, also known as ''The Diary of Anne Frank'', is a 1995 Japanese

anime is hand-drawn and computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japanese, (a term derived from a shortening of ...

film based on

Anne Frank Annelies Marie "Anne" Frank (, ; 12 June 1929 – )Research by The Anne Frank House in 2015 revealed that Frank may have died in February 1945 rather than in March, as Dutch authorities had long assumed"New research sheds new light on Anne Fra ...

's 1942-1944 ''

The Diary of a Young Girl ''The Diary of a Young Girl'', also known as ''The Diary of Anne Frank'', is a book of the writings from the Dutch-language diary kept by Anne Frank while she was in hiding for two years with her family during the Nazi occupation of the Neth ...

''. It is a feature film by Madhouse, was directed by Akinori Nagaoka and released on August 19, 1995.

Voice cast

Production

Nagaoka's film features new character designs by Katsuyuki Kubo and features a score composed by Michael Nyman, including two songs, "If" (which incorporates "Time Lapse" from '' A Zed & Two Noughts'') and "Why," which have become concert works. The former also appeared in an altered form in the film, '' The Libertine''. The singer is

contralto A contralto () is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range is the lowest female voice type. The contralto's vocal range is fairly rare; similar to the mezzo-soprano, and almost identical to that of a countertenor, typica ...

Hilary Summers. "Candlefire" as well as piano-only versions of "If" and Why" appear on Nyman's 2005 release, ''

The Piano Sings ''The Piano Sings'' is a 2005 solo album by Michael Nyman featuring personal interpretations of film music he wrote between 1993 and 2003. It is his second release on his own label, MN Records, and his 49th release overall. The album was rel ...

''.

Release

The Nagaoka film was released with an

English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the ...

adaptation, via a DVD release in French (as ''Le Journal d'Anne Frank'') with English subtitles. A release in North America was set for 2015, but went unreleased for several years. The English version was finally released for free on the official YouTube channel on May 3, 2020. The French and English language versions replaced the Michael Nyman score with a new one by Carine H.D. Gutlerner. The international version was shortened to 87 minutes.

Soundtrack

"If" and "Why" have become staples of Michael Nyman's concerts and were rerecorded as piano solos on ''

''.

Track listing

#Amsterdam Dawn #Anne's Birthday #The Schoolroom #Letter From Germany #Goodbye Moortje #Candlefire #Renewal #Light Of Love #Chatterbox Waltz #Hanukah #Spring Freedom #Concentration Camp #If #First Kiss #D-Day #The Diary Of Hope #Silent Separation #Lament For Lost Youth #Why

Reception

Anime News Network's Justin Sevakis said that "even a story as powerful as Anne Frank's cannot overcome truly odious filmmaking and weird directorial choices that just don't work" and that he couldn't "think of a worse way to experience the story than watching this film".

References

* ''The Anime Encyclopedia'' by Jonathan Clements and Helen McCarthy (revised and expanded edition), "Diary of Anne Frank," p. 144

External links

* (Madhouse) * * 1995 anime films Anime television films Japanese biographical films Films about Anne Frank Madhouse (company) TV Asahi original programming Films scored by Michael Nyman Animated films based on literature Historical anime and manga {{Anime-film-stub