Momotaro: Sacred Sailors

Synopsis

Continuing from the earlier film, this movie again features Momotaro, the "Peach Boy" from Japanese folklore. It focuses on the surprise operation on Sulawesi island, showing parachute troops in action. The entire film also portrays Japan's "liberation of Asia" as declared by the government during that era. Several musical numbers appear, notably The Song of AIUEO (アイウエオの歌, AIUEO no Uta), a sequence where Japanese soldiers instruct local animals in speech.

Background

Momotarou: Umi no Shinpei is a war propaganda movie considered to be Japan's first feature-length animation work. It was produced with funding of 270,000 yen from the Ministry of the Navy. The movie was considered lost following the end of World War II, but its negatives were rediscovered in 1982. Shochiku's digital restoration of the film was screened at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival.