News

Japanese Box Office, August 24-25

Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki's The Wind Rises (Kaze Tachinu) anime film stayed at #1 during its sixth weekend. The film centers on Jirō Horikoshi (played by Evangelion director Hideaki Anno), the designer of Japan's famed Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter plane of World War II. The film earned 320,930,352 yen (US$3,268,996) on 454 screens for a new total of 8,131,613,003 yen (US$82,828,610).

The live-action Gatchaman film directed by Tōya Satō (live-action Grave of the Fireflies, Sexy Voice and Robo, Kaiji, Gokusen) debuted at #6. Tori Matsuzaka (.hack//The Movie, live-action Kyō, Koi o Hajimemasu, Samurai Sentai Shinkenger, Kamen Rider Decade) stars in the film as Ken, the head of the eponymous team. Gō Ayano (second-in-command Jō), Ayame Gōriki (explosive yoyo-wielding Jun), Tatsuomi Hamada (youngest member Jinpei), and Ryōhei Suzuki (main pilot Ryū) round out the cast. The film earned 115,650,690 yen (US$1,178,017) on 307 screens.

The Pokémon the Movie: ExtremeSpeed Genesect film fell from #9 to #10 in its seventh weekend. Kunihiko Yuyama's feature film is billed as the final chapter of Pocket Monsters: Best Wishes! (Pokemon: Black and White!). It features a confrontation between the legendary Pokémon ExtremeSpeed Red Genesect and Mewtwo, who returns in this installment in an alternate form. The film ranked at #11 on Box Office Mojo's chart and earned 72,446,119 yen (US$737,936) on 345 screens for a new total of 2,874,115,491 yen (US$29,275,740).

The Kamen Rider Wizard in Magic Land and Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger: Gaburincho of Music films fell #10 to #12 on Box Office Mojo's chart in its fourth weekend. Kamen Rider Wizard, the latest live-action tokusatsu (special-effects) television series in the long-running Kamen Rider franchise, premiered in Japan last year. The film follows the protagonist Haruto, Koyomi, and a boy named Shiina after they are transported to "Land of Magic" by a rainbow-colored whirlwind. There, they meet Kamen Rider Sorcerer (Takanori Jinnai). The films earned 66,776,559 yen (US$680,186) on 303 screens for a new total of 1,087,657,868 yen (US$11,078,883).

The Gekijōban Gintama Kanketsu-hen: Yorozuya yo Eien Nare (Final Gintama: The Movie: Be Forever Yorozuya) film fell from Box Office Mojo's chart in its eighth weekend. Soreike! Anpanman: Tobase! Kibō no Handkerchief, the 25th Anpanman film, also fell from Box Office Mojo's chart in its eighth weekend.

Sources: Kogyo Tsushinsha, Box Office Mojo