Japan Synopsis
桃太郎 海の神兵
The first Japanese feature-length animated film. It was directed by Mitsuyo Seo, who was ordered to make a propaganda film for the war by the Japanese Naval Ministry. Shochiku Moving Picture Laboratory shot the 74-minute film in 1944 and screened it on April 12, 1945. It is a sequel to Momotarō no Umiwashi, a 37-minute film released in 1943 by the same director. It is black and white. The whole movie also depicts the Japanese "liberation of Asia", as proclaimed by the Government at the time. Seo tried to give dreams to children, as well as to instill the hope for peace, with hidden movie's hints of dreams and hopes, under the appearance of war propaganda.
Other Titles From Shochiku
Position in Catalog
Released alongside 2 other Japan films in 1945.
The 36th Japan title from Japan we index (earliest catalogued entry: 1899).
Our Japan catalog contains 4,579 titles in total (2,908 films).
Audience Engagement
11 audience reviews — more than 11% of Japan films in our index.
Popularity sits at the 7th percentile among Japan films.
Reception Benchmarks
Ranked #4,556 of 4,579 Japan films indexed here (1st percentile by TMDB audience score).
Rating is -2.8 points below the Japan average of 6.9/10.
Among Japan Animation productions specifically: #2,526 of 2,532 (top 100%).
Production Details
| Primary Country | Japan |
|---|---|
| Original Language | Japanese |
| Production Companies | Shochiku |
| Runtime | 1h 14m |
| Release Date | March 12, 1945 |
| IMDb | tt0142666 |