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Oblivion Island: Haruka and the Magic Mirror [Blu-ray]

Christine Marie Cabanos (Actor), Cassandra Lee (Actor), Shinsuke Sato (Director) Rated:
G
Format: Blu-ray
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 152 ratings
Additional Multi-Format options Edition Discs
Price
New from Used from
Multi-Format
September 13, 2016
Blu-ray + DVD
3
—
— $6.99
Genre Science Fiction & Fantasy, Kids & Family, DVD Movie, Blu-ray Movie, Anime & Manga, Action & Adventure See more
Format NTSC, Widescreen, Multiple Formats, Blu-ray, Animated
Contributor Derek Stephan Prince, George Cole, Julie ann Taylor, Shinsuke Sato, Kyle Hebert, Christine Marie Cabanos, Cassandra Lee, David Roach, Mark McCollum, Patrick Seitz, Julie Maddalena, Tara Platt See more
Language English, Japanese
Runtime 1 hour and 40 minutes
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Product Description

Product Description

Hold on tight and discover the magic of memories! A vibrantly animated blend of Japanese folklore and storybook charm reminiscent of Alice in Wonderland, Production I.G's award-winning feature-length romp will amaze both the young and the young at heart. 16-year-old Haruka is on a mission to find her mirror—a precious childhood gift from her mother that mysteriously disappeared. While following a strange foxlike creature in the woods, she tumbles into a mystical world where once-cherished toys and treasures go when their owners neglect them. Join Haruka and her new friend Teo on a roller coaster ride of adventure as they contend with the island's greedy ruler—who wants the mirror for his own evil plan!

Bonus Content:

  • Behind the Scenes of Oblivion Island
  • A Visit to Fushimi Inari Shrine
  • Battleship Island: An Actual Oblivion Island
  • Greetings at the Premeire
  • A Word From the Cast
  • The U.S. Premiere
  • Haruka and Teo's Panel Puzzle
  • A Journey Through Fox Folklore
  • Sierra Leone Relief Spots
  • Original Teasers
  • Original Trailers
  • TV Commercials
  • U.S. Trailer
  • Previews

Amazon.com

The feature Oblivion Island: Haruka and the Magic Mirror (2009) received favorable notice and some awards on the international festival circuit. Haruka, a 16-year-old high school freshman, feels her hard-working father has neglected her since her mother died. She's also troubled by the loss of the hand mirror her mother left her. Remembering a children's book she had about fox spirits who take things humans neglect, Haruka visits the local shrine and prays for the return of her mirror. At the shrine, she sees Teo, an odd creature in a fox mask, steal her key ring. Haruka follows him into an underground world inhabited by strange beings who live amid discarded objects. The search for the mirror leads Haruka and Teo to the castle of the fey Baron who rules the island. During their adventures, Haruka and Teo learn they are not the living equivalent of discarded objects: they love and are loved. Oblivion Island has considerable charm, but it also has problems. The filmmakers never really explain who and what Teo is, and Haruka spends a lot of time fussing. Director-cowriter Shinsuke Sato has previously worked in live action, and the endless possibilities CG animation offers seem to have dazzled him. The scenes of Haruka's children's book have an appealing simplicity the rest of the film lacks: Oblivion Island is so overloaded with bright colors and odd shapes, the viewer's eye gets lost in the welter of details. There are also too many elaborate roller coaster rides through the complex backgrounds, a problem that may remind some viewers of Blue Sky's Robots (2005). But Oblivion Island: Haruka and the Magic Mirror offers more visual imagination than many bigger-budget features, and Sato's next film should be even more interesting. (Rated TV G: some mildly scary situations, minor violence and alcohol use) --Charles Solomon

Product details

  • Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 1.78:1
  • Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
  • MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ G (General Audience)
  • Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.5 x 5.4 x 0.45 inches; 2.93 ounces
  • Item model number ‏ : ‎ 33590553
  • Director ‏ : ‎ Shinsuke Sato
  • Media Format ‏ : ‎ NTSC, Widescreen, Multiple Formats, Blu-ray, Animated
  • Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 40 minutes
  • Release date ‏ : ‎ September 13, 2016
  • Actors ‏ : ‎ Christine Marie Cabanos, Cassandra Lee, Patrick Seitz, Julie Maddalena, Julie ann Taylor
  • Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ English
  • Language ‏ : ‎ Japanese (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby TrueHD 5.1), Japanese (Dolby TrueHD 5.1)
  • Studio ‏ : ‎ Funimation
  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0080K2E92
  • Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 3
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 152 ratings

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
152 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Z Hayes
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent storytelling, engaging characters, and vivid animation make for entertaining viewing
Reviewed in the United States on March 27, 2014
Verified Purchase
I love Japanese anime and my nine-year-old daughter has grown to love them over the years. We are great fans of Hayao Miyazaki's body of work but lately, I've been introducing my daughter to some of the other films made by other directors. Of course, given her age, I have to choose the content with care, and I'm glad I found "Oblivion Island: Haruka and the Magic Mirror". Directed by Shinsuke Sato, the film uses 3-D animation to present a vivid story bursting with color, and featuring a cast of characters that struck me as original and refreshing.

The premise is an engaging one: Haruka is an only child being raised in a single parent household. Her mother passed away when Haruka was very young, and Haruka, in her loneliness and dejection, yearns fiercely for her mother and all the comfort of being in a happy family. A chance encounter with a strange creature propels Haruka on an amazing journey into the land of lost things, where to her utter astonishment she discovers that objects abandoned or forgotten by humans are collected by creatures inhabiting another world who live on an Island controlled by the power-hungry Baron (not to be confused with the charismatic Baron from Miyazaki's films). Haruka meets Teo, a creature who initially balks at helping a human, but the two gradually form a close bond that transcends their differences.

The animation is excellent as far as 3D animation goes, but what really captured my imagination as well as my daughter's was the wonderful storytelling and engaging characters. The friendship between Haruka and Teo is beautifully conveyed and each character is well-delineated. Characterization is not sacrificed at the expense of animation effects and I appreciated that. There's also an adorable character, "Cotton" which Haruka comes across as she searches for her mother's mirror, one of the forgotten objects taken from her world. Cotton used to be Haruka's soft toy (a sheep) but in this fantasy world, Cotton is able to speak and move, made possible by a mirror placed within it. Cotton was beloved by my daughter who felt it embodied all the comfort and love children derive from a precious childhood toy. The villain, Baron, is aptly portrayed as an egotistical maniac out to prevent Haruka from getting her mirror, due to the power he considers it to possess.

Watching this film reminded me of certain aspects of Miyazaki's films. The Baron's flying abode for example, was reminiscent of Howl's moving castle in the film of the same name. The whole girl gets lost in a strange and fantastical world reminded me of Spirited Away, although the comparison ends there. The message in Spirited Away was much deeper and philosophical compared to Oblivion Island. On the whole though, I am glad that this "experiment" in trying out something out of my comfort zone proved to be so rewarding, not to mention kid friendly (recommended for ages 8 and up).
12 people found this helpful
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W. Watson
5.0 out of 5 stars This was great all around!
Reviewed in the United States on October 6, 2013
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I bought this movie about six months ago and I put it aside because I was just busy with other things. I decided to watch it with my thirteen year old daughter today. She was sitting on the couch immersed in her laptop. When the movie started it only took about ten minutes before I'd seen that she'd put her computer and her phone down and started watching it with me. That is by no means an easy feat since she's attached to her electronic devices. As a parent of a young girl, I feel that this is exactly the kind of animation that they should be making more of. I liked it because it's one of the only animations I've seen in which the girl is the central character and not dependent upon a boy or a man to play off of. Too many times we see girls portrayed as scenery rather than characters. I liked the fact that Haru was not a Polyanna or a stereotype, but closely resembled a normal sixteen year old girl in most respects. As the movie begins she struggles with her own life in a way that most can identify with, and as the movie progresses it makes you feel the emotions she's feeling right along with her. To me, that's the hallmark of good storytelling.

The animation was AMAZING! I can't say enough about that. They managed to make it so that you forget that you're watching 3D Animation. I'm not really a fan of a lot of the new Disney 3D animation because they come off as too cartoony. Haruka looks like a cartoon but not overly so. I don't feel like the CGI was overdone and I feel the lush and wonderful world that was created was something really special in a way that makes me want to see more of this style. I hope that this isn't the last we'll see of this kind of animation.
3 people found this helpful
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Chakha Unastra
5.0 out of 5 stars A Treat for the Eyes and the Heart
Reviewed in the United States on August 15, 2012
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When I first heard of this movie at Otakon, the large anime convention held in Baltimore each year, I literally knew nothing about it. So when Funimation posted the Japanese subtitled version on YouTube just prior to the US Blu-ray/DVD release, I had to take a look, and I am quite glad that I did! I immediately placed a pre-order on Amazon, which came today, and I am writing this having just watched the movie with my family on Blu-ray.

