Look Back (film)
{{Short description|2024 Japanese animated film by Kiyotaka Oshiyama}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2024}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2024}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Look Back
| native_name = {{Infobox Japanese | katakana = ルックバック| revhep = Rukku Bakku}}
| image = File:Look Back (ルックバック, 2024) film poster.jpg
| caption = Theatrical release poster
| director = {{Interlanguage link|Kiyotaka Oshiyama|ja|押山清高}}
| producer =
| based_on = {{Based on|Look Back|Tatsuki Fujimoto}}
| writer =
| screenplay = Kiyotaka Oshiyama
| story =
| starring = {{Plainlist|
}}
| music = Haruka Nakamura
| cinematography =
| editing =
| studio = Studio Durian
| distributor = Avex Pictures
| released = {{Film date|2024|06||Annecy|2024|06|28|Japan}}
| runtime = 60 minutes
| country = Japan
| language = Japanese
| budget =
| gross = {{US$|12.7}}{{nbsp}}million{{cite web|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/release/rl2063826945/?ref_=bo_da_table_31|title=Look Back|website=Box Office Mojo|access-date=December 9, 2024}}
}}
{{Nihongo|Look Back|ルックバック|Rukku Bakku|lead=yes}} is a 2024 Japanese animated coming-of-age drama film based on the one-shot web manga of the same name by Tatsuki Fujimoto. The film is directed by {{Interlanguage link|Kiyotaka Oshiyama|ja|押山清高}}, who also wrote the screenplay and served as a character designer, and produced by Studio Durian. It stars Yuumi Kawai and Mizuki Yoshida as two girls with a passion for drawing—the outgoing Fujino (Kawai) and the truant recluse Kyomoto (Yoshida), the latter of whose artistic ability inspires a competitive fervor in Fujino that soon develops into a partnership, furthered by loss in a mass violence event.
Look Back premiered at the French Annecy International Animation Film Festival in June 2024. It was theatrically released in Japan by Avex Pictures on June 28, 2024.
Plot
{{Transcluded section|source=Look Back (manga)|part= Plot}}
{{#section-h: Look Back (manga)|Plot}}
Cast
Production
In February 2024, an anime film adaptation of the manga Look Back was announced.{{cite web|last=Jones|first=Mat|title=Anime Adaptation of Look Back From Chainsaw Man Creator Officially Announced|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/anime-adaptation-of-look-back-from-chainsaw-man-creator-officially-announced|website=IGN|date=February 13, 2024|access-date=November 15, 2024|archive-date=October 8, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241008100742/https://www.ign.com/articles/anime-adaptation-of-look-back-from-chainsaw-man-creator-officially-announced|url-status=live}} In March 2024, it was announced that Kawai and Yoshida had joined the voice cast as Fujino and Kyomoto, respectively.{{cite web|script-title=ja:映画『ルックバック』河合優実&吉田美月喜のW主演で声優初挑戦【コメント全文】|url=https://www.oricon.co.jp/news/2318375/full/|website=Oricon News|date=March 14, 2024|access-date=November 15, 2024|language=ja|archive-date=June 1, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240601193403/https://www.oricon.co.jp/news/2318375/full/|url-status=live}}{{cite web|last=Dempsey|first=Liam|title=Tatsuki Fujimoto's Look Back Anime Film Announces Main Cast|url=https://www.crunchyroll.com/news/latest/2024/3/13/look-back-anime-film-cast-june-2024-yumi-kawai-mizuki-yoshida|website=Crunchyroll|date=March 13, 2024|access-date=November 15, 2024|archive-date=June 18, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240618192820/https://www.crunchyroll.com/news/latest/2024/3/13/look-back-anime-film-cast-june-2024-yumi-kawai-mizuki-yoshida|url-status=live}}
= Music =
The music is composed by Haruka Nakamura; the film's theme song, "Light Song", is composed by Nakamura and performed by Urara.{{cite web|last=Mateo|first=Alex|title=Chainsaw Man Creator Tatsuki Fujimoto's 'Look Back' 1-Shot Manga Gets Anime Film|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-02-13/chainsaw-man-creator-tatsuki-fujimoto-look-back-1-shot-manga-gets-anime-film/.207537|website=Anime News Network|date=February 13, 2024|access-date=February 13, 2024|archive-date=February 13, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240213160637/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-02-13/chainsaw-man-creator-tatsuki-fujimoto-look-back-1-shot-manga-gets-anime-film/.207537|url-status=live}}{{cite web|last=Tai|first=Anita|title=Tatsuki Fujimoto's 'Look Back' Anime Film Unveils Trailer, Theme Song, More Staff|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-04-16/tatsuki-fujimoto-look-back-anime-film-unveils-trailer-theme-song-more-staff/.209922|website=Anime News Network|date=April 16, 2024|access-date=April 17, 2024|archive-date=April 17, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240417021515/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-04-16/tatsuki-fujimoto-look-back-anime-film-unveils-trailer-theme-song-more-staff/.209922|url-status=live}}
Release
