From the legendary collaborative minds of animation director Mamoru Oshii (Ghost in the Shell) and concept and art director Yoshitaka Amano (Final Fantasy), Angel’s Egg (1985) will be remastered in 4K and released in North American theaters on November 19 for the first time ever!
Premise
A young girl, alone in a mysterious, post-apocalyptic world, nurtures a large egg that she believes will hatch into an angel. One day, she meets a man with a large gun who tells her that this egg must be destroyed.
An Unsolved 40-Year Old Classic
Much is left unsaid within the OVA’s 71-minute runtime. Angel’s Egg has hardly any instances of spoken dialogue, preferring to have its narrative told and interpreted solely through its surreal, nightmarish visuals and booming soundtrack.
Angel’s Egg has been cited as a deeply personal work for Oshii. It is a world sprawling with twisted biblical allusions and an overwhelming sense of dread, that all speak to a crisis of faith and a loss of innocence. Yet, it is also a film that Oshii insists has no single meaning.
Failure to Nationwide Release
Until now, Angel’s Egg was exclusively a direct-to-home OVA with limited releases in film festivals. Despite receiving fairly positive reviews on release in Japanese cinemas, the film’s cryptic storytelling ended up being inaccessible to audiences at the time and became a financial failure. One that left a sore spot in Oshii’s career and directorial opportunities for years.
Cut to now, and Angel’s Egg has ascended to a cult-classic and a must-watch for fans of dark fantasy and philosophical anime storytelling. Angel’s Egg’s timeless aesthetics continue to influence games within the genre, from Bloodborne to even the recent Hollow Knight: Silksong!
Produced by GKIDS and supervised by original director Oshii, Angel’s Egg is now celebrating its 40th anniversary through a 4K restoration effort. Having been released to success in several Japanese film festivals, the OVA has now been slated to come to North American cinemas nationwide.
Don’t miss your chance to see this one-of-a-kind film on November 19!
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