Teito monogatari (Video 1991)

The plot concerns a spiritual battle being waged within the capital of Tokyo during the turn of the 20th century... See full synopsis »

Director:

Kasuhiko Katayama

Writer:

Hiroshi Aramata

Stars:

Yôko Asagami, Keiko Han, Takaya Hashi

Cast

Credited cast:
Yôko Asagami	...	Tatsumiya Keiko (voice)
Keiko Han	...	Tatsumiya Yukari (voice)
Takaya Hashi	...	Hayakawa (voice)
Kôichi Kitamura	...	Amano Junkichi (voice)
Gorô Naya	...	Hirai Yasumasa (voice)
Kenichi Ogata	...	Kuroda Shigemaru (voice)
Ryôtarô Okiayu	...	Fortune Teller (voice)
Osamu Saka	...	Shibusawa Eiichi (voice)
Shigezô Sasaoka	...	Mori Ôgai (voice)
Kyûsaku Shimada	...	Kato Yasunori (voice)
Kaneto Shiozawa	...	Tatsuya Yôichirô (voice)
Naoki Tatsuta	...	Terada Torahiko (voice)
Kan Tokumaru	...	Nishimura Makoto (voice)
Kôichi Yamadera	...	Narutaki Junichi (voice)
Ken Yamaguchi	...	Kamo (voice)

Storyline

The plot concerns a spiritual battle being waged within the capital of Tokyo during the turn of the 20th century... See full synopsis »

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Plot Keywords:

anime

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Genres:

Animation | Fantasy | Horror

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Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

27 September 1991 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Doomed Megalopolis: Special Edition

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

175 min

Did You Know?

Trivia

Many of the characters in the story are based on real famous figures who lived during the same time period. For example, the fisherman who finds Yukari on the riverbank is Koda Rohan (1867--1947), a classic writer from the Meiji Era. The young man who proposes transforming Tokyo into an underground city is Torahiko Terada (1878--1935), a physicist and professor of earthquake studies (in fact the underground city concept is based on a real proposal he made). The fortune teller is Izumi Kyoka (1873--1939), another classic writer from the Meiji Era renowned for his supernatural fiction. His speech about how there are "two great powers of the world: the power of Kannon (Goddess of Mercy) against the power of the demons" is based on his writings.

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Connections

Version of Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis (1988)

User Reviews

Confusing but with interesting imagery

Doomed Megalopolis is considered one of the classic anime (like Akira or Wicked City) that got fairly wide distribution in North America and introduced many people to anime.

Unfortunately, while it contains plenty of interesting (and some disturbing) imagery, the story is frequently confusing and you can easily get lost. Apparently it is based on an original 10 volume novel by Aramata that would be hard to follow for anyone not well versed in Japanese history and religion. The director even mentions in an interview that the viewer should read the novel to understand many of the parts that are not well explained in this 4 episode series.

It was my wife's first viewing of some of the more disturbing type of creatures (a slug with a male organ for a head for example) that appear in some anime, but I think she could have done without.

Not particularly recommended.