Around 1995, Japanese animation (anime) began pouring into North America, Europe and across the globe in video form. Most of these titles were unknown outside of Japan and never covered by animation journals. Whether a title is highly popular or very obscure, a high quality theatrical feature or a cheap and unimaginative direct-to-video release, they all look the same on a store shelf. Therefore, Animation World Magazine will regularly review several new releases (including re-releases not previously covered) that have merit.

Birth, a Chuck Jones Coyote-&-Road-Runner cartoon mixed with sci-fi drama.

Birth
Theatrical feature/OAV, 1984. Director: Shinya Sadamitsu. 85 minutes. Price & format: DVD bilingual $24.98. Distributor: A.D.V. Films.

Birth is more a curiosity piece than a must-have, but it is good to have it available on DVD if only for the historical record, and in an accurate translation for the first time. It was one of only a handful of productions by the impressive but short-lived Kaname Production Co. in the mid-1980s. It was one of the first for the new homevideo market, during the couple of years that it was standard to give such a theatrical release (July 21, 1984) to pretend that it was not really “only” an OAV when the video was released barely a month later. There were English-language video releases in England (World of the Talisman) and the U.S. (Planet Busters) in the late `80s and early `90s, but they were kiddified and not faithful translations. At last we have Birth as it was originally released.

The temptation to change the title is understandable since Birth sounds like a high-school biology film. It hardly suggests this non-stop chase adventure that anime fans have described as forcibly merging a Chuck Jones Coyote-&-Road-Runner cartoon with a sci-fi drama. Rasa and Nam are two young adolescents on the rocky planet Aqualoid. Rasa is enjoying an early-morning spin on her aerial floater-bike when she is accosted by a gang of metallic-looking bikers called Inorganics. Meanwhile, Nam is attacked by a larger and much more vicious Inorganic. Moreover, two guys (Bao and Kim) in a falling-apart junky spaceship are pursuing a glowing sword that is floating through space toward Aqualoid.

The action during this first part is a series of light-hearted sequences in Yoshinori Kanada’s extremely cartoony art style. The Inorganic bikers banter with Rasa as they race along. A baby Inorganic does a surrealistic parody of an animated-cartoon musical sequence. Bao and Kim’s spaceship toots a steam whistle when it goes into warp drive. Several humorously grotesque native animals are seen, notably Rasa’s pet yellow blob, Monga, which saves her and Nam’s lives several times in comedic deus ex machina ways.

When the four main characters are united, a “spirit of the sword” finally explains the metaphysical plot. The universe is an embryonic life form evolving toward birth. When enough individual organic life forms exist to achieve a critical mass, they will merge into a single super-being that will be the next stage in evolution. The Inorganics are the equivalent of cancer cells that are out to kill organic beings to stop this fusion. Earlier dubs of Birth called the Inorganics “evil robots,” but they seem more like intelligent germs just trying to protect their own existence. Humor disappears from the chase sequences in the last half, as the four humans are attacked by increasingly huge and deadly Inorganics.

The final scene, which looks like it should explain everything, shows two characters talking “in Heaven” without any dialogue. Kaname’s explanation was that the next step in evolution would be too advanced for mere mortals to comprehend. It was commonly believed that the movie’s budget ran out before the post-production dubbing could be completed. Birth is so surrealistic that it hardly matters. It is less a coherent whole than a series of set-piece scenes that are individually enjoyable for their bizarre humor. Birth is also notable as one of the few anime productions besides the features of Hayao Miyazaki to have music by Jo Hisaishi; certainly not his best but still pleasant.