Magic Boy (1959)
[少年猿飛佐助]
Director: Akira Daikuhara, Taiji Yabushita
Starring: Katsuo Nakamura, Hiroko Sakuramachi, Teruo Miyazaki
Synopsis:
A boy studies magic under the tutelage of a mountain sage in order to defeat a witch.
Impressions:
The rather nondescript English title didn't clue me in to what I was in for here. At first, I thought it was rather impressive that MGM made a full-length animation based on a Japanese folktale, but it didn't take long for be to conclude that it was a little too accurate for something coming out of an American studio. Sure enough, it was actually Japanese, Toei's second full-length animation, in fact. Interestingly, the songs and the dialog of the animal companions are left undubbed. Normally, I wouldn't review a dub, but I have a feeling I'd have trouble getting my hands on the original. For what it is, it's fairly solid. It has historical value as well, but it is a little uneven and shows that feature-length animated films were still finding their footing. I'm inclined to say it's worth seeing, but not all audience may appreciate it.
50/50