X (1996)

Director:

Rintaro

Writers:

Mami Watanabe (script) and
Mick Nekoi (comic) ...
(more)

Release Date:

3 August 1996 (Japan)

Genre:

Animation | Action | Fantasy | Horror | Thriller

Plot:

The story takes place in 1999, the Year of Destiny, and the beginning of the end of the world. The future of the universe rests on one young man...

Plot Keywords:

Destiny | End Of The World | Based On Comic | Tragic Hero | Wings

Cast

Tomokazu Seki	...	Kamui Shirô
Ken Narita	...	Fûma Monô
Junko Iwao	...	Kotori Monô
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Toni Barry	...	Karen Kasumi (voice: English version)
Rupert Degas	...	Shuogo Asagi (voice: English version)
Denica Fairman	...	Kanoe (voice: English version)
Mike Fitzpatrick	...	Sorata Arisugawa (voice: English version)
Tôru Furusawa	...	Seishirô Sakurazuka
Teresa Gallagher	...	Arashi Kishu (voice: English version)
Jeff Harding	...	Kusangi (voice: English version)
David Harris	...	Seiichirou Aoki (voice: English version)
Adam Henderson	...	Fuma Summit (voice: English version)
Masako Ikeda	...	Tôru
Kazuhiko Inoue	...	Yûto Kigai
Stacey Jefferson	...	Hinoto (voice: English version)
Mami Koyama	...	Karen Kasumi
Annemarie Lawless	...	Yuzuriha Nekoi (voice: English version)
Alan Marriott	...	Kamui Shirou (voice: English version)
Rica Matsumoto	...	Nataku
Yûko Minaguchi	...	Hinoto
Kotono Mitsuishi	...	Satsuki Yatôji
Issei Miyazaki	...	Subaru Sumeragi
Larissa Murray	...	Kotari Summit (voice: English version)
Jôji Nakata	...	Kusanagi Shiyû
Yukana Nogami	...	Yuzuriha Nekoi
Liza Ross	...	Toru (Kamui's Mother) (voice: English version)
Toshihiko Seki	...	Shôgo Asagi
Emi Shinohara	...	Arashi Kishû
Atsuko Takahata	...	Kanoe
Hideyuki Tanaka	...	Seiichirô Aoki
Nigel Whitmey	...	Yuto (voice: English version)
Kôichi Yamadera	...	Sorata Arisugawa

Directed by
Rintaro

Writing credits
Mami Watanabe		script and
Mick Nekoi		comic (as Clamp)
Rintaro		script and
Satsuki Igarashi		comic (as Clamp)
Mokona Apapa		(comic) (as Clamp)
Nanase Ôkawa		Manga writer (as Clamp)

Produced by
Kazuhiko Ikeguchi	....	producer
Tsuguhiko Kadokawa	....	executive producer
Kazuo Kokoyama	....	producer
Masanori Maruyama	....	producer

Cinematography by
Hitoshi Yamaguchi

Art Department
Mokona Apapa	....	draughtsman: manga drawings
Satsuki Igarashi	....	draughtsman: manga drawings

Sound Department
Yasunori Honda	....	sound director

Animation Department
Hisashi Abe	....	assistant animation director
Koichi Arai	....	animator
Masanobu Arakawa	....	animator
Yoshiharu Ashino	....	animator
Kôichi Chigira	....	animator
Futoshi Fujikawa	....	assistant animation director
Shigeru Fujita	....	animator
Shigeru Fujita	....	assistant animation director
Shôgo Furuya	....	animator
Kunihiko Hamada	....	assistant animation director
Hiroshi Hamazaki	....	animator
Shinji Hashimoto	....	animator
Takashi Hashimoto	....	animator
Naoyuki Hayashida	....	animator
Hideo Hayashi	....	animator
Yukihiro Iwata	....	animator
Yoshinori Kanada	....	animator
Jirô Kanai	....	animator
Yoshinori Kanemori	....	animator
Yutaka Karyû	....	animator
Yoshiaki Kawajiri	....	animator
Kumiko Kawana	....	animator
Masaru Kitao	....	animator
Ken Koike	....	animator
Masahiko Kubo	....	animator
Mamoru Kurosawa	....	animator
Noriyuki Matsutake	....	animator
Yutaka Minowa	....	assistant animation director
Hiroaki Motoya	....	animator
Naoki Murakami	....	animator
Yasushi Muraki	....	animator
Morifumi Naka	....	animator
Satoru Nakamura	....	assistant animation director
Toshiya Niidome	....	animator
Hideki Nimura	....	animator
Asako Nishida	....	animator
Hiroyuki Nishimura	....	animator
Takuo Noda	....	animator
Shinji Ochi	....	animator
Akira Oguro	....	animator
Yoshimitsu Ôhashi	....	animator
Masahiro Okamura	....	animator
Tomihiko Okubo	....	animator
Masakazu Saitô	....	animator
Kunihiko Sakurai	....	animator
Kazumi Satô	....	animator
Yuzo Sato	....	animator
Shuichi Shimamura	....	animator
Masaharu Tada	....	animator
Kunio Takahide	....	animator
Hiroto Tanaka	....	animator
Yuichi Tanaka	....	animator
Satoshi Tazaki	....	animator
Kigen Tokura	....	animator
Kôichi Usami	....	animator
Satoru Utsunomiya	....	animator
Makoto Yamada	....	animator
Minoru Yamazawa	....	animator
Nobuteru Yuuki	....	animation director
Nobuteru Yuuki	....	character designer

Other crew
Nanase Ôkawa	....	planner
Takeshi Tamiya	....	planner

Production Companies

• Bandai Visual Company
• Clamp
• Kadokawa Shoten Publishing Co.
• Marubeni
• Sega of America
• Shelty Company Limited
• Victor Entertainment
• X Committee

Distributors

• Manga Video (2000) (USA) (dubbed)

Other Companies

• Mad House  animation production
• Victor Entertainment  music production

Also Known As:

X/1999 (USA) (promotional title)
X: Their Destiny Was Foreordained 1999 (Japan: English title)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence/gore and some nudity.

Runtime:

USA:97 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Certification:

South Korea:12 (DVD rating) | Ireland:12 | Australia:MA | Canada:14A | France:-12 | Germany:16 | UK:15 | USA:R

Company:

Bandai Visual Company

Trivia:

At the time of the film's production, the manga it was based on was less than half-finished, forcing the filmmakers to create an ending and attempt to compensate for incomplete character development. The television series "X" (2001) retells a more complete version of the manga's storyline, though it is also not entirely accurate to the source material.

Quotes:

Kanoe: These obscenities that man has created, the corruption, the pollution, all these must be annihilated, nature will reclaim its dominion, the Earth will breathe again; but first must come the apocalypse.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Abenobashi mahô shôtengai: Poa Poa! Abenobashi Fairy Tale Shopping Arcade (#1.10)" (2002)

Soundtrack:

Forever Love

Casual anime fans should probably look elsewhere

This movie will probably only have deep or lasting appeal to fans of the manga series. Standing completely on its own, however, it really leaves a lot to be desired. The plot is really quite simple, but the setup is at least somewhat interesting, with the supposedly "bad" guys fighting for the future of the planet by destroying mankind and the "good" guys fighting to save mankind from the aforementioned baddies. For the most part, the main character just spends his time brooding over his "fate", occasionally displaying a burst of sympathy for an old girlfriend. This made it very hard to view him as being very human, and thus to sympathize with him or his place in the gigantic struggle taking place. Some of the incindental characters, however, showed a great deal of personality. But alas, only seemed to be introduced to die in a semi-climactic fight scene five minutes later with little to no characterization in between. The graphics are, as stated by others, top notch. The fights get fiery very quickly, and the big dollar property damage ensues as you'd expect when fates collide, but they tended to end all too quickly, with no real explanation as to why the killing blow was successful. So, if you want to see pretty pictures, or are a real die hard fan of anime for its style alone, you'll probably get enough of a kick out of this. But if you're looking for animation that will engage you on several levels and introduce you to interesting characters you'll actually get to know, steer clear. Indeed, Princess Mononoke actually touches on very similar themes in a much more engaging way.