Anime Supremacy! (2022) - Japanese Movie Review
Welcome to Sensei Sensibility! You are the hungry mind yearning to devour quality Asian cinema; I am the (questionably) knowledgeable Sensei, more than happy to satiate your cinematic appetite.
Anime Supremacy! is the live action adaptation of the same-name light novel written by Mizuki Tsujimura and illustrated by CLAMP. Though it may be by women, and about women, this is a story for everyone who's ever wanted to peek behind the curtain into the chaotic Oz that is the anime industry. Just be warned, what has been seen - can't be unseen.
A pox! A pox on both your anime!
Hitmoi Saito (played by the understated Riho Yoshioka) is an ambitious young woman on the cusp of her anime directorial debut. Soundback: Playing Stone is a passion project years in the making, and not only must it be a roaring success to prove Saito's prowess as a director, it must surpass the ratings of all other anime so that it's creator may achieve the titular "Anime Supremacy!".
However, Saito is a female director and an industry newbie, and Soundback is in direct competition with Fate Front: Liddel Light, the insanely popular brain child of anime genius and all round eccentric superstar, the very male Chiharu Oji.
It's a two trillion yen industry with fifty new anime created every quarter, and the ratings war of two major anime going head to head is portrayed in the film as a blood sport, the observation of which is a merciless national past time, so no pressure with the new show, Saito!
"When two anime go to war..."
It transpires that there is in fact every pressure. In this industry only the toughest can, not even make it, but just physically survive. The workload and schedules are unforgiving and gruelling.
Saito, determined as she may be, has a traumatic childhood backstory, is a victim of imposter syndrome, of shaky confidence, and is constantly being undermined and underestimated by her male colleagues. No one around her, not even herself, believes she can pull off the #1 spot she's gunning for.
Her direct rival, the impish Oji (Tomoya Nakamura) on the other-hand is cocky and charming, and relies on the constant, round the clock managing/mothering of his female manager Arashina (Machiko Ono) to get anything done. Surely his anime will retain the #1 spot without even trying? Or will that depend on the not-so-infinite patience of Arashina?
Navigating the intricacies of the creative process, managing voice actor egos, mildly demeaning yourself for the sake of publicity is a lot to take. Especially when dangled above your head is the Damocles Sword of cold, indifferent corporate execs who demand nothing but top ratings and maximum profit. For all concerned on the food-chain, from newbies to veterans, something's gotta give.
What will be the straw to break the Magical Girl's back, and who will ultimately win the ratings war?
Stay tuned... *jazz hands of suspense*.
It Takes a Village to Raise an Anime
Anime Supremacy! is a fascinating behind the scenes insight into the anime industry, highlighting the extreme inequality and bias against its female members. It also shows the sheer volume of manpower that goes into making even one single episode. (Makes me feel quite guilty about all those anime I casually dismiss on my nightly Netflix scroll - how many families were destroyed in the making of this cartoon?!)
It's also a starkly accurate portrayal of imposter syndrome, and even though the protagonist rose to this point in her career within a short time of entering the industry and therefore she's clearly a highly skilled professional, the lack of faith and trust in her ability by the men around her was shocking.
But sometimes you couldn't really blame them for doubting her.
She was conflicting to watch, you wanted to shake some confidence into her. But considering the toxic environment around her, it's not really surprising how fumbley and mumbley she was at the start. Thankfully though her growth throughout the film is visible.
Behind Every Good Manime
The plot is well paced, with moments of both light relief and tension. (And a great running gag featuring eclairs.) The characters are likeable enough, well played and you're engaged throughout.
The audience is also treated to lovely multimedia elements, viewing snippets of the character's anime shows as if they were real-life episodes. In fact, our protagonist's series looked so good I'm actually quite gutted we never got to see how it ended! The "genius" anime on the other hand looked crap and I did not buy into the on-screen hype.
Cinematography is slick and cool, with clever framing and great use of flash backs for show-not-tell storytelling.
That being said, for a film so bold in some ways, I would have liked a less neatly wrapped up ending, especially when we see a whole film with a woman taking charge and thriving in her industry only to have everything she worked for boiled down to getting married... but who am I to say?
Look, It's a good film that makes you think. And anything that reminds people about CLAMP, and possibly gets new people interested in CLAMP is a bonus.
I love CLAMP and it makes me sad when I talk to younger anime fans at conventions and they ask what my favourite anime is and I tell them Chobits and they look at me as if I'm Methuselah. (All hail the early noughties Tokyo Pop Supremacy!)
Perfect for fans of Suzume and New Normal, Anime Supremacy! was seen in Lighthouse Cinema as part of Japanese Film Festival Ireland.
★★★★
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