Kanashimi no Belladonna

Infobox Film
name = Kanashimi no Belladonna


caption = The Japanese DVD cover for "Kanashimi no Belladonna", as released by Columbia Movies.
director = Eiichi Yamamoto
producer =
writer = Eiichi Yamamoto
Yoshiyuki Fukuda
starring =
cinematography =
distributor =
released = flagicon|Japan June 30, 1973
runtime = 89 minutes
language = Japanese
budget =
mpaa_rating =
bbfc_rating =
eirin_rating =
fsk_certificate =
amg_id = 1:155590
imdb_id = 0071203|

Nihongo|"Belladonna"|哀しみのベラドンナ|Kanashimi no Belladonna|literally "Belladonna of Sadness," also known as "The Tragedy of Belladonna"cite web |url=http://www.midnighteye.com/reviews/round-up_022.shtml |title=Round-Up #22: Anime special |accessdate=2008-08-26 |last=Sharp |first=Jasper |date=2006 |work=Midnight Eye ] is an art house animation feature film produced in 1973 by Mushi Production. Directed and co-written by Eiichi Yamamoto and inspired by Jules Michelet's non-fiction book "Satanism and Witchcraft", it is the third and final film in the Animerama trilogy and the only one to be neither written nor directed by Osamu Tezuka (he left Mushi Production during the film's early stages to concentrate on his comics and his conceptual-stage contribution is uncredited). "Belladonna" is also of a more serious tone than the more comedic first two Animerama films. Its visuals consist mostly of still paintings panned across and are strongly influenced by western art, particularly Aubrey Beardsley,cite web |url=http://www.iwanihana.info/2007/05/kanashimi_no_be.html |title="Kanashimi no Belladonna" directed by Yamamoto Eiichi |accessdate=2008-08-26 |author=Wabi Sabi |date=2007 |work=Iwa ni Hana ] Gustav Klimt and classic tarot illustrations.cite web |url=http://www.tezukainenglish.com/?q=node/151 |title="Belladonna" |accessdate=2008-08-26 |work=Tezuka in English ] The film was a commercial failure and contributed to Mushi Pro becoming bankrupt by the end of the year.

It follows the story of Jeanne, a peasant woman who is raped which leads to her being accused of witchcraft, and is notable for its graphic and suggestively erotic, violent and psychedelic imagery. The film was released in Europe and Japan, but no official DVD with English subtitles exists.

Cast

*Jeanne: "(Aiko Nagayama)"
*Jean: "(Katsutaka Ito)"
*Witch: "(Tatsuya Tashiro)"
*The Devil "(Tatsuya Nakadai)"
*Milord: "(Masaya Takahashi)"
*Milady: "(Shigaku Shimegi)"
*Catholic Priest: "(Masakane Yonekura)"
*Narrator: "(Chinatsu Nakayama)"ann anime|id=1723. Accessed 2007-07-23.]

Trivia

* Since the original story is based on the life of Joan of Arc, the main character of the movie, Jeanne, is named after her.
* The drawing style of this movie was the inspiration for the drawing styles of "".
* Kunihiko Ikuhara, director of the "S" and "Super S" seasons of "Sailor Moon" and "Revolutionary Girl Utena" has stated that "Kanashimi no Belladonna" was his inspiration to work in anime. The influence is more clear in "Utena" than in "Sailor Moon".

ee also

*List of Osamu Tezuka anime
*List of animated feature-length films

References

External links

* [http://tezukainenglish.com/?q=node/151 "Belladonna" page at Tezuka in English]
* [http://www.pelleas.net/reviews/#2 Pelleas.net's "Belladonna" review]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPorlYagXp8 Japanese "Belladonna" trailer] – Must be 18+ to view
* [http://bookweb.kinokuniya.co.jp/htm/4988001986836.html "Kanashimi no Belladonna" at Kinokuniya BookWeb] ja icon