Animonday: Tokyo Godfathers
A feel good movie that isn’t afraid to let a little reality in and even makes a social point or two, Tokyo Godfathers is the anime equivalent of It’s a Wonderful Life i.e. the perfect Christmas movie.
When three homeless friends find an abandoned baby they decided to find the mother and reunite her with her child. On the way all three have encounters with people from their past, as the journey changes them in unexpected ways.
The three godfathers of the title aren’t all male, in fact you could say only one and a half are. Gin a former family man now living on the streets comes to terms with troubled his past, Hana a transvestite looks up his “mother” and Miyuki, a young girl confronts her guilt over a traumatic incident with her father. The film constantly surprises not only in how it treats the main characters but also in the stories ultimate resolution.
This is the sort of animated feature it’s impossible to imagine Hollywood, or possibly anywhere but Japan, making. The film has a wicked sense of humour but it doesn’t shirk from showing the harsh reality of life on the streets, the scene where Gin is beaten up by a group of youths is particularly shocking.
Like his other films, Satoshi Kon has given Tokyo Godfathers a very cinematic look. It may be an animated film but in the way it uses camera angles, slow-motion and flashbacks, it feels like a real film. Adding to that is some first rate voice acting that combines perfectly with some breathtakingly beautiful animation.
