, also titled ''Manie-Manie'' on its title card, is a 1987

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, 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 Japane ...

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

anthology film An anthology film (also known as an omnibus film, package film, or portmanteau film) is a single film consisting of several shorter films, each complete in itself and distinguished from the other, though frequently tied together by a single theme ...

produced by Project Team Argos and Madhouse. The film was conceived and produced by Madhouse founders Masao Maruyama and

Rintaro is the pseudonym of , a well-known director of anime. He works frequently with the animation studio Madhouse (company), Madhouse (which he co-founded), though he is a freelance director not employed directly by any one studio. He began working i ...

, the latter of whom served as composition organizer alongside

Katsuhiro Otomo is a Japanese manga artist, screenwriter, animator and film director. He is best known as the creator of '' Akira'', in terms of both the original 1982 manga series and the 1988 animated film adaptation. He was decorated a ''Chevalier'' of th ...

on the project. The 50 minute-long film has three segments, each under a different

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

and

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

: Rintaro's "Labyrinth Labyrinthos," an exploration into the maze of a little girl's mind,

Yoshiaki Kawajiri is a writer and director of Japanese animation. He is the creator of titles such as '' Wicked City'', ''Ninja Scroll'', and '' Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust''. Biography Kawajiri was born on November 18, 1950 and grew up in Yokohama, Kanagawa Pr ...

's "Running Man," focusing on a deadly

auto race Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...

, and

Katsuhiro Ōtomo is a Japanese manga artist, screenwriter, animator and film director. He is best known as the creator of '' Akira'', in terms of both the original 1982 manga series and the 1988 animated film adaptation. He was decorated a ''Chevalier'' of t ...

's "Construction Cancellation Order," a cautionary tale about man's dependency on technology. In addition to original music by

Godiego are a Japanese rock band, consisting of keyboardist and composer Mickie Yoshino, vocalist Yukihide Takekawa, guitarist Takami Asano and Yoji Yoshizawa, bassist Steve Fox, and drummer Tommy Snyder. Over their 40-year career (with hiatuses), Go ...

Mickie Yoshino Mickie Yoshino (born 13 December 1951) is a Japanese keyboard player, composer, producer, and arranger. Yoshino is known for leading the rock band Godiego. In 2005, he won a Japan Academy Prize for his music. Yoshino's compositions were used i ...

, two prominently feature famous pieces of Western

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

: the first of

Erik Satie Eric Alfred Leslie Satie (, ; ; 17 May 18661 July 1925), who signed his name Erik Satie after 1884, was a French composer and pianist. He was the son of a French father and a British mother. He studied at the Paris Conservatoire, but was an und ...

's ''

Gymnopédies The ''Gymnopédies'' (), or ''Trois Gymnopédies'', are three piano compositions written by French composer and pianist Erik Satie. He completed the whole set by 2 April 1888, but they were at first published individually: the first and the thir ...

'' and the "

Toreador Song The Toreador Song is the popular name for the aria "" ("I toast you"), from the French opera ''Carmen'', composed by Georges Bizet to a libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy. It is sung by the bullfighter (French: '' toréador'') Escamil ...

" of

Georges Bizet Georges Bizet (; 25 October 18383 June 1875) was a French composer of the Romantic music, Romantic era. Best known for his operas in a career cut short by his early death, Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, ''Carmen'', whi ...

's ''

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the Carmen (novella), novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first perfo ...

'' in "Labyrinth" and "

Morning Mood "Morning Mood" ( no, Morgenstemning i ørkenen, translation=Morning mood in the desert, link=no, italic=no) is part of Edvard Grieg's ''Peer Gynt'', Op. 23, written in 1875 as incidental music to Henrik Ibsen's play of the same name, and was al ...

" from

Edvard Grieg Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the foremost Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwide. His use of ...

's ''Peer Gynt'' score, in an ironic manner, in "The Order." The film premiered on September 25, 1987, at that year's Tōkyō International Fantastic Film Festival. Other than festival screenings, Japanese distributor

Toho is a Japanese film, theatre production and distribution company. It has its headquarters in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Osaka-based Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group. Outside of Japan, it is best known as the producer an ...

originally relegated the film

direct-to-video Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, TV series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strategy was p ...

, releasing a VHS on October 10, 1987, but did eventually give it a general cinema release in Japan, on April 15, 1989. In English, the film was licensed, dubbed and released theatrically (as a

double feature The double feature is a motion picture industry phenomenon in which theatres would exhibit two films for the price of one, supplanting an earlier format in which one feature film and various short subject reels would be shown. Opera use Opera ho ...

with the first ''

Silent Möbius is a twelve-volume manga series created by manga artist Kia Asamiya. Both anime versions have been licensed by Bandai Entertainment. It is heavily influenced by the film ''Blade Runner'' and is centered on the lives of a dedicated group o ...

'' film) and to VHS in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

Streamline Pictures Streamline Pictures was an American media company that was best known for its distribution of English-dubbed Japanese animation. History Founding Founded in Los Angeles, California, in late 1988, Streamline Pictures was one of the first No ...

, the license later being taken up by the now also out of business

ADV Films A.D. Vision Holdings, Inc. (known simply as ADV and also referred to as ADV Films) was an American multimedia entertainment distributor headquartered in Houston, Texas, and founded in 1992 by video game fan John Ledford and anime fans Matt Gre ...

Plot

Labyrinth Labyrinthos

The short follows Sachi (

Hideko Yoshida is a Japanese actress. She won the award for best supporting actress at the 14th Hochi Film Award for ''Shaso''. Filmography * '' Neo Tokyo'' (1989) * ''Shaso'' (1989) * ''The Pillow Book'' (1996) * ''Will to Live'' (1999) * ''By Player'' (2000) ...

/ Cheryl Chase), a girl locked in a game of

hide-and-seek Hide-and-seek (sometimes known as hide-and-go-seek) is a popular children's game in which at least two players (usually at least three) conceal themselves in a set environment, to be found by one or more seekers. The game is played by one chose ...

with her cat

Cicerone Cicerone ( ) is an old term for a guide who conducts visitors and sightseers to museums, galleries, etc., and explains matters of archaeological, antiquarian, historic or artistic interest. The word is presumably taken from Marcus Tullius Cicero, ...

. Her search leads her to an old

longcase clock A grandfather clock (also a longcase clock, tall-case clock, grandfather's clock, or floor clock) is a tall, freestanding, weight-driven pendulum clock with the pendulum held inside the tower or waist of the case. Clocks of this style are common ...

which doubles as a doorway to a

labyrinth In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth (, ) was an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by the ...

world. The world is filled with supernatural oddities and characters, such as cardboard working class citizens, an invisible dog, a skeleton-led train and a weird circus. Eventually, Sachi and Cicerone arrive at a

circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicyclist ...

tent where a viewing screen is displayed, leading to the following segments.

The Running Man

is written for the screen and directed by Yoshiaki Kawajiri, with character design and animation direction by Kawajiri, mechanical design by Takashi Watabe and Satoshi Kumagai, key animation by Shinji Otsuka, Nobumasa Shinkawa, Toshio Kawaguchi and Kengo Inagaki and art direction by Katsushi Aoki. The segment also appeared on Episode 205 of ''

Liquid Television ''Liquid Television'' was an animation showcase that appeared on MTV from 1991 to 1995. It has served as the launching point for several high-profile original cartoons, including ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' and ''Æon Flux''. The bulk of ''Liquid T ...

'' with a different voice actor, Rafael Ferrer, than

Michael McConnohie Michael McConnohie is an American voice actor, writer and director who has provided many voice roles in movies, anime, and video games. He and fellow actress Melodee Spevack run a production company called VoxWorks. Some of his major works includ ...

's Streamline dub.

Construction Cancellation Order

A revolution in the fictional

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

n country of the Aloana Republic has resulted in a new government being installed; this new government refuses to accept a contract detailing the construction of Facility 444. The company responsible for the construction has begun to lose millions, so

salaryman In Japan, a is a salaried worker. In Japanese popular culture, this is embodied by a white-collar worker who shows overriding loyalty and commitment to the corporation where he works. Salarymen are expected to work long hours, to put in addit ...

Tsutomu Sugioka (

Yū Mizushima is a Japanese actor, voice actor and narrator. He is the Japanese voice-over for Sammo Hung, and is the Japanese voice of Wakko. In the 1980s, He proved to be a popular choice for many Japanese animation studios for the roles of male heart-thr ...

Robert Axelrod Robert Marshall Axelrod (born May 27, 1943) is an American political scientist. He is Professor of Political Science and Public Policy at the University of Michigan where he has been since 1974. He is best known for his interdisciplinary work o ...

) is sent to stop production. The work is completely automated, carried out by robots programmed to finish the job no matter the consequences and led by a robot identified as 444-1 (

Hiroshi Ōtake was a Japanese actor and voice actor, represented by 81 Produce. He was best known for his roles as Nyarome in ''Mōretsu Atarō'', Daisho in ''Himitsu no Akko-chan'', Boss in ''Mazinger Z'', Pāman 2 (Booby) in ''Pāman'', King Nikochan in ''D ...

