It's another live action movie based on a manga series. Lately, the movies have been hit & miss with how successfully they keep to the original story. We'll have to see how well this one does.
VIZ
PICTURES LICENSES THEATRICAL AND DVD RIGHTS TO 20th
CENTURY BOYS TRILOGY
OF LIVE ACTION FILMS FROM JAPAN
Critically
Acclaimed Movies Based On Smash Hit Manga Series Created By Naoki
Urasawa To
Open New VIZ Cinema In August
San
Francisco, CA, JULY 7, 2009 –
VIZ Pictures, an affiliate of VIZ Media, LLC that focuses on Japanese
live-action film distribution, has
announced that it has licensed from
Nippon Television (NTV)
the North American theatrical and DVD distribution rights to the
live-action 20th CENTURY
BOYS feature
film trilogy from Japan. The films are based on
the
critically acclaimed 20th CENTURY BOYS manga series
created
by Naoki Urasawa, which is a national phenomenon in Japan, selling over
20
million copies to date.
VIZ
Pictures is scheduled to release the first and second chapters of 20th
CENTURY BOYS films on DVD later this year, with the remaining film
scheduled
for release in 2010. VIZ Media publishes the 20th CENTURY
BOYS manga
series (rated ‘T+’ for older teens) in North America and will also
distribute the DVDs. For more information about these DVD releases,
please stay
tuned at www.viz-pictures.com.
On
August 15th, VIZ Cinema will celebrate its grand
opening at
NEW PEOPLE, located
at 1746 Post Street in
San Francisco, with a very special screening
of the
first chapter of the 20th CENTURY BOYS live-action
trilogy,
presented in partnership with Nippon Television. Advance tickets go
on-sale on
Friday, July 31st and more information is available at www.vizcinema.com.
The
first 20th CENTURY BOYS film will continue playing
at VIZ
Cinema for the next week, followed by a week-long showing of the second
chapter
of the trilogy. As an unprecedented event in the Japanese film world,
VIZ Cinema will host the world
premiere of the third and final
chapter of 20th CENTURY BOYS on August 28th,
presented
simultaneously with the national release in Japan.
The
20th
CENTURY BOYS saga
was directed by Yukihiko
Tsutsumi (HAPPILY EVER AFTER, also available from VIZ Pictures) and begins in 1969 when a
young boy named Kenji and his
friends write "The Book of Prophecy." In their book, they write
about a future where they fight against an evil organization trying to
take
over the world and bring about Doomsday.
Years
later in 1997, a mysterious cult being lead by a man only known as
"Friend"
has emerged and gained strong influence over society. A series of
catastrophic
events begin to occur, mirroring the prophecies made up by the young
Kenji. The
greatest fear is that the climax of The Book of Prophecy will become a
reality:
on December 31st, 2000, a terrifying giant virus-spreading
robot
will attack the entire city of Tokyo, leading to the end of mankind.
The only
people who know about The Book are Kenji and his childhood friends. Who
is
Friend? Will Kenji and his friends are able to save mankind and live to
see the
21st Century?
"We
are truly honored to announce the license for 20th CENTURY
BOYS features and look forward to
premiering the
films at our new VIZ Cinema later this summer," says Seiji Horibuchi,
President and CEO
of VIZ Pictures. "20th
CENTURY BOYS was
one of the biggest productions ever attempted in the Japanese movie
industry
and was created in-part to celebrate Nippon Television’s 55th
Anniversary. Anticipation has risen steadily in Japan in the wake of
the success
of the first two films and since the upcoming release of the final film
of the
series was announced. We’re very excited to premiere the third and
final
film to U.S. audiences at VIZ Cinema the same day it debuts in Japan."
About
VIZ Pictures, Inc.
Based
in San Francisco, CA, VIZ Pictures, Inc. distributes
Japanese live-action films and DVDs, with particular focus on Japanese
"kawaii (cute) and cool" pop culture. VIZ Pictures approaches each
release from a J-pop fan's point of view to serve manga and anime
generation in
North America. VIZ Pictures titles include DEATH NOTE, HAPPILY EVER
AFTER,
KAMIKAZE GIRLS, LINDA LINDA LINDA, PING PONG, THE TASTE OF TEA, TRAIN
MAN:
DENSHA OTOKO and others. The company will continue to offer the hottest
visual
entertainment straight from the "Kingdom of Pop" for audiences of all
ages in North America. VIZ Pictures, Inc. is an affiliate of VIZ Media,
LLC,
the San Francisco-based leading U.S. publisher of Japanese manga
(comics) and
merchandise licensor of Japanese animation such as the popular
"NARUTO" animated TV series. For more information please visit
www.viz-pictures.com or www.viz.com.© 2006 VIZ Pictures, Inc.
Lori Henderson