Tag: GKIDS

Capping off the Lunar New Year with White Snake

White Snake on DVD Angle
Available to preorder on Amazon USA

Light Chaser Animation Studios
Warner Bros. Far East

Released by:
Shout! Factory & GKIDS
Feb 4, 2019

Arriving just in time to cap off the Lunar New Year is the home video release of the Chinese computer animated movie, White Snake. While the world is waiting for the release of Jiang Ziya, the intended release for 2020 to celebrate the Year of the Rat, thankfully, the romantic action comedy does something different to think of this year differently: we have a tale of romance, perseverance and true love.

This release also works with Valentine’s Day coming up next! Here, we have more than a simple tale about two star-crossed lovers. They come from two distinct worlds. One is a mortal and the other a spirit. It’s far different from but has connections to Chinese Ghost Story from decades ago. How can you control fate? Destiny is a key theme in this work. For a full review, please click here.

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Summer Days with Coo Cannot Come Any Sooner

Perhaps the reason for the late home video release of Summer Days with Coo is to gauge international interest if a sequel can be made.

Summer Days with Coo Blu-ray CaseAvailable now on Shout! Factory or AmazonSummer Days DVD Cover

Winter’s grasp may well still be upon us in certain parts of the world, but thankfully, spending (or rather, watching) Summer Days with Coo (河童のクゥと夏休み) is an option.

This anime not only gives us a heartwarming comedy drama between Kōichi Uehara, a young boy having an awkward time in school, but also looks at the life of a kappa, nicknamed Coo, who is a stranger in a strange land. Unlike those prankster frog-like spirits of lore, these creatures are very friendly towards humans. They don’t hate them unless threatened. The cute character designs in this anime suggest they are simple country folk.

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Weathering with You Debuting in North America Today!

Weathering With You Movie PosterFan Preview Screenings (full movie with exclusive Makoto Shinkai video) tonight and tomorrow.

Opens in theaters on January 17 (North America). In Canada please check Cineplex online for participating theatres.

Coming to North America today is the highly-anticipated new film from director Makoto Shinkai and producer Genki Kawamura, the creative team behind the critically-acclaimed, global smash hit Your Name.

The Weathering with You is too apt for a charged tale of life, love, and controlling the weather. The timing could not be any better as parts of Canada and the East coast being hit with snow. High winds and other dangers notwithstanding, for those able to make it, this film is worth getting out to! Thankfully it will stay in theaters longer as the wild and woolly weather can dissipate in a few hours.

Synopsis:

The summer of his high school freshman year, Hodaka runs away from his remote island home to Tokyo, and quickly finds himself pushed to his financial and personal limits. The weather is unusually gloomy and rainy every day, as if to suggest his future. He lives his days in isolation, but finally finds work as a writer for a mysterious occult magazine. Then one day, Hodaka meets Hina on a busy street corner. This bright and strong-willed girl possesses a strange and wonderful ability: the power to stop the rain and clear the sky…

Buñuel in the Labrynth of the Turtles

The animated look of Luis Buñuel by Salvador Simó is a captivating analysis and one I had to view a few times.

Labrynth of the Turtles
Available to stream on Amazon PrimeLabrynth of the Turtles

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Released:
Nov 12, 2019

GKIDS & Shout! Factory

Mild Spoiler Alert

Ask any modern art critic what this medium is about, and you’ll get a variety of answers. It’s either a social call to arms, a reflection of life or nothing at all. Sometimes it’s easier to understand a talent’s work by examining the life and times. Anyone studying early film is likely to come across the works of Luis Buñuel. The animated look of this auteur by Salvador Simó is a captivating analysis and one I had to view a few times.

Buñuel in the Labyrinth of the Turtles concerns his attempt into the making Las Hurdes (Land Without Bread). The filmmaker was near broke because his last movie (L’Age d’Or) branded him a heretic and he needed a new investor if he’s examining an impoverished region with a higher than usual adoption rate. Also, the medieval conditions he saw was something he had to express (through surreal imagery) to the world through his own profound use of visual shock therapy.

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Get Spirited Away to Theatres Halloween Eve & with a Collector’s Edition Nov 12th!

Labrynth of the TurtlesBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Oct 28th (sub) & 30th (dub)
Please check local listings

Released by:
GKIDS & Shout! Factory

Home video release date:
November 12, 2019

Studio Ghibli’s Spirited Away (千と千尋の神隠し) is returning to theatres this week courtesy of GKIDS and for those discovering this magical film for the first time, they can enjoy it again when the Blu-ray Collector’s Edition arrives on home video two weeks later. To time the cinematic screening with Halloween is not unusual because of the themes. It’s a Alice in Wonderland style parable, and the themes are just as reverent for the season.

This film deserves to be seen on the big screen first before taking the spirits–er, film home. That way, this work can be enjoyed year round.
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Studio 4°C Genius Party is Happening Oct 15th! in North America

Although it took a long time for Studio 4°C Genius Party make it to North America, the wait was certainly worthwhile.

Genius Party Blu-ray Case
Available to purchase/preorder on AmazonLabrynth of the Turtles

Shout! Factory & GKIDS
Release Date: Oct 15, 2019

Coming to home video in North America is Genius Party Volumes 1 & 2 (ジーニアス・パーティ) offered in one disc. Studio 4°C is behind this anthology series, and all twelve shorts are offered instead of the original Japanese editions where both were sold separately–originally released in 2007 and 2008, respectively. Anime fans who have yet to discover this bonanza will be thrilled to find many storytelling genres realized by top talents. The shorts I loved the most were the fantasy type works.

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