Oblivion Island is a visual treat for the eyes with animation on par with Pixar and Dreamworks, and imbued with overtones from Japanese anime and manga. The character design of Haruka is gorgeous, and you can see that a lot of love and care went into animating her every move. But it doesn't end with Haruka, the film makers have created a world alive with color and texture that even moved my teenagers!

Beyond the beautiful animation is an equally heart warming tale of lost memories and one girl's struggle to retrieve them, making new ones along the way. The soundtrack very ably communicates the emotional mood without being over powering or intrusive. The voice acting in the English dub is excellent! The characters are all well matched and the script localization could not have been better! This is a story that parents and kids can equally understand and enjoy, because at its core, that's what the movie is all about, family and the memories we make together.
6 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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kolo
5.0 out of 5 stars 優しさ
Reviewed in Japan on June 18, 2019
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実写のGANTZなどを監督された佐藤信介監督作品です。日本人監督は淡白な監督が多い中、彼は作り方が違う。一欠片の優しさが慈悲の姿となる。
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jean marie
5.0 out of 5 stars Très bon Manga
Reviewed in France on April 19, 2014
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Le Manga fut envoyé à temps des USA.
Ceux qui vendirent le produit sont aimable.
Quant à l'histoire, entre onirisme et monde parallèle,
nous font découvrir un univers subtile entre la rencontre
de différentes vie.
Humour et sentiment sont au rendez-vous.
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WelshWife
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Watch
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 24, 2013
Verified Purchase
This was bought shortly after I had purchased Journey To Agartha on blue ray and both were amazing, me and my husband couldn't say which was better because they both had features and a story line that made them very different. The animation is amazing in this film and the story line keeps you watching. It tells the story of how we all have things we wish we could find that have been lost. although we did find it quite young at heart we thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend to anyone that likes animation.
2 people found this helpful
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Bruce
4.0 out of 5 stars GOOD
Reviewed in Japan on August 26, 2019
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The item is good, except the shell of disc had cracked at the corner.
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John Thomas Anderson
4.0 out of 5 stars A kid's movie that mommies might like even more than their kiddies!
Reviewed in Canada on September 26, 2012
Verified Purchase
Oblivion Island is a state of the art CGI movie from Production IG of Japan. In looks and quality, it reminds me of various Dream Works or Pixar productions like Robots, Aliens and Monsters or Monster House and other's of that ilk. While in story line, it's closer to an all CGI Japanese version of Alice in Wonderland.

Haruka, a typical sixteen year old japanese schoolgirl falls down her version of the rabbit hole where she teams up with Teo; a fox spirit to find something very precious to her that's been lost and abandoned in a magical land where everything built from and used is junk that we've either thrown away or abandoned or simply lost! It's amazing to behold!

You have an entire city made up of other people's throw a way's. Trolley's made out of discarded bicycles and other parts and houses that are held together with nothing more than a wing and a prayer. It's very imaginative. Throw in the obligatory villain out to claim all the best parts for himself, chases over rooftops and down into scary caverns and you have the typical kid's action movie. Although a couple of spots are a bit scary so I probably wouldn't recommend this for the pre-school crowd.

However, underneath this storyline is a deeper more moving part of the plot. Of a teenager who still grieves over the loss of her mother, a growing estrangement with her father and of a childhood lost! A storyline that may bring tears to more than one mommy as they think back on their own childhoods. Although it does tend to slow down the pace of the storyline when this happens which is why I think parents might actually like this movie even more than their kiddies would.

The blue ray and dvd's are in your typical 16:9 format and there are only two audio tracks. Dolby True HD 5.1 English and Japanese on the Bluray; Dolby Digital 5.1's on the dvd. Plus the usual bunch of extras, nothing that I found outstanding.

In overall quality, I'd rate this a 3 for the kids as the introspective moments tend to slow down the pace and there's basically no humour; while I'd rate it a 4 for mommies everywhere as there are some very touching scenes of childhood reminiscences'.

J. A.
3 people found this helpful
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