X (1996)

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, Kamui Shiro, who must destroy either the ... See full summary »

Director:

Rintaro

Writers:

Mami Watanabe (script), Mick Nekoi (comic),

Stars:

Alan Marriott, Adam Henderson, Larissa Murray

Cast

Credited cast:
Alan Marriott	...	Kamui Shirou (voice)
Adam Henderson	...	Fuma Monou (voice)
Larissa Murray	...	Kotari Monou (voice)
Denica Fairman	...	Kanoe (voice)
Stacey Jefferson	...	Hinoto (voice)
Mike Fitzpatrick	...	Sorata Arisugawa (voice)
David Harris	...	Aoki Seiichirou (voice)
Rupert Degas	...	Shuogo Asagi (voice)
Nigel Whitmey	...	Yuto Kigai (voice)
Annemarie Lawless	...	Yuzuriha (voice)
Teresa Gallagher	...	Arashi Kishyuu (voice)
Toni Barry	...	Karen Kasumi (voice)
Liza Ross	...	Tohru (voice)
Jeff Harding	...	Kusangi Shiyuu (voice)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Tôru Furusawa	...	Seishirô Sakurazuka

Storyline

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, Kamui Shiro, who must destroy either the Dragons of Earth or the Dragons of Heaven - two opposing armies. He alone must decide whether humanity should be destroyed to create a purified universe, or whether it should be protected to preserve civilization. Two oracles, the sisters Hinoto and Kanoe foresee the coming of the Dragons and predict opposite outcomes. Each sister gathers strength and ammunition to insure her own vision for the future. However, neither sister realizes that there is one man who has an even greater power than the Dragons, and that ultimately he will determine the fate of the earth. Which sister will prevail and how does Kamui fit into their struggle? The answer to this question will forever affect humanity.

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Plot Keywords:

destiny | end of the world | teen | violence | barrier | 

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Genres:

Animation | Action | Fantasy | Horror | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence/gore and some nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Manga Entertainment

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

3 August 1996 (Japan)

Also Known As:

X/1999

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$6,672 (USA) (10 March 2000)

Gross:

$142,544 (USA) (8 September 2000)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bandai Visual Company, Clamp, Kadokawa Shoten Publishing Co.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Most of the locations in the film are real places in Tokyo. For complete accuracy, director Rintaro sent a team of numerous photographers around the city to try and capture pictures of all the buildings from as many angles as possible. The photography team then submitted the many rolls of film to the animation and background painting departments, which spent months illustrating the locations as close to reality as possible. Of particular note is the Tokyo Tower Observation Deck (from the end of the film) which is detailed down to the placement of individual telescopes and city maps. A brief list of the locations and where they were used follows:

• Arkhills: A group of large office buildings, sight of the Subaru/Seishirou fight at the beginning of the film.
• Diet Building: The center of the Japanese government (similar to the White House), Hinoto and the Dragons of Heaven are centered here.
• Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building: The central office of city government, and home of Konoe and the Dragons of Earth.
• Tokyo Station: The ornate rail station, where Karen and Seiichirou face off against Shougo and Nataku.
• Sunshine 60: One of the tallest buildings in Tokyo, this office building incorporates a zoo and is the sight of Seiichirou's second battle with Nataku.
• Central Shinjuku: A popular neighborhood for young people, Shinjuku is the heart of Tokyo glitz and is the battleground of Kamui, Yuzuriha, and Kusanagi.
• Ebisu Garden Place: Also in Shinjuku, this is an upscale residence/shopping district known for its spacious and beautiful plaza, and for its showdown between Sorata, Arashi, and Fuuma.
• Tokyo Tower: Built for radio and television transmission, the Tower is considered Tokyo's quintessential landmark that offers a great view of the city and is the location of the film's climactic finale.

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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.

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Crazy Credits

After the credits, there is a brief aerial shot of Tokyo, with everything save the Tokyo Tower in rubble as sakura blossoms flutter by.

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Connections

References Blue Velvet (1986)

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Soundtracks

"Forever Love"
Lyrics by Yoshiki Hayashi
Music by Yoshiki Hayashi
Arranged by Yoshiki Hayashi
Performed by Yoshiki Hayashi, Toshimitsu Deyama, Hideto Matsumoto,
Tomoaki Ishizuka, and Hiroshi Morie (as X Japan)

User Reviews

Literally hair-raising psychic warfare.

Whenever one of the psychic warriors in this bit of fluff goes into battle, his long hair shoots straight up as waves of power radiate out. This happens a lot and the visuals here are pretty cool, but everything else is a negative.

The story comes off as weak and derivative: Psychic heroes battle bad guy psychic to prevent mayhem spree. Yawn. Seen it. There are multiple psychic factions caught up in the main conflict (Dragons of Earth, Dragons of Heaven, two competing sisters, etc.) which makes for a multi- fronted war, and (I suppose) is meant to add complexity to the drama, but really it just makes it harder to keep straight who is doing what. There are so many competitors the viewer needs a scorecard and it does not help that nobody has much more life or individuality than characters in an arcade kick-boxing game. They fight. They pout. They bicker. They fight some more. Not a bad time waster but the viewer won't take much away from the experience.