Wings of Honneamise

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Movie
German title Wings of Honneamise
Original title 王立 宇宙 軍 オ ネ ア ミ ス の 翼
Country of production Japan
original language Japanese
Publishing year 1987
length 125 minutes
Age rating FSK 16
Rod
Director Hiroyuki Yamaga
script Hiroyuki Yamaga, Hiroshi Onogi
production Shigeru Watanabe, Toshio Okada
music Ryuichi Sakamoto
synchronization

Wings of Honneamise ( Japanese 王立 宇宙 軍 オ ネ ア ミ ス の 翼 , Ōritsu Uchūgun: Oneamisu no Tsubasa , Eng . "Royal Space Army : The Wings of Honneamise") is an anime film from 1987 and the first production by the Gainax studio .

The film is set on another planet and is about Shirotsugh Lhadatt, who is the first person on this planet to reach space.

action

For reasons of prestige, the Kingdom of Honneamise has started a space program on a planet similar to Earth. However, the technology on this planet is not yet so developed that all attempts fail for the first 20 years and a lot of money is lost and some test pilots perish. So the group of possible space travelers, the Royal Space Force , is not taken seriously, they are not good enough to fly.

The young Shirotsugh Lhadatt joins the Royal Space Force because his grades are insufficient for pilot training. With all the failures and the reputation as a failure, Lhadatt, like his comrades, has given up and is demotivated. After the death of a comrade, he is also depressed. On a nocturnal pleasure tour with his comrade Matti, however, he meets Riquinni Nonderaiko, who distributes religious writings on the street and reminds people of their sins and admonishes them. When he visits her in her cottage in the country where she lives with the closed girl Manna, she is fascinated by his work and the possibility of flying to the stars and living there without the sins of the world. This is how Lhadatt gains strength and motivation. When another volunteer is wanted for a flight into space, he volunteers to be the first person in space.

Lhadatt now has to complete various training units and soon he and his comrades are introduced to the scientists who are constructing the spaceship. As the project progresses, Lhadatt becomes the attention of the country's media, and he is soon a celebrated hero. At the same time he visits nonderaiko and manna again and again. But soon her house will be torn down because Nonderaiko was in debt, and the two of them had to live in a church. Manna, who had already suffered from her parents' quarrels, was very troubling.

It is gradually becoming clear that the money for the space program comes in part from illegal business of the royal family and the noble head of the program. In addition, the state is saving in other areas, which over time triggers protests among the population. In order to make a profit from the project, the Ministry of Defense decides to wage war against the neighboring republic. But since you don't want to act as an aggressor yourself, the neighboring state should be provoked to attack. For this purpose, the General Staff is moving the launch point of the rocket to a demilitarized area .

The problems and the attention given to him soon become too much for Lhadatt, so that he flees to Nonderaiko for a few days. When he spends the night with her, Lhadatt tries to rape her, but Nonderaiko knocks him down. Later both of them feel guilty about the situation. At the same time, the neighboring republic decides to have Lhadatt murdered to prevent the missile from being launched. But Lhadatt can first escape the hit man and then kill him.

Finally, the rocket is about to launch and all preparations are being made on the launch pad. However, the republic now actually wants to attack in order to steal the missile. So the armies on both sides are preparing for battle. On the day of launch, before the countdown begins, the Republic's attack begins, after which the Royal Space Force base is to be evacuated. Lhadatt protests, however, and demands not to give up and go ahead with the launch. Otherwise everything would have been in vain. Eventually, the missile launches amidst the fighting and puts Lhadatt into orbit around the planet. From there, he sends a message to the people asking them to live together peacefully and to show gratitude for what has been given to the people.

Two montages of impressionist pictures follow. The first shows scenes from Lhadatt's life, the second shows the development of a civilization from cavemen to airplanes. Both show the problems between people and nature on the planet.

Origin and production

Planning for the film began in the fall of 1983 by Toshio Okada , as part of the Daicon Films studio in Osaka . This studio was a group of anime ( otaku ) fans who had previously produced the five-minute opening films of the DaiCon III and IV conventions in 1981 and 1983. The group consisted mostly of art students who had never produced animation films before. This, as well as the fan-founded company General Products , which sold articles on anime and science fiction series, also organized the conventions. Both short films wowed audiences and brought the group of fans to the attention of the established companies in the anime industry.

