There’s a trio of quality anime flicks hitting the Canadian silver screen soon.

We start off with a 1991 classic that opened only yesterday (before you ask, no, this post isn’t late because I wanted to make that pun). GKIDS is presenting Isao Takahata’s and Studio Ghibli’s Only Yesterday in North American theatres for the first time ever.

It’s 1982, and Taeko (Daisy Ridley) is 27 years old, unmarried, and has lived her whole life in Tokyo. She decides to visit her relatives in the countryside, and as the train travels through the night, memories flood back of her younger years: the first immature stirrings of romance, the onset of puberty, and the frustrations of math and boys. At the station she is met by young farmer Toshio (Dev Patel), and the encounters with him begin to reconnect her to forgotten longings. In lyrical switches between the present and the past, Taeko contemplates the arc of her life, and wonders if she has been true to the dreams of her childhood self. From Academy Award®-nominated director Isao Takahata (The Tale of The Princess Kaguya) and general producer Hayao Miyazaki, Only Yesterday is a masterpiece of time and tone, rich with humor and stirring emotion, and beautifully animated by one of the world’s most revered animation studios. Critically acclaimed but never before released in North America, the film is receiving a national theatrical release in a new, Studio Ghibli-produced, English-language version in celebration of its 25th anniversary.

Since the film is only showing in a handful of Canadian theatres, you’ll find the list below. All locations will run the movie a few times, and it looks like some may be screened in Japanese:

TIFF Bell Light Box – Toronto, Ontario (opened February 26th)

The Vic Theatre – Victoria, British Columbia (opens March 4th)

The Roxy – Saskatoon, Saskatchewan (opens March 4th)

Princess Cinemas – Waterloo, Ontario (opens March 11th)

Cinéma du Parc – Montreal, Quebec (opens March 11th)

Vancity Theatre – Vancouver, British Columbia (opens March 14th)

Metro Cinema – Edmonton, Alberta (opens March 25th)

Only Yesterday might open at more locations, so keep your eye on the official site.

Next up is the 2015 theatrical spinoff of Production IG’s Psycho-Pass sci-fi anime series. Funimation is presenting the film with Cineplex starting March 16th.



In a futuristic Japan, the Sibyl System is charged with keeping the peace. Using extensive surveillance and biological monitoring to gauge the likelihood that individuals will commit a crime, the police are able to use weapons called Dominators to remove potential criminals from the population before they become a problem. Confident with the success of the System within their own borders, the Japanese government has begun to export the technology to other countries, planning to ultimately spread the System across the globe. When the state of SEAUn brings the Sibyl System in to test its effectiveness, it becomes a haven of peace and safety—for a time. Eventually, terrorists from SEAUn begin appearing in Japan, somehow slipping through the System’s security and attacking from within. Desperate for answers, Inspector Akane Tsunemori is sent overseas to bring the terrorists to justice. But when her investigation forces her into a standoff with an old ally, will she be able to pull the trigger?

I have no real clue on whether the film will be screened with the English dub or in Japanese with subtitles. Cineplex’s page for the movie says it’s the latter, but Funimation’s site and press materials focus on the former.

Just an FYI, Funimation’s theatre locator doesn’t seem to have Canadian listings yet, so use Cineplex’s site.



Last, but certainly not least, here’s an interesting update for those wanting to see Mamoru Hosoda’s latest. Funimation is set to launch The Boy and the Beast in US theatres this Friday, but Canadians will have to wait until late May. That’s because Toronto-based film distributor Mongrel Media has picked up the Canadian theatrical and home video rights to the movie. The move comes as a surprise, as most modern theatrical anime screenings share the same distributor in the US and Canada.

Mongrel plans on releasing The Boy and the Beast in theatres and on-demand on May 27th. Their website seems to indicate it will be presented in Japanese with English subtitles.

While the delay will come as a disappointment to some, I think it’s probably the best for the movie. Mongrel will likely give it a bigger push than a two-night Cineplex run. Hopefully they get the dub too.

I’ll make sure to post a followup as the release draws near.