Karafuru (2010)

Director:

Keiichi Hara

Writers:

Eto Mori (novel)
Miho Maruo (screenplay)

Release Date:

21 August 2010 (Japan)

Genre:

Animation | Drama | Fantasy | Mystery

Plot:

A sinful spirit is granted the opportunity to prove worthy for rebirth, inhabiting the body of a student who killed himself. |

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Kumiko Asô	...	(voice)
Keiji Fujiwara	...	(voice)
Jingi Irie	...	(voice)
Michael	...	Purapura (voice)
Akina Minami	...	(voice)
Aoi Miyazaki	...	(voice)
Akiyoshi Nakao	...	(voice)
Katsumi Takahashi	...	(voice)
Kazato Tomizawa	...	(voice)

Directed by
Keiichi Hara

Writing credits
Eto Mori		(novel)
Miho Maruo		(screenplay)

Original Music by
Kô Ôtani

Cinematography by
Koichi Yanai		(as Kôichi Yanai)

Film Editing by
Toshihiko Kojima

Art Direction by
Takashi Nakamura

Sound Department
Akira Ôkuma	....	sound director

Animation Department
Hideo Harigaya	....	key animator
Tetsuo Hirakawa	....	key animator
Hiromi Imaizumi	....	color stylist
Ryotaro Makihara	....	key animator (as Ryôtarô Makihara)
Norio Matsumoto	....	key animator
Takuya Saitô	....	key animator
Masahiro Satô	....	animation director
Masahiro Satô	....	key animator
Hiroshi Shimizu	....	key animator
Tomohisa Shimoyama	....	key animator
Yuichiro Sueyoshi	....	key animator (as Yûichirô Sueyoshi)
Atsushi Uemura	....	assistant animation director
Atsushi Uemura	....	key animator
Atsushi Yamagata	....	character designer
Atsushi Yamagata	....	key animator
Akiko Yamaguchi	....	key animator
Hiroyuki Yamashita	....	key animator
Yuko Yazaki	....	key animator (as Yûko Yasaki)

Production Companies

• Ascension (animation production)
• Fuji Television Network (executive production) (as Fuji Television)
• Sunrise (executive production)
• Dentsu (executive production) (as Dentsû)
• Aniplex (executive production)
• Sony Music Entertainment (executive production)
• Toho Company (executive production) (as Tôhô)

Distributors

• Toho Company (2010) (Japan) (theatrical) (as Tôhô)
• Eurozoom (2011) (France) (theatrical)

Other Companies

• Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs  funding

Also Known As:

"Colorful" - International (English title) (imdb display title)
"Colorful" - Spain (imdb display title)
"Colorful" - France (imdb display title)

Runtime:

126 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

South Korea:15

Company:

Ascension

Those Japanese again... an their greatness in animation

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

By now, I guess we've all accepted Japan as a No.1 driving force in animation. And just when you start thinking that someone with so much recognition would get lazy and spoiled, that's where the Japanese prove you wrong. "Colorful" is yet another fine example of that greatness. I've always wondered how could an animated film, which by western standards is designed for babies, could get so much dept and touch as many crucial life's questions. Well, the reason lies in the fact that Japanese do not make just baby cartoons like Pokemon, but also have a very fine and distinguished selection of animated films which could easily fit a 50 year old person, just like a teenager at the same time. "Colorful" is an anime drama which deals with a very painful and yet very present phenomenon in modern society - suicide. Many people feel they reached the end of the road, and more and more of them are getting younger over the years. A young man decided to take his life away, but against all odds, he gets a second chance - to relive a life of another young man who took his own life. During this period of reincarnation, the main character tries to discover his new persona, surrounding, people around him and the reasons why Makoto, the boy in whose body the spirit has reincarnated, has taken his life. Like this, he also started do discover and understand himself. Until the end, he will succeed. Beside the theme of life and death, "Colorful" illustrates several other important issues in the Japanese society - social relations, traumas, family issues and the value of friendship. The story is tough, often dark and grim, yet it has such a profound depth which will keep you watching "Colorful" until the end. And boy is the end unexpected. Watching this brilliant anime made me feel like reading a novel, and that's pretty much the best thing a motion picture can do. "Colorful" is a substance dedicated to the Japanese 14-16 youth, but it can easily be understood and liked by an adult. And when you compare this brilliance to the teenage shows in the US, like Hannah Montana or Jackass, you realize the major difference between cultures. In Japan, cartoons can also be educational, while in the US and the west, it's a form of cheap shallow entertainment for kids, who seem to mature later and later.