Nobuhiko Obayashi’s 80’s Kadokawa Years (Blu-Ray Review)

Lots of people throw the term “cult film” around or call somebody a “cult director” but very few people fit that definition as much as Nobuhiko Obayashi. A director who whilst having an incredibly long-standing career, which started in the mid-60s and lasted all the way up until his death two years ago, has remained on the fringes of experimental cinema. Whilst his most popular film, House, is an incredibly admired horror film by many people – the vast majority of his films have never seen a release in the UK. Luckily Third Window is aiming to change that, after their release of Obayashi’s anti-war trilogy they have returned with four new films from the Japanese auteur entitled “80s Kadokawa Years” – which is a huge media corporation who Obayashi worked with on a selection of films.

A predominant theme running through all of these films is that of youth. Each one is a time capsule that looks at a particular period of time in a teenager’s life, focusing on them adapting to the rapidly changing world around them and the often intense emotions that come with growing up. The collection can also be broken down into two halves, with each half having very different locations and aesthetics. First, there is School in the Crosshairs and The Girl Who Leapt Through Time – two dreamlike and surrealistic films about schoolchildren who eventually uncover they have psychic powers; then there is The Island Closest to Heaven and His Motorbike, Her Island – they both have a much more naturalistic, albeit still very formalist, feel to them and have a more mature tone than the prior two films. This maturity definitely is felt in the themes of the film as well, which eventually begin to cover grief, alienation and the inescapable wrath of time.

Throughout all of these films is an incredible visual style. Regardless of what the content is, how grounded or surreal it might be, Obayashi has an incredible eye for composition. Whether it’s something as simple as two lovers reuniting in front of a setting sun, or an elderly couple sitting in the garden grieving over a lost grandchild; these compositions have an astounding ability to draw out an impassioned feeling of either extreme joy or melancholic sadness. However, the visual style does feel noticeably different between the two halves. In the first two films, Obayashi makes use of artificial textures to give this feeling of unreality, which is fitting due to the plots of the films revolving around children with special powers. Alongside this artificiality, there is a large number of special effects used in these early films, similar to those in House, which specifically look unrealistic and almost turn the films into animated pieces. In the latter two films, there is little of this style to be found and a much more realistic aesthetic. Notably the locations too, with the almost oppressive and claustrophobic school corridors replaced with beautiful and wide open natural landscapes.

The School in the Crosshairs is a playful sci-fi film that focuses on a girl who has to use her newly found psychic powers to fend off a fascist takeover of her school by another psychic girl. Subtlety is definitely not anywhere to be found in this film, it even has the mind-controlled students march up and down the school corridors beating down kids who aren’t following the strict guidelines. Despite the dark undertones of the plot it remains playful and remains sincere to its goofy and ridiculous plot (Obayashi never uses cheap irony in his films). Whilst the film takes a while to get started it eventually turns into something incredibly maximalist and entertaining in its third act, resulting in a psychic battle between good and evil played out in a dream world. 

Following on from the sci-fi plot of that film is The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, which is a very similar film, except this time it is about time travel. In some ways, this is a departure from the previous in that it features a very loose plot – something that remains in the latter two films in this box set. Through the film we follow a schoolgirl who eventually gets stuck in a time loop and tries to make sense of the incredibly strange situation she is trapped in; whilst also navigating being in love with two different people. Whilst this film is still very fun and light-hearted, there are many more mature themes running through it. At its core, it is a story about doomed romance and how we can fall in love with people who are impossible to be with, but it is also a coming-of-age film about a young woman coming to grips with the world around her.

Breaking the mould of the previous two films is The Island Closest to Heaven, which sees a young girl, Katsuragi, travel to New Caledonia on a spiritual odyssey to find an island that her recently deceased father used to speak about. On this journey, she meets a variety of strange and comedic characters; such as the easily agitated and aggressive tour guide, another woman on her Caledonia tour who loves to party and appears to be the exact opposite of Katsuragi or the charismatic young farmer who she eventually forms a romantic relationship with. Whilst the film lacks a detailed plot these character interactions present us with a rich world that is genuinely entertaining. Obayashi captures the natural beauty of the Caledonia islands wonderfully and often feels like a film very similar to something by Eric Rohmer – it even mentions the green flash phenomena two years before The Green Ray. 

Speaking of Rohmer, the influence of the French New Wave is at its strongest with the final film on the boxset – His Motorbike, Her Island – which feels very much influenced by directors like Godard or Truffaut. Obayashi makes use of both B&W and colour film photography here; with the stark B&W looking like an old-school noir and the colour film capturing both the exhilaration and melancholy of riding a fast motorbike across a lonely island. Whilst there is no obvious thematic reason for these juxtaposing formats, it absolutely enhances the beauty of the film. In the film, we follow Koh, a listless motorbike rider who continually tries to find ways to escape boredom, he meets Miyoko, a freewheeling woman who forms a bond with Koh through their mutual love of motorbikes. His Motorbike, Her Island is a deeply emotional experience that feels like pure cinematic magic; the plot is incredibly simple but the mood is soulful, becoming one of the best films to capture lost loves and the horrifying wrath of time.

The 80s Kadokawa Years is a fantastic box set that serves as both a brilliant entry point to Obayashi’s incredibly dense and varied career, but also a must-have for long-time fans with most of these blu rays being the first of their kind in the UK (alongside a myriad of engaging special features). Across each film, there is a growing maturity with Obayashi’s style clearly changing and evolving, although each film is absolutely worth a watch and often pulls deep at the heartstrings. No matter the subject matter Obayashi always treats his characters and stories with deep sincerity, with sentimentalism that feels just and earned, making this necessary for anyone who watches cinema for the emotional experience they can provide.

Nobuhiko Obayashi’s 80’s Kadokawa Years

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