Tokyo Godfathers

One Christmas Eve, Hana, Gin, and Miyuki are rummaging for presents through heaps of garbage when they chance upon an abandoned baby in the cold winter night. Appalled at the pitiful sight, Hana's maternal instincts kick in and she insists on finding the baby's biological mother to demand an explanation. Naming the baby Kiyoko—meaning pure child—they begin their search using the possible clues left alongside her: a mysterious key and a single note. However, their plans are soon thrown into disarray as they get caught up in a series of unprecedented events.

Tokyo Godfathers follows the journey of the trio as they stick together through thick and thin, hoping to deliver Kiyoko to her true home, and find their very own Christmas miracle.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Hana Main

Umegaki, Yoshiaki Japanese

Miyuki Main

Okamoto, Aya Japanese

Gin Main

Emori, Toru Japanese

Old Man Supporting

Saikachi, Ryuuji Japanese

Taxi Driver Supporting

Yamadera, Kouichi Japanese

Cat Lady Supporting

Shibata, Rie Japanese

Kiyoko Supporting

Koorogi, Satomi Japanese

Kiyoko Supporting

Noto, Mamiko Japanese

Yasuo Supporting

Ishimaru, Hiroya Japanese

Okasan Supporting

Katou, Seizou Japanese

Kon, Satoshi Director, Script, Original Creator, Character Design

Mima, Masafumi Sound Director

Nobumoto, Keiko Script

Suzuki, Keiichi Theme Song Performance, Music

Reviews

Sep 3, 2008

kiriska

Recommended

I started watching this movie knowing little more than that it was directed by Satoshi Kon, and even though I'm a fan of the man's work in general, I must say I was pleasantly surprised.

STORY - In brief, Tokyo Godfathers is a heart-warming Christmas story about family. Slightly elaborated, it's a rather unique slice-of-life movie featuring a less-than-average family. Sure, inspiration was taken from an old western film (3 Godfathers), but I haven't seen it, and I don't think having seen it would have affected the charm of this one. (Other than the bare bones, the details of the two movies are vastly different anyway.) ...

Though thoroughly punctuated with reminders of how hard life can be, the movie was fun, comedic at times, and pretty darn feel-good, reflecting the general optimism associated with the winter holidays. It was uplifting, meaningful, and potentially relevant to people from all walks of life. That said, there were a lot of situations that felt a bit contrived and overly corny. For a destined-to-have-a-happy-ending story like this, a few coincidences here and there are completely expected and can even be cute. But there's a line somewhere and after a certain point, it starts to get a bit silly. (How many characters do we need to be coincidentally named "Kiyoko"?) I'd say that Tokyo Godfathers crossed this very vague line -- maybe not by much, but it was crossed all the same. I guess I can only take so much cute before I start groaning.

The main theme of this movie is the importance of family, which is a huge shift from Kon's usual work involving diminished divides between fantasy and reality. Even so, there are little indications of the man's handiwork woven carefully into the backstories of the individual characters, which I found interesting. After all, you don't immediately think of hobos when you think "family values," but the homeless might be among more believable subjects for those who may want to disassociate themselves with reality. It was subtle, but I really think Kon did a superb job blending the two themes together, and that was just what I needed to tide me over.

CHARACTER - The characters were definitely the highlight of the film. The three protagonists were all wonderfully in-depth, but I never got the feeling that their complexity was being flaunted or that they were throwing it in our faces. Gin, Hana, and Mitsuki are all introduced as fairly ordinary people, which makes them easy to sympathize with and easy to relate to, even for such unconventional characters as Hana. They were all troubled people -- a deadbeat debtor, an okama with AIDS (implied), and a teenage runaway, all homeless and living in a tent in the park. But each character's personal issues were presented in gradual fragments, and there is enough ambiguity and deception to keep you wondering. That scores big in the realism department with me; after all, you don't really go around dumping life issues on people, even if they're your friends.

Throughout the movie, each of our three godparents struggle with their personal issues, even as they all deal with the immediate crisis involving the baby. But despite the fact that the baby problem was very pressing and is the main storyline, it's hard to miss the gradual development in the characters. There are short, solo scenes for all the protagonists scattered throughout the movie, and that's where some of the coincidences start mounting. Tokyo is a huge city, and I found it a little ridiculous that so many relevant figures from the characters' past should appear in such a short time, but I realize that those situations are hard to avoid, if not impossible. All the same, I really enjoyed each character's maturation, especially since so little was actually said in two out of three cases. That made everything seem all the more poignant. For some reason, even though I thought Miyuki's runaway story was a bit "Wait, what?" I could sympathize with her all the same.

