Silver Wheel

1955 0h 12m JA

🤯

9.0

MASTERPIECE

★9.0TMDB · 1

Animation

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Silver Wheel (Bicycle in Dream) is a PR film that was produced to promote the export of bicycles. However, Matsumoto Toshio, who was an employee of the Shin-riken Pictures, which had been contracted to produce the film, asked for the cooperation of Yamaguchi Katsuhiro, Kitadai Shozo and Takemitsu Toru, at the time members of Jikken Kobo, and also invited the participation of Tsuburaya Eiji, the leading expert in the field of special effects. Therefore, this work depicts a young boy’s dreams concerning a bicycle, while making the most of the realistic and materialistic character of bicycle parts and of surreal and fantasy-like scenes. Due to the course of its production and the fresh images and music used, this was seen as being the first example of experimental cinema in postwar Japan.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Masao Yabe
Writers: Toshio Matsumoto, 北代省三, 山口勝弘
Languages: No Language
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 / 7

RUNTIME

Did you know

Tight 12-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

ERA

Did you know

71 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

RUNTIME

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Masao Yabe, shot by Shuzaburo Araki. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0466808 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

Only 1 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Masao Yabe directs. Shuzaburo Araki behind the camera. Tōru Takemitsu scores. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Japan. Dialogue in No Language.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Tight 12-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
271 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
4Directed by Masao Yabe, shot by Shuzaburo Araki. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Tōru Takemitsu. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6IMDB entry: tt0466808 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
7Only 1 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.