MAGIC BOY (1961)

This was one of the first examples of Japanese animation (anime) released in the U.S. The title character is introduced to us through a bland but catchy theme song--"There was a boy named Sasuke in Japan / He loved the friendly creatures of the wood…” Sasuke (pronounced Saski in the English dub of this movie) lives with his older sister in a modest cabin in the woods, and he frolics frequently with a bunch of friendly animals including a bear, a squirrel, a deer and its fawn (named Tinkle for the bell it wears). One afternoon, a romp goes wrong when a hawk attacks Tinkle and carries it off, dropping it in a nearby lake. The fawn's mother leaps in the water to save the fawn, but she dies when attacked by a giant salamander, which is actually a shape-shifting evil witch named Yakusha. Sasuke takes it on himself to get schooled in magic by an amiable wizard for three years so he can get revenge aginst the witch. Meanwhile, his sister Oyu's home is burned down by bandits who are controlled by Yakusha, and Oyu is helped by a handsome prince who offers his help again if ever needed. When Sasuke goes after the witch, she decides to go after him, and Oyu for good measure. A little girl who is brave enough to go after two comic-relief bandits also gets involved, as does the prince, and eventually the witch is defeated.

I'm not an expert on anime so I won't try to comment on the film as an example of the genre, but I can say that there are plenty of Disney influences here. The animals seem right out of Bambi, and the sequence with the wizard is reminiscent of The Sorcerer's Apprentice sequence of Fantasia. The mix of fantasy, comedy, and black arts gives the movie a Snow White feel. Most amusingly, the robe that the witch wears has giant bats on it with heads that look exactly like Mickey Mouse silhouettes. (I even think the witch looks a little bit like 101 Dalmatians' Cruella de Vil--see photo--though that movie was made after Magic Boy.) The film was marketed for kids, and the New York Times ran an approving review of it when it opened in New York in December of 1963, calling it a perfect Christmas treat for the family. But it is darker and more violent than classic-era Disney fare, with some swordplay, a brutal whipping endured by Sasuke, and people being tossed off of cliffs. The body count is fairly high though there is no blood or gore, and except for the deer mom, all the good guys and gals and animals survive. The film's rhythms take some getting used to--the narrative doesn't really get started until about 15 minutes in, and there are long scenes with no dialogue. Speaking of dialogue, I scoured the Internet and couldn't find any credits for the English voice cast, though I'm sure I heard Paul Frees, one of the most famous movie & TV voices ever (Boris Badanov on Rocky & Bullwinkle among hundred of other voices and narrations). The lovely backgrounds are more impressionistic than most of Disney's. It feels ahead of its time, and kids today would certainly not be caught as off-guard as I was by its unusual qualities, especially kids who have seen the movies of Studio Ghibli (Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle). Released in Japan in 1959 as Shonen Sarutobi Sasuke. [TCM]