Jeff Winkless Jeffrey Alan Winkless (June 2, 1941 – June 26, 2006) was an American actor. He was born in Springfield, Massachusetts (U.S.). Two of his younger brothers, Terence H. Winkless and Daniel Owen Winkless, worked with him on ''The Banana Splits Ad ...

). Witnessing the destruction of several robots and Robot 444-1's refusal to cease operations, Tsutomu begins to lose his patience and is nearly killed by 444-1 who was programmed to eliminate anything that poses a threat to the project. He retaliates by destroying 444-1 and follows its powercord that leads to the energy source of the robots in an attempt to finally end the production. Unknown to Tsutomu, the old government has been restored and they have agreed to honor the contract once more.

Production

Labyrinth Labyrinthos

is written for the screen and directed by

, with

character design Character design may refer to: *Characterisation, the process of conveying information about characters *Character creation, the process of defining a game character *Model sheet In visual arts, a model sheet, also known as a character board, cha ...

and animation direction by Atsuko Fukushima and

art direction Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and unify the visi ...

by Yamako Ishikawa. It serves as the anthology's "top-level" story, a

framing device Framing may refer to: * Framing (construction), common carpentry work * Framing (law), providing false evidence or testimony to prove someone guilty of a crime * Framing (social sciences) * Framing (visual arts), a technique used to bring the focus ...

that leads into the other two works.

The Running Man

is written for the screen and directed by Yoshiaki Kawajiri, with character design and animation direction by Kawajiri, mechanical design by Takashi Watabe and Satoshi Kumagai and art direction by Katsushi Aoki. The segment also appeared on Episode 205 of ''

'' with a different voice actor,

Neil Kaplan Neil Charles Kaplan is an American voice actor, audiobook narrator, entertainer, and comedian. Biography Kaplan got his start as a comedian doing impressions of presidents such as Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon. He also impersonated a little-k ...

, than

Steve Blum Steven Jay Blum (; born April 29, 1960) is an American voice actor. Known for his distinctively deep voice, his most well-known roles include Spike Spiegel from the anime series '' Cowboy Bebop'', Garazeb Orrelios from the animated series ''St ...

's Bandai Visual.

Construction Cancellation Order

is written for the screen and directed by Katsuhiro Otomo, with character designs by Otomo and animation direction by

Takashi Nakamura is an accomplished Japanese animator and anime director. He is also a founding member of the Japan Animation Creators Association (JAniCA) labor group. Nakamura's 2001 film ''A Tree of Palme'' was an official selection of the Berlin Film Festi ...

This segment's depiction of South America as a dangerous, unstable place is comparable to other depictions in the Japanese media during the 1990s such as

Osamu Tezuka Osamu Tezuka (, born , ''Tezuka Osamu''; – 9 February 1989) was a Japanese manga artist, cartoonist, and animator. Born in Osaka Prefecture, his prolific output, pioneering techniques, and innovative redefinitions of genres earned him such ...

's 1987

comic a Media (communication), medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of Panel (comics), panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, Glo ...

Gringo ''Gringo'' (, , ) (masculine) (or ''gringa'' (feminine)) is a term in Spanish and Portuguese for a foreigner, usually an English-speaking Anglo-American. There are differences in meaning depending on region and country. In Latin America, it is ge ...

''.

Reception

In a 2021 list of the "100 best anime movies of all-time", '' Paste'' magazine ranked ''Neo Tokyo'' at #10, writing "though for the most part absent of any real thematic connectivity, ''Neo-Tokyo'' is a concise and powerful example of the dizzying heights of technical mastery and aesthetic ambition anime can achieve when put in the hands of the medium's most inimitable creators."

References

External links

* * * {{Madhouse films 1987 anime films 1980s science fiction films Cyberpunk anime and manga Cyberpunk films Films based on multiple works Films based on short fiction Films directed by Yoshiaki Kawajiri Films directed by Katsuhiro Otomo Films directed by Rintaro Films set in South America Japanese anthology films Japanese auto racing films Japanese animated science fiction films Madhouse (company) Animated films about auto racing Animated anthology films Japanese robot films Films about telekinesis Toho animated films ADV Films

Plot

Labyrinth Labyrinthos

The Running Man

Construction Cancellation Order

Production

Labyrinth Labyrinthos

The Running Man

Construction Cancellation Order

Reception

See also

References

External links