Future War 1986

Plot

In September 1985, the United States test-launches "Space Ranger"—a crewed missile defense space weapon consisting of four laser-equipped modules and their mother ship Albatross—at Vandenberg Air Force Base. Space Ranger inventor Burt Gains believes Space Ranger could render ICBMs obsolete, but privately admits to his sister Laura and Japanese Space Ranger astronaut Wataru Mikumo his fears that it could worsen the nuclear arms race. Meanwhile in Neinberg, West Germany, farm girl Marina and her boyfriend, British Army missile crewman Michael, prepare for New Year's Day, while near Hokkaido, the Japan Air Self-Defense Force intercepts a Soviet Tu-22 in another increasingly-frequent airspace incursion.

The next morning, Gains is kidnapped by Soviet spies trying to smuggle him to the Soviet Union in an Alfa-class submarine. To protect Space Ranger's secrets, U.S. President Jay Gibson orders the submarine sunk, which can only be done with a nuclear torpedo due to its depth, annihilating the submarine and killing everyone aboard, including Gains. With U.S.–Soviet tensions inflamed, Soviet Premier Orlov is offered a reasoned response by First Deputy Premier Kutsov and military retaliation by hawkish Minister of Defence Bugarin, but opts to mobilize the Soviet Armed Forces and test a Soviet "interceptor satellite" as a message to Gibson. Wataru is assigned to replace Gains in the Space Ranger program, and he falls in love with Laura.

On New Year's Eve, Soviet Air Forces Captain Boris Sorenkuga defects to a West German Air Force air base near Neinberg in the top-secret Su-28 Black Dragon stealth bomber. To avoid losing critical military secrets, Orlov, under Bugarin's urging, reluctantly permits a Spetsnaz assault on the air base solely to neutralize Sorenkuga and the Black Dragon, before having a heart attack. The Spetsnaz air assault succeeds, but the fighting spills over the Inner German border, sparking war in Europe. Wataru and Laura learn of the war while in Tokyo for the New Year, and Wataru rushes back to Vandenberg, ignoring Laura's pleas to stay with her. While Gibson struggles to negotiate a ceasefire while balancing NATO's demands for a first strike, the battle in Germany destroys Neinberg and kills Marina; despondent, Michael steals a missile carrier and launches its tactical nuclear missile at Soviet forces, killing everyone in the battle and fatally poisoning Michael with radiation. The nuclear strike prompts a global escalation of the war as theaters open across the world. Gibson receives a ceasefire proposal from Orlov, but rejects its unrealistic demands; Secretary of State Girard theorizes Orlov himself may not have sent it. In Moscow, Kutsov and the Politburo deduce Bugarin is falsifying the absent Orlov's orders and plan to arrest him to call a proper ceasefire, but Bugarin launches a coup d'état and has the Politburo detained.

Cast

Kin'ya Kitaōji as Wataru Mikumo (Robert Manning in the English version)

Masako Natsume as Laura Gains

Hidekatsu Shibata as Burt Gains

Keiichi Noda as Institute Director Brown

Yoshio Kaneuchi as U.S. President Jay Gibson

Osamu Kobayashi as U.S. Secretary of State Girard

Tamio Ōki as U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff McCoy

Masashi Amenomori as Soviet Premier Orlov

Yōichi Miyakawa as Soviet First Deputy Premier Kutsov

Takeshi Aono as Soviet Minister of Defense Bugarin

Chikao Otsuka as Lieutenant Colonel Stroganov

Yasuo Tanaka as Koiso

Gorō Naya as JSDF Commanding General Tōno

Production

It is unclear when production on Future War 198X started, but it was primarily conducted by Toei Animation. Most of the production staff had previously worked on the Space Battleship Yamato franchise. Toei Animation's managing director Akinori Watanabe stated Toei's intention was to produce the film in a "realistic" art style with "Western-style images"; to this end, the film's aesthetic was mostly influenced by Japanese film illustrator Noriyoshi Ohrai, who also created illustrations, posters, and concept art.

Production was assisted by former Japan Self-Defense Forces Major General Iwano Masataka, the film's music was performed by the New Japan Philharmonic, and the film's costumes were designed by French fashion designer André Courrèges. Production cost a total of approximately 600 million yen.

Controversy

In February 1981, Toei Animation's labor union received an early copy of the film's script and, after reviewing it, described it as "dangerous", citing a pro-war narrative that viewed nuclear warfare positively. In April 1981, the union announced in The Asahi Shimbun that their members would not be participating in the film's production. This forced the film's animation to be completed by outsourced animators.