Thereafter, four more films were to be produced, one of them Wings of Honneamise , which was initially planned as an original video animation . While looking for a donor, Toshio Okada came to Bandai through General Products , as they were licensing the merchandising items sold by General Products. Since Bandai wanted to enter the anime market on a large scale, they agreed to fund Wings of Honneamise as a feature film. The Gainax studio was founded in Tokyo in 1984 to produce the film . Directed by Hiroyuki Yamaga , who says he put a lot of his view of the world into the film at the time. The character design was created by Yoshiyuki Sadamoto and the artistic director was Hiromasa Ogura . The animation was directed by Fumio Iida, Hideaki Anno , Yoshiyuki Sadamoto and Yuji Moriyama. Ryuichi Sakamoto composed the music . After the last of Daicon Films' other three films was released in 1985, parts of the studio went to Tokyo to join Gainax to work there, including Takami Akai . 3,000 draftsmen took part in the production.

The film was executed as a limited animation using the technique of cel animation . In its time, the film was the most expensive anime production at 8 billion yen. The backgrounds were designed in an unusually detailed manner. Parts of the production team visited Cape Kennedy and the National Air and Space Museum to research the presentation of space technology .

publication

The anime was released in Japanese theaters on March 14, 1987. A DVD was released in 1999, HD DVD and Blu-ray followed in 2007, as well as another Blu-ray version, but in Cinemascope format, in 2008.

An English version of the film was released in a number of cinemas in the USA in 1995 and was released by Bandai Visual, in Australia by Madman Entertainment. In Europe, the anime was first released in 1995 as a rental version by Manga Video in English. The transmitter Teletoon aired the anime in Canada, Canal + in France. There is also a Chinese and a Dutch translation. The film was released in German in 1996 by PolyGram on VHS and again in March 2020 by Nipponart on Blu-ray and DVD .

The scene in which Lhadatt tries to rape Riquinni is missing in the English and German video versions released in the 90s. The rental version is uncut.

synchronization

The German dubbed version was made by Splendit Synchron.

role Japanese speaker ( seiyū )
Shirotsugh Lhadatt Leo Morimoto
Riquinni Nonderaiko Mitsuki Yayoi
Matti Kazuyuki Sogabe
Manna Nonderaiko Aya Murata
Yanalan Am Shimada
Darigan Hiroshi Izawa
Domorhot Hirotaka Suzuoki
Tchallichammi Kōji Totani
Majaho Masahiro Anzai
Kharock Masato Hirano
Nekkerout Yoshito Yasuhara

continuation

In March 1992, Gainax began planning a sequel to Honneamise under the title Aoki Uru . The idea came from Hiroyuki Yamaga, the plot should take place 50 years after Honneamise and contain no characters from the film. Hideaki Anno was to direct, produce Yamaga and write the script. The character design was created by Yoshiyuki Sadamoto while the first of four planned acts of the film was being worked out. The designs for the mecha design were made by Masamune Shirow and Kazutaka Miyatake .

However, no sponsors could be found for the project. As the studio ran into ever greater financial difficulties, production was suspended indefinitely in July 1993. At the same time, many employees were leaving Gainax and costs were reduced as much as possible. In the same month work began on the series Neon Genesis Evangelion , which was again directed by Hideaki Anno and which also incorporated some ideas for Aoki Uru .

A video game produced by Gainax was released in Japan based on Aoki Uru .

analysis

Patrick Drazen compares the main character Shirotsugh Lhadatt with Tora-san , a character known and loved in Japan who appeared in 68 films. Tora-san is a spirited traveling merchant who makes his way through life, much like Charlie Chaplin's tramp . Like Tora-san, Lhadatt strives unsuccessfully for a healthy family, but Lhadatt succeeds in exceeding his childhood dream by far. The montages at the end are a homage to Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey .

The question of whether Shirotsugh Lhadatt is coming back to the planet remains unanswered. The critic Marc Marshall thinks that the return of Lhadatt is recognizable in the sketches that accompany the credits. Patrick Drazen sees more of a farewell to him in the last scene in which Riquinni looks up at the sky.

The film is reminiscent of the race into space between the USA and the Soviet Union, which was moved here to another planet. Just as the Japanese view of the space race was from outside, the viewer of the film is offered a view of the outsider. The film is a Japanese version of The Right Stuff .

