The story takes some kooky turns and, at times, delves into the supernatural.
Tokyo Godfathers(東京ゴッドファーザーズ)
✭ ✭ ✭ ✭ Read critic reviews
Japan · 2003
Rated PG-13 · 1h 33m
Director Satoshi Kon
Starring Aya Okamoto, Yoshiaki Umegaki, Toru Emori, Satomi Kourogi
Genre Animation, Drama
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One Christmas Eve three homeless people — middle-aged alcoholic Gin, former drag queen Hana, and teenaged runaway Miyuki — discover an abandoned newborn while searching through the garbage for presents and set out on a journey to return her to her parents. A bizarre, heartwarming holiday tragicomedy inspired by Peter B. Kyne's novel "Three Godfathers."
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
Christian Science Monitor by David Sterritt
The story is sweet by animé standards, although it has harsh elements as well.
The film is as lively as a cricket and often very funny, but it's not for the cyberpunk crowd.
A welcome exercise in anime weirdness.
Wall Street Journal by Joe Morgenstern
A singularly strange and affecting comedy.
With its masterful grasp of comedy, pathos, social commentary and mystical weirdness, Tokyo Godfathers takes anime to a whole new level.
Entertainment Weekly by Lisa Schwarzbaum
Like the comic strips of Ben Katchor, Tokyo Godfathers artfully appreciates the beauty and humanity in junked lives and landscapes.
Los Angeles Times by Manohla Dargis
As with the greatest animated films, the triumph of Kon's work lies not just in its beauty and singularly sophisticated storytelling but in how that beauty and storytelling combine to give the films a sting so human you can forget you're watching a cartoon.
The A.V. Club by Tasha Robinson
No amount of shoehorned-in razzle-dazzle can keep this forced fable from feeling like a shadow of Kon's early work.
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