Tokyo Godfathers

"Meet the ultimate dysfunctional family."

2003 1h 32m JA

🙌

7.9

BANGER

🔥

92%

CERTIFIED FRESH

👌

METACRITIC

⭐

7.8

IMDB

★7.9TMDB · 1,578🍅92%Rotten Tomatoes●75Metacritic★7.8IMDB · 54,397

AnimationDramaComedy

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

On Christmas Eve, three homeless people living on the streets of Tokyo discover a newborn baby among the trash and set out to find its parents.

“Meet the ultimate dysfunctional family.”

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Cast

Aya Okamoto
Miyuki (voice)
Yoshiaki Umegaki
Hana (voice)
Tohru Emori
Gin (voice)
Satomi Korogi
Kiyoko (voice)
Mamiko Noto
Kiyoko, Gin's daughter (voice)
Ryuji Saikachi
Roujin (voice)
Kyoko Terase
Sachiko (voice)
Rikiya Koyama
Shinrou (voice)

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Satoshi Kon
Writers: Satoshi Kon, Keiko Nobumoto, Satoshi Kon
Languages: English, Japanese, Spanish
Countries: Japan

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $2.4M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 25% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 23 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 3 languages: English, Japanese, Spanish.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Satoshi Kon, shot by Katsutoshi Sugai. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Keiichi Suzuki. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Kashiko Kimura shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Aya Okamoto and Yoshiaki Umegaki and Tohru Emori carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Satoshi Kon directs. Katsutoshi Sugai behind the camera. Keiichi Suzuki scores. Kashiko Kimura cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in Japan. Dialogue in English, Japanese, Spanish.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $2.4M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Earned back only 25% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
3Released 23 years ago.
4Dialogue crosses 3 languages: English, Japanese, Spanish.
5Directed by Satoshi Kon, shot by Katsutoshi Sugai. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Keiichi Suzuki. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Kashiko Kimura shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Aya Okamoto and Yoshiaki Umegaki and Tohru Emori carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "Meet the ultimate dysfunctional family.".
10IMDB entry: tt0388473 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Classified under 11 themes, including "baby", "drag queen", "holiday", "tokyo, japan".

The technical file

Cinematography: Katsutoshi Sugai
Original score: Keiichi Suzuki
Editing: Kashiko Kimura
Runtime: 92 min · 1h 32m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $2,400,000
Box office: $607,735
Return: 25% of budget
Original language: JA
Certification (US): PG-13
IMDB: Tokyo Godfathers (2003)
Rotten Tomatoes: 92% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 75/100
IMDB rating: 7.8/10 · 54,397 votes
MPAA: PG-13

Awards

8 wins & 1 nomination total

Japan Media Arts Festival Animation Division Excellence Award

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Satoshi Kon

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Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2022-12-25
★ 7/10
An unlikely triumvirate of homeless folks discover an abandoned baby whilst scavenging through the rubbish of their downtown Tokyo district. What to do? Well this trio - a drag queen who has seen better days, one who has a bit of a penchant for the gin and the young runaway girl "Miyuki" set out to try and repatriate this Christmas baby - come what may! They don't have much to go on, but determine to painstakingly follow what little clues they have in the hope that they can identify the mother of this pitiful bundle. Along the way, we find ourselves in a semi-comical environment as the three make progress - almost despite themselves. Confused, yes? Muddled? Yes, that too - but the sum of the three individuals proves to be worth far more than the value of each part. They function as a team because they shouldn't - and that is where much of the humour and the potency of the drama comes from. The animation is stylish and the hues and shades are particularly effective at illustrating their environment and at complimenting the humorous elements of their detective work. For some, 2022 attitudes may show up some of the character cracks that would have been groundbreaking at the start of this new millennium, but given it was made when it was - it tackles quite a few issues with a candour - and vivacity - that all works well to create an entertaining, charming and at times just a little thought-provoking animation.

Production companies