Langbahn Team – Weltmeisterschaft

Maboroshi

Not to be confused with Maborosi.

Maboroshi
Theatrical release poster
Japanese name
Kanjiアリスとテレスのまぼろし工場
Literal meaningAlice and Therese's Illusory Factory
Transcriptions
Revised HepburnArisu to Teresu no Maboroshi Kōjō
Directed byMari Okada
Written byMari Okada
Produced byManabu Otsuka
Starring
CinematographyYuusuke Tannawa
Edited byAyumu Takahashi
Music byMasaru Yokoyama
Production
company
Distributed by
Release date
  • September 15, 2023 (2023-09-15)
Running time
111 minutes
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese

Maboroshi (Japanese: アリスとテレスのまぼろし工場, Hepburn: Arisu to Teresu no Maboroshi Kōjō, lit. 'Alice and Therese's Illusory Factory') is a 2023 Japanese animated science fantasy drama film. Produced by MAPPA and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures Japan, the film is directed and written by Mari Okada. The film debuted in Japanese theaters in September 15, 2023 and was released worldwide on Netflix on January 15, 2024.

Plot

Mifuse is a steel mill town in rural Japan. In January 1991, a catastrophic explosion at the mill isolates the town from the outside world, trapping it in an eternal winter. Mamoru Sagami, a mill worker and head priest, declares the disaster divine punishment for mining a sacred mountain. He convinces the townspeople to maintain their pre-disaster identities, submitting periodic ID forms, as he claims they are bound to a "sacred machine." Meanwhile, fissures occasionally open in the sky, only to be sealed by the mill's smoke.

Masamune Kikuri, a student, discovers a feral girl, Itsumi, in the steel mill blast furnace under the care of his classmate, Mutsumi. While bonding with Itsumi, Masamune learns conflicting theories about her origins, with Sagami claiming she is a “woman of the gods” and his uncle Tokimune hinting she doesn’t belong in their world. As Masamune continues visiting Itsumi, the town’s surreal nature becomes increasingly apparent.

The arrival of summer imagery through sky fissures coincides with escalating tensions. During a school test of courage, Masamune's classmate Sonobe emits light and vanishes when enveloped by mill smoke, sparking more doubts about the town’s reality. Sagami asserts that their world, created by the sacred machine, is perfect and eternal. Tokimune, however, argues it is doomed to collapse.

Through revelations in his father’s diary, Masamune learns Itsumi’s true identity: Saki Kikuri, a girl transported from the real world, and the town itself is a constructed reality. Determined to free Saki, Masamune enlists his classmates and disrupts Sagami's ritual to offer her to the sacred machine. During an Obon festival visible through the fissures, Masamune and Mutsumi rescue Saki and place her on a freight train bound for the real world. After a climactic chase, Mutsumi leaps off the train to reunite with Masamune, allowing Saki's train to escape.

Years later, Saki returns as an adult to a deserted Mifuse. Reflecting on her past as Itsumi, she visits the steel mill's remnants, where farewell messages and memories of her previous life remain preserved.

Voice cast

Character Japanese[1] English
Masamune Kikuiri Junya Enoki Max Mittelman
Mutsumi Sagami/Mutsumi Kikuiri Reina Ueda Jeannie Tirado
Itsumi/Saki Kikuiri Misaki Kuno Kitana Turnbull
Akimune Kikuiri Kōji Seto[2] Robbie Daymond
Tokimune Kikuiri Kento Hayashi[2] Isaac Robinson-Smith
Daisuke Sasakura Taku Yashiro[3] Jonathan Leon
Atsushi Nitta Tasuku Hatanaka[3] David Errigo Jr.
Yasunari Senba Daiki Kobayashi[3] Brandon Engman
Yūko Sonobe Ayaka Saitō[3] Lizzie Freeman
Hina Hara Maki Kawase[3] Valerie Rose Lohman
Reina Yasumi Yukiyo Fujii[3] Madeline Dorroh
Mamoru Sagami Setsuji Satō[3] Andrew Kishino

Production

Maboroshi is produced by MAPPA, written and directed by Mari Okada, with Yuriko Ishii designing the characters, and Masaru Yokoyama composing the music. Much of the animation staff from Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms worked on the film.[4]

Release

The film was distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures Japan, who released the film in theaters on September 15, 2023.[1] Miyuki Nakajima performed the film's main theme, "Shin-on".[5] Netflix has acquired the global rights to the film and released it, as simply Maboroshi, on their platform on January 15, 2024.[6]

Marketing

Okada wrote a novelization of the film, which Kadokawa Shoten published under their Kadokawa Bunko imprint on June 13, 2023.[1]

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 67% of 9 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.1/10.[7]

Accolades

Maboroshi won the Mainichi Film Award for Best Animation Film in 2023.[8] In March 2024, the film won a Kabuku Award at the Niigata Int'l Animation Film Festival.[9]

References

  1. ^ a b c Hodgkins, Crystalyn (May 21, 2023). "Mari Okada, MAPPA's Alice to Therese no Maboroshi Kōjō Anime Film Reveals Cast, Story, Teaser, September 15 Debut". Anime News Network. Retrieved May 23, 2023.
  2. ^ a b Mateo, Alex (July 12, 2023). "Mari Okada, MAPPA's Alice to Therese no Maboroshi Kōjō Anime Film Casts Koji Seto, Kento Hayashi". Anime News Network. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Loo, Egan (July 26, 2023). "Mari Okada, MAPPA's Maboroshi Anime Film Unveils Miyuki Nakajima's New Song, More Characters in Trailer". Anime News Network. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
  4. ^ Loo, Egan (June 27, 2021). "Mari Okada Pens, Helms MAPPA's Original Anime Film Alice to Therese no Maboroshi Kōjō". Anime News Network. Retrieved May 23, 2023.
  5. ^ Cayanan, Joanna (June 28, 2023). "Miyuki Nakajima Performs Theme Song for Mari Okada, MAPPA's Alice to Therese no Maboroshi Kōjō Anime Film". Anime News Network. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
  6. ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (November 25, 2023). "Mari Okada, MAPPA's Original Anime Film Maboroshi Streams on Netflix Starting on January 15". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 25, 2023.
  7. ^ "Maboroshi". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved February 11, 2024.
  8. ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (January 19, 2024). "Maboroshi, The Boy and the Heron, Godzilla Minus One Win at Mainichi Film Awards". Anime News Network. Retrieved January 20, 2024.
  9. ^ Tai, Anita (March 20, 2024). "Maboroshi Film Wins Award at 2nd Niigata Int'l Animation Film Festival". Anime News Network. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
Quelle: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maboroshi