The main trio aside, the other characters were more roles within the story than actual characters. Sachiko was a little over the top for me, and her husband a bit predictable as well, but that's okay. The other support characters more than make up for them. The yakuza guy was entertaining, and the Hispanic hitman intriguing, not to mention the raving, crazy, old hobo. They're as good as minor characters get.

ART & ANIMATION - Tokyo Godfathers was a gorgeous, gorgeous movie, but I wouldn't have expected or accepted anything less. Seriously, there wasn't much not to like here visually. The characters were all distinct, memorable, and animated. Expressions were rendered with impressive realism, and the scenic city background was beautiful. I especially loved how the snow and light rail were handled, as well as nighttime city lights. The realness of the city really resonated as well. We do see a few prominent landmarks like Tokyo Tower, but pretty much all the buildings looked like they could have been real. The big city feeling really came out perfectly. It was kind of nice to see a few trademarks of Satoshi Kon's style as well, including that a stout, self-important man, and that one creepy, old guy. They're Kon's white doves.

MUSIC - Average in that I-don't-really-remember-any-of-it way. The final melody that played with the end credits was nice though.

VOICE ACTING - I saw this movie subbed, and it was lovely. The cast for our three protagonists all did great; the emotion was clearly there. I was especially fond of Yoshiaki Umegaki, who voiced Hana. I suppose I'm always impressed with those that do well playing less traditional roles, but it was a very believable portrayal. And... the baby cry was too believable. I don't like babies much, but even amongst the baby lovers of the world, I'm sure there is a general consensus that the noise they can make is incredibly unpleasant. I almost muted this movie so many times because oh, snap, there is a lot of baby wailing in this movie. Oh well. More realism points?

The inclusion of a few Spanish-speaking characters in the movie was a nice surprise and scored some multicultural points. I like Spanish a lot and even though I probably wasn't the best student of the language, I understood well enough without subtitles (I guess KAA hadn't been prepared to sub Spanish). They used real Spanish-speakers too, so it actually sounded like Spanish instead of some strange, garbled Supaniishu. Yay!

OVERALL - Barring a bit of partial nudity (exposed breasts for breastfeeding), I think Tokyo Godfathers is an excellent family film. The story is pretty straightforward and easy to understand. All the traditional elements of a Christmas movie are there -- inspiration, hope, good deeds, strong relationships, family values, feel-goodness, and a happy ending -- but the rich characters that Satoshi Kon brings into the mix really makes the difference. So yeah, even with all the silly little coincidences that move it along, I really enjoyed this movie.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Aug 27, 2011

mjcabreza

Recommended

What else can I say... This movie had a great storyline, a huge unexpected twist near the ending, held mystery from the very beginning, had very witty humor (I caught myself laughing out loud many times), characters were well introduced, it was rather heartwarming as well, family-focused, gives definition to what life truly is, pacing and story progression was really good, art was outstanding, I really have to say that I enjoyed this movie A LOT. Made me remember the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future but twisted it up a bit. This was a remarkable movie. I recommend it to everyone. I added ... this to my list of favorite movie animation, this is currently ranked #3 for me. (1. Toki Wo Kakero Shoujo 2. Spirited Away)

Reviewer’s Rating: 10

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Mar 12, 2022

PolkaMocha

Mixed Feelings

After falling in love with Satoshi Kon's Paprika and Perfect Blue, I recently watched Tokyo Godfathers with no idea what it was about or the general reception of it.

The story is sweet and heart warming. There are points where events happen a little too conveniently and plot twists feel a little too coincidental to suspend disbelief, which at times can make the film feel cheesy. Though it is meant to be a comedy, I would have liked to see the humor taper off towards the emotional climaxes for more impact.

Additionally, I felt the portrayal of the crossdressing character a little insensitive and stereotypical at times ... -- often being the butt of jokes a little too often for comfort. But, I will leave that out of my rating as I do not know enough about that lifestyle to make a fair comment.

Anyway, however, the fantastically charming main cast, brilliant world building, and beautiful animation work still make watching this a film a treat. While I wouldn't recommend it to the average person as much as Kon's other works, I still found it fun to watch and aesthetically a masterpiece.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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