Future War 198X was controversial in Japan due to its depictions of nuclear war and the aftermath of war, and it was argued that the film glorified warfare, was right-wing propaganda, or was otherwise unsuitable for children to watch. The film was boycotted and protested by Toei Animation's labor union, joined by approximately 38 organizations, including the Japan Association for the Protection of Children, the Mothers Association of Japan, the Japan Teachers Union in Tokyo, and even the formation of a dedicated protest movement by these organizations called "Group Against 198X". On 25 May 1981, a physical protest against the film's release was held at the Japan Education Center in Tokyo. The goals of each organization reportedly differed: parent–teacher associations complained that war was being promoted in a positive light, while labor unions argued the Soviet Union was portrayed too negatively and criticized how Toei's animators were required to work on a film they ideologically disagreed with. This controversy was timely, as Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone was perceived to be staunchly militaristic and supportive of a Japanese nuclear weapons program, and over the years after the Future War 198X controversy the anime industry's labor unions continued to lobby against Nakasone's policies.

The April 1982 issue of Animage covered the controversy in an article by Koichi Kato, in which several Future War 198X staff members, including Toei managing director Akinori Watanabe, provided details on the film's development and responded to criticisms, interspersed with commentary from parent–teacher association members and labor union officials. Watanabe denied that the film was pro-war or promoted right-wing beliefs, instead positioning the film as a "moving Guernica" and stating "showing the audience what would happen if World War III broke out is a true suggestion for peace." Animation director Tomoharu Katsumada also stated he would never make a pro-war film, having himself lived through World War II as a child. Both notably criticized the idea that the film was intended for youth to begin with, and lambasted the anime industry's standard of pandering to the toy and figurine industry to market to children (the film featured real weapons that were not toys, making marketing this way difficult).

Release

Future War 198X was initially intended to be screened at the Cannes Film Festival, but this never happened.

A German dub was released in West and East Germany. The German dub removed particularly bloody and violent scenes, reducing the film's runtime by approximately 10 minutes. The film was reportedly also released in Italy. It was later aired on Greek television dubbed in Greek, most recently on ET3 in the mid-1990s.

An English version of the film was released on VHS in Australia by Wizard Video. This version was not a full English dub, but instead retained the original Japanese dialogue while providing an English voiceover that summarized the events of each scene. It featured music by Tangerine Dream, Asia, and Rush. Scenes relating to Japan's involvement in the war were also removed, and the character Wataru Mikumo was renamed "Robert Manning". This English cut was only 90 minutes long, compared to the original Japanese version's length of 125 minutes long, and the German cut's length of 115 minutes.

From 30 to 31 March 2018, Sony Interactive Entertainment Japan Asia distributed Future War 198X through PlayStation Video in Japan only, marking the first and only time the film had been officially distributed in a digital format.

Reception

Matteowatz, reviewing Future War 198X in an article about it in Animétudes, described the film as "pretty bad". His criticism particularly centered on the film's supposed stance that, per Watanabe, "there are no good guys"—which he noted was not true, with the film instead presenting the United States as ultimately saving the world from a crisis started by the Soviet Union. He also noted the film placed a significant focus on Japan and the country's military capabilities, with a Japanese protagonist ultimately saving humanity, placing the Japanese perspective at the forefront.

Sean O'Mara, writing in Zimmerit, criticized the film as being "drawn-out" and "ugly". He greatly criticized the anti-war theming as "tacked on" and "unconvincing", arguing the ending sent the message that nuclear war can be won and that "as much as war sucks, having the best technology is still the most important thing". He also compared the film to the stronger anti-war messages of 1983's WarGames and The Day After, describing Future War 198X in comparison as "exploitive; reveling in the imagery of the war without much consideration for the potential outcome." However, he did praise Ohrai's artwork for the film, but still argued it was "befitting of a much more interesting film".

anime-games.co.uk noted Ohrai's artwork did not accurately reflect the content of the film, which they described as "mostly talking" and lacking much footage of the effects of the nuclear exchange or the actual war itself. They greatly criticized the film's ending as drastically downplaying the effects of global nuclear war (Earth and the survivors recover unusually quickly, and all of humanity bonds together for peace), describing it as "completely implausable and undercut[ting] the drama of everything that came before it".

Reviewing the English version of the film, Vintagecoats criticized the unusual narration style, sound design, and rock music score as detracting from the dramatic experience and "drain[ing] all the potential color from the world of this film".

Anime historian David Merrill was quoted as describing Future War 198X as "a big, tedious sludge of a picture".

Novelization

A novelization of Future War 198X was published by Jitsugyo no Nihon Sha in 1982, written by Masataka Iwano, who also worked on the film as a planning coordinator.