū Ri), and Hinako Sakurai as Dong Mei (Tō Bi).
Kento Yamazaki, Ryō Yoshizawa, Takao Osawa, and Kanna Hashimoto all reprised their respective characters Shin (Xin), Ei Sei (Yin Zheng), Ō Ki (Wang Qi), and Ka Ryō Ten (He Liao Diao), respectively, from the two previous films. Nana Seino, Hiroshi Tamaki, and Kōichi Satō from the second film also reprised their respective characters Kyо̄ Kai, Sho Hei Kun (Lord Changping), and Ryo Fui (Lu Buwei).
Shinsuke Satō (live-action Gantz, Death Note Light up the NEW world, Bleach) returned as director. Hara and Tsutomu Kuroiwa (One Piece Film Gold, live-action Black Butler, GANTZ:O) returned to write the script.
The film premiere on September 15, and stars Junya Enoki as 14-year-old protagonist Masamune Kikuiri, Reina Ueda as Masamune's classmate Mutsumi Sagami, and Misaki Kuno as the mysterious girl Itsumi.
The film centers on third-year middle school student Masamune, who lives in a town where time has stopped because a sudden explosion at a steelworks factory has sealed off all exits to the town. In order to hopefully one day return to normal, the residents of the town are forbidden from changing, and they live out their gloomy everyday lives. Masamune's enigmatic classmate Mutsumi leads him one day to the fifth blast furnace of the steelworks factory, and there they meet a girl who is wild like a wolf and who cannot talk. The meeting of Masamune and these two girls upsets the balance of the world. The unstoppable "love impulse" of the boys and girls who are tired of their everyday lives begins to destroy the world.
Okada wrote and directed the film, which MAPPA originally announced in 2021. Okada is also credited with the original work. Okada also wrote a novel of the film that Kadokawa Bunko released on June 13.
Tadashi Hiramatsu served as the assistant director, and Yuriko Ishii (Another, Persona -trinity soul-) designed the characters and served as chief animation director. Kazuki Higashiji (Angel Beats!, Hanasaku Iroha - Blossoms for Tomorrow, The Piano Forest) directed the art. All of the above animators collaborated on Okada's Maquia - When the Promised Flower Blooms film. Masaru Yokoyama (Her Blue Sky, Horimiya) composed the music. Warner Bros. is distributing the film.
Studio Trigger's re-screening of Gurren Lagann the Movie – The Lights in the Sky Are Stars, the second of two compilation films of Gainax's Gurren Lagann anime, ranked at #2 in the mini-theater ranking in its opening weekend.
Sources: Kōgyō Tsūshin (link 2, link 3, link 4), comScore via KOFIC
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