is a 1978 Japanese animated

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 ...

that premiered in

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...

on November 2, 1978. It was released by

Sanrio is a Japanese entertainment company. It designs, licenses, and produces products focusing on the ''kawaii'' ("cute") segment of Japanese popular culture. Their products include stationery, school supplies, gifts, and accessories which are sold ...

in the United States on May 3, 1979. It is a retelling of stories from ''

Metamorphoses The ''Metamorphoses'' ( la, Metamorphōsēs, from grc, μεταμορφώσεις: "Transformations") is a Latin narrative poem from 8 CE by the Roman poet Ovid. It is considered his ''magnum opus''. The poem chronicles the history of the wo ...

'' by the Roman poet

Ovid Pūblius Ovidius Nāsō (; 20 March 43 BC – 17/18 AD), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a contemporary of the older Virgil and Horace, with whom he is often ranked as one of the th ...

, and narration by

Peter Ustinov Sir Peter Alexander Ustinov (born Peter Alexander Freiherr von Ustinov ; 16 April 192128 March 2004) was a British actor, filmmaker and writer. An internationally known raconteur, he was a fixture on television talk shows and lecture circuits ...

. In all of its five parts, the protagonists are portrayed in the form of a recurring boy and girl.

Production

The film was the between American golden age of

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

-influenced anime and Sanrio's second animated release in the US (following their adaptation of ''The Mouse and His Child'' the previous year). Over 170 animators, all employed in Hollywood, worked on it for three years.

Release

''Metamorphoses'' tried to be the rock era's answer to ''

Fantasia Fantasia International Film Festival (also known as Fantasia-fest, FanTasia, and Fant-Asia) is a film festival that has been based mainly in Montreal since its founding in 1996. Regularly held in July of each year, it is valued by both hardcore ...

'', but its original run was critically reviled and closed as soon as it opened. According to many of its crew, many problems with the production, music and plotting were to blame. On May 3, 1979, it was reissued under a new title, ''Winds of Change'', with seven minutes trimmed from the first cut of 89 minutes. This time, the music was composed by

Alec R. Costandinos Alec Rupen Costandinos, (born Alexandre Garbis Sarkis Kouyoumdjian in 1944 in Cairo, Egypt) is a French composer, music producer, songwriter and singer of the 1970s, known for his contributions to disco music. His father was Armenian and his m ...

, the disco songs were sung by Arthur Simms and

Pattie Brooks Pattie Brooks (sometimes credited as Patti Brooks and Patty Brooks) is an American singer most frequently associated with the disco era. She was born in Fort Riley, Kansas to a military family. Her first break came in 1968 when she auditioned fo ...

and narration by

was added. The five parts: # "

Actaeon Actaeon (; grc, Ἀκταίων ''Aktaion''), in Greek mythology, son of the priestly herdsman Aristaeus and Autonoe in Boeotia, was a famous Theban hero. Like Achilles in a later generation, he was trained by the centaur Chiron. He fell to ...

" # "

Orpheus Orpheus (; Ancient Greek: Ὀρφεύς, classical pronunciation: ; french: Orphée) is a Thracian bard, legendary musician and prophet in ancient Greek religion. He was also a renowned poet and, according to the legend, travelled with Jaso ...

and

Eurydice Eurydice (; Ancient Greek: Εὐρυδίκη 'wide justice') was a character in Greek mythology and the Auloniad wife of Orpheus, who tried to bring her back from the dead with his enchanting music. Etymology Several meanings for the name ...

" # "The House of Envy" # "

Perseus In Greek mythology, Perseus (Help:IPA/English, /ˈpɜːrsiəs, -sjuːs/; Greek language, Greek: Περσεύς, Romanization of Greek, translit. Perseús) is the legendary founder of Mycenae and of the Perseid dynasty. He was, alongside Cadmus ...

" and... # " Phaëton" ...in the original order, were re-arranged and slightly renamed for the new version; the third and last parts remained unmoved. In the ''Winds'' cut, the first two were now "Perseus" and "Actaeon", and the fourth "Orpheus". In addition, the boy was now called Wondermaker, and the girl played different characters in every segment. Greek gods

Hermes Hermes (; grc-gre, Ἑρμῆς) is an Olympian deity in ancient Greek religion and mythology. Hermes is considered the herald of the gods. He is also considered the protector of human heralds, travellers, thieves, merchants, and orato ...

Artemis In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Artemis (; grc-gre, Ἄρτεμις) is the goddess of the hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, nature, vegetation, childbirth, care of children, and chastity. She was heavily identified wit ...

and

Hades Hades (; grc-gre, ᾍδης, Háidēs; ), in the ancient Greek religion and myth, is the god of the dead and the king of the underworld, with which his name became synonymous. Hades was the eldest son of Cronus and Rhea, although this also ...

were given their Roman names (

Mercury Mercury commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg * Mercury (mythology), a Roman god Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Merc ...

, Diana and

Pluto Pluto (minor-planet designation: 134340 Pluto) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of trans-Neptunian object, bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the S ...

respectively).

Sources

*Beck, Jerry (2005), pp. 166–7. ''The Animated Movie Guide''. . Chicago Reader Press. Accessed April 9, 2007.

References

External links

* (under later title, ''Winds of Change'') * {{DEFAULTSORT:Metamorphoses (Film) 1970s musical fantasy films 1979 anime films 1979 films Animated drama films Animated musical films Japanese anthology films Animated films based on classical mythology Films based on Metamorphoses Films set in ancient Greece Films set in classical antiquity Films with live action and animation Japanese independent films Japanese epic films Japanese animated fantasy films Japanese musical fantasy films Japanese rock music films Films about shapeshifting Films scored by Billy Goldenberg Sanrio 1970s English-language films Classical mythology in anime and manga

Production

Release

See also

Sources

References

External links