Hashire Melos!
Encyclopedia
is the title of two Japanese animated
films. The first was directed by Tomoharu Katsumata
and released on Japanese television on February 7, 1981. It was either 68 or 87 minutes long, and its official title did not include the exclamation mark on the end.
The second, with the exclamation mark, was a 107-minute remake of the first and was released on July 25, 1992. It featured direction and screenplay by Masaaki Osumi
, music by Kazumasa Oda
, art by Hiroyuki Okiura
and Satoshi Kon
, and background art by Hiroshi Ohno.
Both were produced by Toei Company Ltd.
Visual 80, and both were based on the original short story
written by Osamu Dazai
in 1940.
As opposed to Osamu Dazai's original story, Melos is here innocent of the conspiracy accusation.
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
films. The first was directed by Tomoharu Katsumata
Tomoharu Katsumata
is a Japanese film director best known for his work on various anime works. A leading director at the Toei Animation studio during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, Katsumata worked as a director on several of Toei's TV anime adaptations of manga by Go Nagai, including Devilman , Mazinger Z , Cutey...
and released on Japanese television on February 7, 1981. It was either 68 or 87 minutes long, and its official title did not include the exclamation mark on the end.
The second, with the exclamation mark, was a 107-minute remake of the first and was released on July 25, 1992. It featured direction and screenplay by Masaaki Osumi
Masaaki Osumi
is a Japanese director known for his work in television and movie animations.-Career:Ōsumi was born in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, and graduated from School of Media Science at the Tokyo University of Technology. He got his start in the entertainment industry as the leader of a puppet theater in Kobe...
, music by Kazumasa Oda
Kazumasa Oda
is a Japanese singer-songwriter, composer and is also known as the leader of the folk rock band Off Course.As a vocalist and leader of Off Course, Oda wrote many Japanese standard numbers in the 70s and 80s. He and Yasuhiro Suzuki were important composers in the band...
, art by Hiroyuki Okiura
Hiroyuki Okiura
is a Japanese animation director and animator.Okiura, who entered the industry at the age of 16 with no academic background , is known for his detailed effects animation in, for example, the chopper attack scene in Patlabor The Movie 2, and more recently his highly realistic character animation in...
and Satoshi Kon
Satoshi Kon
was a Japanese anime director and manga artist from Kushiro, Hokkaidō and a member of the Japanese Animation Creators Association . He was a graduate of the Graphic Design department of the Musashino Art University. He is sometimes credited as in the credits of Paranoia Agent...
, and background art by Hiroshi Ohno.
Both were produced by Toei Company Ltd.
Toei Company
is a Japanese film, television production, and distribution corporation. Based in Tokyo, Toei owns and operates thirty-four movie theaters across Japan, a modest vertically-integrated studio system by the standards of the 1930s United States; operates studios at Tokyo and Kyoto; and is a...
Visual 80, and both were based on the original short story
Run, Melos!
is a Japanese short story by Osamu Dazai. Published in 1940, "Run, Melos!" is a widely read classic in Japanese schools.The story is a reworking of Friedrich Schiller's ballad Die Bürgschaft, which tells the story of Moerus and Selinuntius , originally Damon and Pythias...
written by Osamu Dazai
Osamu Dazai
was a Japanese author who is considered one of the foremost fiction writers of 20th-century Japan.-Biography:-Early life:Dazai was born , the eighth surviving child of a wealthy landowner in Kanagi, a remote corner of Japan at the northern tip of Tōhoku in Aomori Prefecture...
in 1940.
Plot
The movie tells the story of Melos, a Greek country man that gets arrested and accused of conspiracy against the king. He gets three days to travel to his sister's wedding while Selinentius (Selinae), a genius sculptor that Melos just met stays as a hostage.As opposed to Osamu Dazai's original story, Melos is here innocent of the conspiracy accusation.
Cast for the 1992 film
- Akina NakamoriAkina Nakamoriis a Japanese pop singer and actress. She was one of the most popular singers of the 1980s in Japan. She is known for her deep, power-house voice....
as Melos' sister. - Kōichi YamaderaKoichi Yamaderais a Japanese voice actor, actor, tarento, narrator, master of ceremonies and impressionist from Shiogama, Miyagi Prefecture. He graduated from Tohoku Gakuin University's economics school, and is currently affiliated with Across Entertainment. Before that, he was affiliated with the Tokyo Actor's...
as Melos. - Megumi HayashibaraMegumi Hayashibarais a Japanese voice actress, singer, radio personality, and lyricist from Tokyo. She is currently affiliated with Aksent. Her nicknames include: Megu-san, Megu-nee, Bara-san, Kakka, and Daijin...
as Clair. - Shinji OgawaShinji Ogawais a Japanese voice actor and actor from Setagaya, Tokyo. He is affiliated with Office Osawa.He is best known as the dubover artist for Michael Douglas and Timothy Dalton, and for voicing Hyō in Fist of the North Star.-Television animation:...
as Serinentius. - Takuma Gōno as Pipor.