The film also shows the studio staff's enthusiasm for science fiction and the belief that the future of humans lies in space.

reception

The film received exceptionally positive reviews in Japan and was soon recognized as a classic. According to Gainax employee Yasuhiro Takeda, despite rumors to the contrary, the film was not a flop, but ran in all cinemas for at least the planned time. However, the high cost of the film could not be brought in. Nevertheless, the success for the newly founded studio was sufficient not to close it, although it was initially only designed for the production of one film.

In the United States, the film had little success, partly because at the time of its release, expectations for anime were still in the area of ​​children's entertainment or pornography. Some critics have criticized the lack of the depictions of sex and violence they expected. In The Complete Anime Guide is Honneamise considered one of the films that have contributed to the "growing up" of the anime. The film was one of many steps on this path. Roger Ebert describes Wings of Honneamise as one of the most ambitious animes, which instead of the Disney-typical full animation relies on unusual design of the backgrounds and more stylized than realistic foregrounds. For American viewers, the content is also unusually mature for an animated film. Unusual camera settings and pauses that interrupt the action are also used. Yamaga's visual ingenuity is a particular pleasure, which is particularly evident in the montages at the end of the film. In The Anime Encyclopedia , the film is seen as an example of how solemn and intelligent anime can be. The world presented is enriched with many small details, such as triangular spoons and its own measuring systems, and “screams for recognition as the triumph of world creation” .

The German trade magazine AnimaniA praised the film for reviving the now almost forgotten fascination of early space travel. Here will "the compelling story of a young pioneer in chaos of war" tells and still "social with great sensitivity issues" discussed. The world is put together with great attention to detail, making use of various decades of the 20th century. The animation is fluid and rich in detail, and the plot is particularly recommended for fans of more demanding dramas. Only for viewers who expect constant action is the film because of the complex plot nothing. The dubbing of the German version has been sharply criticized, as the speakers create less lively and expressive dialogues, and the text becomes almost embarrassing, especially in more serious conversations.

literature

  • Patrick Drazen: Wings of Honneamise: Tora-san in Space in Anime Explosion! - The What? Why? & Wow! of Japanese Animation . Stone Bridge Press, 2002. (English)
  • Yasuhiro Takeda : The Notenki Memoirs - Studio Gainax and the Man who created Evangelion . ADV Manga, 2005 (English)

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d Patrick Drazen: Wings of Honneamise: Tora-san in Space in Anime Explosion! - The What? Why? & Wow! of Japanese Animation . Stone Bridge Press, 2002.
  2. ^ A b c Roger Ebert: The Wings Of Honneamise. May 12, 1995. Retrieved March 7, 2009 .
  3. ↑ a b c d e Yasuhiro Takeda : The Notenki Memoirs - Studio Gainax and the Man who created Evangelion . ADV Manga, 2005 (English)
  4. ↑ a b c Lawrence Eng : The Fans who became Kings - Gainax and the Otaku Culture in: Deutsches Filminstitut - DIF / German Filmmuseum & Museum of Applied Arts (ed.): Ga-netchû! Das Manga Anime Syndrom , p. 90. Henschel Verlag, 2008.
  5. ↑ Speaking Once as They Return by Carl Horn, in AMPlus 1.2, 1995
  6. ↑ a b AnimaniA 04/1995 p. 70 f.
  7. ^ Thomas Lamarre : Full Limited Animation in: Deutsches Filminstitut - DIF / German Filmmuseum & Museum of Applied Arts (ed.): Ga-netchû! Das Manga Anime Syndrom , p. 90. Henschel Verlag, 2008.
  8. ↑ a b AnimaniA 03/1997 p. 22
  9. ↑ a b c d Jonathan Clements, Helen McCarthy: The Anime Encyclopedia. Revised & Expanded Edition p. 726 f. Berkeley 2006, Stone Bridge Press, (English)
  10. ↑ Andrew Leonard: Heads Up, Mickey - Anime may be Japan's first really big cultural export. wired.com, accessed March 7, 2009 .
  11. ↑ Trish Ledoux and Doug Ranney: The Complete Anime Guide p. 41 f. Tiger Mountain Press, Issaquah (Washington), 1995.
  12. ^ Trish Ledoux and Doug Ranney: The Complete Anime Guide p. 71. Tiger Mountain Press, Issaquah (Washington), 1995.

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