Mitsuru Oshima Movies
- 2007
The comedy Legend of the Doll concerns Ryouta, a man who stumbles across a very rare doll while shopping. Upon buying the doll and bringing it home, the doll comes to life and promptly falls in love with the awkward Ryouta. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
In the not-too-distant future, a crop of humans emerge with extremely powerful mutations, lending them telekinetic abilities. Fearing the power that these new people possess, the government institutionalizes them at early ages or even birth, calling them dicloniuses. In these facilities, dicloniuses are cruelly experimented on until the day that they are executed. One diclonius, however, escapes. A young woman named Lucy, mired in hatred and rage from years of abuse, breaks free from the numerous forms of restraint placed on the facility and, killing some guards in the process, flees into the night. Lucy experiences some kind of psychological break during her escape, however, and when she is found, unconscious by Kouta and his cousin Yuka, her personality has split. Lucy's wrath is sectioned off into her existing personality, but another persona emerges in her that is innocent, gentle and so childlike that she even lacks the ability to speak. Kouta and Yuka call this sweet girl Nyu and decide to take her in. Eventually, other dicloniuses also find their way to the haven of their house, seeking refuge from the government. Elfen Lied deals with the issue of human evolution but more strongly focuses on matters of trauma, identity, and compassion, begging the question of what kind of happiness Lucy/Nyu and all those with painful pasts can hope for. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide
- 2001
James Links is a hard-living, hard-drinking, hard-working cargo hauler who was once an officer in the United Nations global army. Five years before, when his wife Rachel was killed while working in a laboratory on Mars and his children were sent to live elsewhere, James was discharged from the military. His new life as a mover is very different, but he still dreams of reuniting with his family. The daydreams come to a halt, however, when he discovers a deadly new weapon aboard his cargo ship, Ender. Now it's time for James to revisit the training of his old life and embark on an adventure that could end up giving him the chance he's wanted for so long. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide
Ippo Makunouchi spends his free time helping his mother with the family fishing business. This doesn't leave much time for a social life outside of high school and it lends a rather unpleasant odor. As a result, Ippo gets picked on and beat up by bullies on a regular basis. After he suffers one particularly vicious attack, he is noticed by Mamoru Takamura, a professional boxer who is passing by. He brings Ippo back to the gym where he trains and lets Ippo vent his frustration on a punching bag. Ippo's skill becomes immediately apparent to Mamoru and Ippo feels, for the first time, a sense of drive and accomplishment. Now, he is devoting his life to the goal of being a professional boxer, and along the way, he might just pick up the skills to teach those bullies a lesson. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide
