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IMDbPro

Mind Game

  • 20042004
  • Not RatedNot Rated
  • 1h 43m
IMDb RATING
7.7/10
9.9K
YOUR RATING
Mind Game (2004)
Loser Nishi, too wimpy to try to save his childhood sweetheart from gangsters, is shot in the butt by a soccer-playing psychopath, projecting Nishi into the afterlife. In this limbo, God - shown as a
series of rapidly changing characters - tells him to walk toward the light.  But Nishi runs like hell in the other direction and returns to Earth a changed man, driven to live each moment to the fullest.
Play trailer1:42
1 Video
8 Photos
AnimationAdventureComedy
After a deadly encounter with two yakuza, a loser with a crush on his childhood girlfriend goes to heaven and back, embarking on a psychedelic self-discovery experience with her and his frie... Read allAfter a deadly encounter with two yakuza, a loser with a crush on his childhood girlfriend goes to heaven and back, embarking on a psychedelic self-discovery experience with her and his friends.After a deadly encounter with two yakuza, a loser with a crush on his childhood girlfriend goes to heaven and back, embarking on a psychedelic self-discovery experience with her and his friends.
IMDb RATING
7.7/10
9.9K
YOUR RATING
    • Masaaki Yuasa
    • Kôji Morimoto(Mind Game Remix)
    • Robin Nishi(comic)
    • Masaaki Yuasa(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Kôji Imada(voice)
    • Sayaka Maeda(voice)
    • Takashi Fujii(voice)
    • Masaaki Yuasa
    • Kôji Morimoto(Mind Game Remix)
    • Robin Nishi(comic)
    • Masaaki Yuasa(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Kôji Imada(voice)
    • Sayaka Maeda(voice)
    • Takashi Fujii(voice)
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 31User reviews
    • 36Critic reviews
    • 66Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards

    Videos1

    Re-release Trailer
    Trailer 1:42
    Watch Re-release Trailer

    Photos8

    Mind Game (2004)
    Mind Game (2004)
    Mind Game (2004)
    Mind Game (2004)
    Mind Game (2004)
    Mind Game (2004)
    Takashi Fujii, Kôji Imada, and Sayaka Maeda in Mind Game (2004)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Kôji Imada
    • Nishi
    • (voice)
    Sayaka Maeda
    • Myon
    • (voice)
    Takashi Fujii
    Takashi Fujii
    • Jiisan
    • (voice)
    Seiko Takuma
    • Yan
    • (voice)
    Tomomitsu Yamaguchi
    • Ryou
    • (voice)
    Toshio Sakata
    • Father of Myon and Yan
    • (voice)
    Jôji Shimaki
    • Yakuza boss
    • (voice)
    Rintarou Nishi
    • Yakuza
    • (voice)
    Kenichi Chujou
    • Atsu
    • (voice)
      • Masaaki Yuasa
      • Kôji Morimoto(Mind Game Remix)
      • Robin Nishi(comic)
      • Masaaki Yuasa(screenplay)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      On April Fools' 4/1/2018, Toonami on Adult Swim surprised everyone by airing this film in its original Japanese language with English subtitles.
    • Goofs
      Typo of "loading". In the movie it shows "Now Lording..." on the computer screen.
    • Quotes

      Nishi: We've gotta leave. It's that or drown.

      Yan: But how?

      Nishi: The boat, of course!

      Myon: The cops'll be looking for us.

      Nishi: So?

      Myon: The Yakuzas'll come after us!

      Nishi: So what! I wanna get out! 'Cos there's so much out there! So many different people, living different lives! Incredibly good guys, bad guys... Folks completely different from us! It's one huge melting pot! See, it's not about success, dying in the streets, who's better, who's not! I just want to be a part of it! I realized that even if I've no connections, no talent, even if I'm one big loser, I want to use my hands and feet to think and move, to shape my own life! We can just die here or we can try, see what we've got!

    • Connections
      Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Underappreciated Anime Movies (2016)
    • Soundtracks
      Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2, S.244/2
      Written by Franz Liszt

    User reviews31

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    10/10
    A mind-blowing, surreal, life-changing adventure
    Wow. What can I say? I was truly blown away by this movie. Winner of the Noburo Ofuji award (the most prestigious award in Japan for an animated film), this film has unfortunately only had a very limited release in Japan (although it is playing in theaters again since winning the award). The director, Masaaki Yuasa, has previously done critically acclaimed animation work on other series, and helped create the equally mind-blowing, and somewhat disturbing short animated movie "Cat Soup".

    The first thing about the movie to note is the animation. The animators worked in a collaborative effort, and included a wide range of experimental and traditional animation techniques, a bit of CGI, and even a bit of live action. Viewed as individual pieces, it can be jarring, but seen together as a whole, each piece seems to fit with each other perfectly, with the different animation forms setting the mood perfectly.

    The story begins in present-day Tokyo, and follows a loser who is letting his childhood girlfriend slip away. Things take a twist to the fantastical side, as the characters embark on a surreal journey that changes everything about them. The actual elements of the plot are not really the focus of the movie..it is about setting the mood, creating the atmosphere of the characters' emotions, and drawing the viewer in to same mental journey the characters are going on, without even realizing it. The pace of the movie picks up and slows in parts, before building up to its thunderous and (literally) exhausting climax.

    See this movie , if only for the virtuoso animation that you will not see in any other film. And who knows? it just might change your whole outlook on life.
    helpful•62
    4
    • mike8869
    • Mar 29, 2005

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • June 26, 2005 (United States)
      • Japan
    • Official sites
      • Asmik Ace (Japan)
      • GKIDS (United States)
      • Japanese
    • Also known as
    • Production companies
      • Studio 4°C
      • Asmik Ace Entertainment
      • Beyond C.
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

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    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • 1 hour 43 minutes
      • Color
      • Dolby Digital

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