Look Back premiered at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, which took place in Annecy, France, from June 9–15, 2024, in the "Annecy Presents" category, a non-competitive category created to showcase a variety of international animated films to audiences.{{cite web|last=Mateo|first=Alex|title=Tatsuki Fujimoto's 'Look Back' Anime Film Screens at Annecy|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-05-10/tatsuki-fujimoto-look-back-anime-film-screens-at-annecy/.210705|website=Anime News Network|date=May 10, 2024|access-date=May 10, 2024|archive-date=May 10, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510184622/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-05-10/tatsuki-fujimoto-look-back-anime-film-screens-at-annecy/.210705|url-status=live}}{{cite web|script-title=ja:劇場アニメ「ルックバック」アヌシー映画祭で上映、藤野＆京本の新規カットも|url=https://natalie.mu/comic/news/572919|website=Comic Natalie|publisher=Natasha, Inc|date=May 11, 2024|access-date=May 10, 2024|language=ja|archive-date=May 10, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510192554/https://natalie.mu/comic/news/572919|url-status=live}}
Look Back received a theatrical release in Japan by Avex Pictures on June 28, 2024, screening in 119 theaters nationwide. Due to positive critical and commercial response, including positive word of mouth, its release expanded to 11 more theaters on July 5.{{cite web|script-title=ja:映画『ルックバック』口コミ効果で上映劇場が拡大 小島秀夫氏・山崎貴監督らが絶賛|url=https://www.oricon.co.jp/news/2334306/full/|website=Oricon News|date=July 2, 2024|access-date=November 15, 2024|language=ja|archive-date=July 13, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240713230902/https://www.oricon.co.jp/news/2334306/full/|url-status=live}}
In the United States, the Japan Society screened the film on July 14, 2024, in Japanese with English subtitles, as part of the "Japan Cuts: Festival of New Japanese Cinema" event at New York.{{cite web|last=Cayanan|first=Joanna|title=Japan Cuts Film Festival Screens Live-Action Blue Period Film, Tatsuki Fujimoto's 'Look Back' Anime Film|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-06-20/japan-cuts-film-festival-screens-live-action-blue-period-film-tatsuki-fujimoto-look-back-anime-film/.212172|website=Anime News Network|date=June 20, 2024|access-date=July 17, 2024|archive-date=June 20, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240620204207/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-06-20/japan-cuts-film-festival-screens-live-action-blue-period-film-tatsuki-fujimoto-look-back-anime-film/.212172|url-status=live}} The film has been licensed in North America by GKIDS and premiered in theaters on October 4, 2024.{{cite web|last=Mateo|first=Alex|title=GKIDS Screens Look Back Anime Film in N. American Theaters on October 4 (Updated)|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-08-23/gkids-screens-look-back-anime-film-in-n-american-theaters-on-october-4/.214678|website=Anime News Network|date=August 23, 2024|access-date=August 23, 2024|archive-date=August 23, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240823223853/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-08-23/gkids-screens-look-back-anime-film-in-n-american-theaters-on-october-4/.214678|url-status=live}} Singapore-based film distributor Encore Films licensed the film in Southeast Asian countries and released it in theaters.{{cite web|last=Pineda|first=Rafael Antonio|title=Encore Films Teases Tatsuki Fujimoto's 'Look Back' Anime Film|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-06-03/encore-films-teases-tatsuki-fujimoto-look-back-anime-film/.211474|website=Anime News Network|date=June 3, 2024|access-date=November 12, 2024|archive-date=September 11, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240911085218/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-06-03/encore-films-teases-tatsuki-fujimoto-look-back-anime-film/.211474|url-status=live}}{{cite web|last=Sayyed|first=Rayan|title=Look Back Anime Film Releasing on October 25 in India|url=https://in.ign.com/look-back/217686/news/look-back-anime-film-releasing-on-october-25-in-india|website=IGN India|date=October 18, 2024|access-date=November 12, 2024|archive-date=November 13, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241113064358/https://in.ign.com/look-back/217686/news/look-back-anime-film-releasing-on-october-25-in-india|url-status=live}} The film was released worldwide on Amazon Prime Video on November 7, 2024, by Amazon MGM Studios;{{cite web|last=Pineda|first=Rafael Antonio|title=Amazon Prime Video Adds Look Back Anime Film Globally on November 7|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-10-21/amazon-prime-video-adds-look-back-anime-film-globally-on-november-7/.217029|website=Anime News Network|date=October 22, 2024|access-date=October 22, 2024|archive-date=November 20, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241120052643/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-10-21/amazon-prime-video-adds-look-back-anime-film-globally-on-november-7/.217029|url-status=live}} it includes the original Japanese audio with English subtitles, as well as an English dub.{{cite web|last=Mateo|first=Alex|title=Amazon Prime Video Streams Look Back Anime Film with New English Dub|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-11-07/amazon-prime-video-streams-look-back-anime-film-with-new-english-dub/.217614|website=Anime News Network|date=November 7, 2024|access-date=November 7, 2024|archive-date=November 7, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241107163800/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-11-07/amazon-prime-video-streams-look-back-anime-film-with-new-english-dub/.217614|url-status=live}}
