Anime Movies 2000

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The next two films were both released by Hollywood juggernauts (at least in comparison to the size of the average U.S. anime company). Warner Bros.' POKÉMON: THE FIRST MOVIE and Miramax's PRINCESS MONONOKE arrived in theaters to duke it out for the title of biggest anime success of 1999.
The winner was clear even at the outset. Despite an all-star voice cast and the landmark animation and storytelling of Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli, the POKÉMON movie won hands-down. But when you think about it, it's really not surprising. After all, POKÉMON had name recognition. It had a whole line of merchandise and children clamoring for it. It had a daily television show behind it. After all, when POKÉMON switched over from being aired in syndication to being aired on the WB Kids network, people started to take it seriously.
All MONONOKE had going for it was a very selective (and sometimes overly critical) fan base, and a small marketing plan that some say looked as if it had been thrown together at the eleventh hour. Even critical acclaim from movie critic heavyweights such as Roger Ebert couldn't help this movie break through the barrier to mainstream success in the U.S. movie market.
But, on the average, 1999's theatrical releases fared much better than previous anime movies in the U.S.:

AKIRA (1989)    $439,162

GHOST IN THE SHELL (1996)    $500,000*

WINGS OF HONNEAMISE (1996)    $55,572

PERFECT BLUE (1999)    $99,390

PRINCESS MONONOKE (1999)    $2,298,000

POKÉMON: THE FIRST MOVIE (1999)    $84,797,000

(All dates are of U.S. theatrical release)
*approximate figure

So all in all, it was a mixed year for anime in the U.S. But it was a record number of anime theatrical releases—more so than in recent years past. But how will the relative success of these films affect plans for anime films in 2000?
U.S. anime film releases certainly aren't slowing down. Based on the continuing success of the genre, anime companies are continuing their plans for theatrical releases. In the year 2000, in fact, two U.S. anime companies will enter the fray with their first big-screen releases. And, of course, this is an early list. Who can say what surprises lie in store, especially as the larger Hollywood studios have taken notice of the success of POKÉMON.

Their Box Office Was Preordained
Manga Entertainment will once again lead the way with a limited domestic theatrical release of CLAMP's X, which was a feature article in issue 2.4. Like many of CLAMP's other works (RG VEDA, CARD CAPTOR SAKURA, and TOKYO BABYLON), it is beautiful, tragic, and often very confusing. Character designs are by the ever-popular Yuuki Nobuteru, best known as the character designer for the first RECORD OF LODOSS WAR and the ESCAFLOWNE television series.
Much like their 1999 release, PERFECT BLUE, X will probably confuse a lot of people who are unfamiliar with the story before they see the movie. So whether or not the film succeeds will be due to both fan support of the limited release, and the ability of audiences to enjoy a film that they probably will not fully understand until they see it multiple times.
A few release dates for the film have already been announced and are posted on the news section of the site. Check the Manga Entertainment web site for the X contest.
In response to fan inquiries about the EVANGELION movies, Manga replies that they are hard at work on them, and that they will likely see a theatrical release in 2001.