Devilman

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Movie
German title Devilman
Original title デ ビ ル マ ン
Country of production Japan
original language Japanese
Publishing year 2004
length 111 minutes
Age rating FSK 18
Rod
Director Hiroyuki Nasu
script Machiko Nasu
production Makoto Tominaga ,
Toshiyuki Matsui ,
Hiromi Kitasaki
camera Tetsuro Sano
occupation

Devilman ( Japanese デ ビ ル マ ン , debiruman ) is a Japanese real- life film adaptation of the popular manga classic of the same name by Gō Nagai from the early 1970s, which caused controversy because of its explicit depiction of violence. Directed by Hiroyuki Nasu . The manga adaptation is about a boy who is supposed to fight legions of hellish creatures that have been brought back to life, but who himself merges with a demon .

action

The orphaned Akira grows up in middle-class circumstances with an adoptive family, the Makimuras and their attractive daughter Miki. Although Akira is a rather weak student who is teased, Miki secretly falls in love with the lovable young man, who hardly returns the sympathy shown to him. Since early childhood Akira has had an almost brotherly friendship with the blond and always cranky Ryō, an extremely silent character who does not shrink from excessive use of force to stand by his friend. Since then, Ryō has been a personified devil among his classmates.

After the unexpected death of Ryō's father, a scientist who discovered a new type of energy source in the underground sea of ​​the South Pole in a million-year-old layer of the earth, Akira learns of the existence of intelligent creatures that feed on other species in order to develop themselves. These deadly creatures, called demons in the film, are prisoners and cause of the strange form of energy. Henceforth they take possession of human bodies. In the presence of his companion, Ryō reveals that he has also been afflicted by an unlucky demon for some time. He asks Akira to kill him, but when Akira refuses, he too is confronted with extraterrestrial forces, which his weak body cannot cope with. He merges with a powerful creature, Amon, and transforms himself into the " Devilman " endowed with supernatural powers , a half-demon with a good-natured human heart. Since he is able to control his newly acquired form as well as his powers, he subordinates them entirely to the well-being of humanity, as an unwavering champion for the good. It is similar to Ryō, who can change his form into a malicious demon at any time. Ryo's mysterious second demon existence, he is the leader of the group of demons, but Akira cannot guess at this point in time.

The changed Akira sees his fateful destiny in protecting mankind from the creatures of Satan. Little by little, dark monsters find their way to the surface of the earth. Hosts of demons maraud through the cities, tearing entire regions into chaos. The catastrophic, almost hopeless situation is exacerbated by government laws that legitimize the killing of the strange creatures and all infected people. During a massacre of demons, Akira realizes that his former friend Ryō is the gruesome leader of the monsters, namely Satan himself, who in turn takes on the bloody fight against humanity. The time is marked by envy, omnipresent distrust and vigilante justice, which inevitably leads to innocent victims and culminates in an apocalyptic world war scenario.

Akira vows to protect Miki in the midst of these terrible, eventful days. But when he has to reveal himself as a demon in order to save his foster family, he is captured by Japanese self-defense forces and executed in cold blood, but contrary to the authorities' assumption, he is not killed. In his absence, unlawful assistance becomes fatal for a demon in his vulnerable foster family. They are slaughtered by an angry squad of angry people, including Miki, Akira's friend.

At the end of the film, Ryō offers his former friend a peaceful cooperation in the “new world”, a world for demons; favored by the mutual destruction of people. However, Akira refuses Ryo's generous offer, deprived of any loved one. There is a difference of opinion that ends in a final final battle in which the satanic Ryō Akira defeats. Shortly before his death, Akira explains to Ryō, who is struggling with feelings, that he will be satisfied with the outcome of the fight if Ryō survives. The injured Ryō then vows to follow his dead childhood friend wherever he goes. In this largely deserted urban landscape, marked by the long war, both of the main characters ultimately perish.

Publications

The film was released in Japanese cinemas on October 9, 2004, grossing 520 million yen . It was released on DVD in Japan in April 2005. A DVD was released in Germany that same month.

Reviews

The lexicon of international films wrote that the film was an "elaborate, staging disappointing film adaptation of a manga classic from 1972, which, with the Izaki twins, members of a successful pop band, relies on not exactly high-ranking actors".

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ biglobe.ne.jp
  2. ↑ a b Devilman in the Lexicon of International FilmsTemplate: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used