Reception
= Box office =
Look Back grossed {{US$|2}}{{nbsp}}million in Japan and {{US$|10.7}}{{nbsp}}million in other territories, for a worldwide total of {{US$|12.7}}{{nbsp}}million. The film grossed over ¥227 million (around {{US$|1.47}}{{nbsp}}million) in its opening weekend at the Japanese box office. By July 17, after 18 days in theaters, it had made ¥1,017,961,780 (around {{US$|6.41|long=no}}{{nbsp}}million).{{cite web|last=Harding|first=Daryl|title=Look Back Anime Film Passes 1 Billion Yen at Japanese Box Office|url=https://www.crunchyroll.com/news/latest/2024/7/17/look-back-anime-film-1-billion-yen|website=Crunchyroll|date=July 17, 2024|access-date=July 17, 2024|archive-date=July 17, 2024|archive-url=https://archive.today/20240717201820/https://www.crunchyroll.com/news/latest/2024/7/17/look-back-anime-film-1-billion-yen|url-status=live}}
= Critical response =
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, Look Back has a 100% critic rating based on 25 reviews and the average rating is 8.7 out of 10.{{cite Rotten Tomatoes|id=look_back_2024|type=m|title=Look Back|access-date=January 31, 2025|archive-date=December 10, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241210092204/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/look_back_2024|url-status=live}}{{cite web|last=Valentine|first=Evan|title=Look Back, Anime's Top Film of 2024, Is Dominating Rotten Tomatoes|url=https://comicbook.com/anime/news/look-back-anime-movie-one-hundred-percent-rotten-tomatoes/|website=ComicBook.com|date=October 3, 2024|access-date=October 4, 2024|archive-date=October 4, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241004143504/https://comicbook.com/anime/news/look-back-anime-movie-one-hundred-percent-rotten-tomatoes/|url-status=live}} Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 90 out of 100, based on 6 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".{{cite web|title=Look Back Reviews|url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/look-back/|website=Metacritic|publisher=Fandom, Inc.|access-date=November 15, 2024|archive-date=October 7, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241007095546/https://www.metacritic.com/movie/look-back/|url-status=live}}
IndieWire{{'}}s David Ehrlich gave the film a grade of "B+", praising the character design and the emotional weight of the story; Ehrlich wrote that, "the fleeting nature of Oshiyama's film, which so fluidly renders eons of labor with the lightness of memory and the brilliance of a shooting star, is what ultimately allows it to crystallize a truth that most artists can only hope to accept for themselves [...]: Making things isn't a waste of time or a way of isolating oneself from the world, but rather the most beautiful way of belonging to it."{{cite web|last=Ehrlich|first=David|title='Look Back' Review: Teen Girls Become Manga Superstars in a 53-Minute Anime Stunner About the Agony and Ecstasy of Artistic Creation|url=https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/look-back-review-anime-gkids-1235052889/|website=IndieWire|date=October 1, 2024|access-date=November 15, 2024|archive-date=November 8, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241108155307/https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/look-back-review-anime-gkids-1235052889/|url-status=live}} Robbie Collin of The Telegraph gave the film a score of five out of five stars, praising its visuals as "wildly yet unassumingly beautiful" and its plot as accessible "yet philosophically rich"; he concluded: "There's a haiku-like purity to it: Look Back is as neat and yet also as overflowing as the four-panel strips in which its leads once diligently honed their craft. And if something so beautiful also feels too brief – well, that may be the idea."{{cite web|last=Collin|first=Robbie|title=Look Back: this bittersweet animation is a beautiful visual feast|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/look-back-review-amazon-prime-video/|website=The Telegraph|date=November 8, 2024|access-date=November 15, 2024|archive-date=November 17, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241117033844/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/look-back-review-amazon-prime-video/|url-status=live}}
= Accolades =
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Official website|https://lookback-anime.com/}} {{in lang|ja}}
- {{Anime News Network|movie|32093}}
- {{IMDb title|id=31711040|title=Look Back}}
{{Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer theatrical animated features}}
{{Navboxes
|title = Awards for Look Back
|list =
{{Japan Academy Film Prize for Animation of the Year}}
{{Tokyo Anime Award for Animation of the Year}}
}}
Category:2020s coming-of-age drama films
Category:2020s high school films
Category:2020s Japanese-language films
Category:Animated films set in Japan
Category:Anime films based on manga
Category:Coming-of-age anime and manga
Category:Films set in Yamagata Prefecture
Category:Japanese animated feature films
Category:Japanese coming-of-age drama films
Category:Japanese high school films