Slayers The Motion Picture

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• published: 07 May 2013
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Slayers -- The Motion Picture, originally released in Japan as Slayers, is a 1995 Japanese animated fantasy adventure film chief directed and written by Kazuo Yamazaki and directed by Hiroshi Watanabe. It is the first film based on the Slayers series. Sorceresses Lina Inverse and Naga the Serpent take an economy boat trip to the magical disappearing island of Mipross, destroyed by the demon Joyrock many years earlier, so they can enjoy the hot springs there. However the two find that things on Mipross are not quite what they seem. Along the way, they meet an old time-traveling wizard named Rowdy Gabriev, an ancestor of Gourry Gabriev, who aids in defeating Joyrock. Slayers: The Motion Picture was released in Japan on July 29, 1995. The film was distributed by Toei Company and was produced by J.C.Staff. It was released to VHS and Laserdisc in North America from A.D. Vision in 1998. The VHS was available in either dubbed or subbed formats, and the Laserdisc was bilingual. A DVD release was compiled later on September 28, 2004 in a remastered disc individually, as part of a movies box set and as part of a Movies & OVAs box set. The film was presented in anamorphic widescreen for this release. An audio commentary for the film featuring Cynthia Martinez, Kelly Manison, and Matt Greenfield was included on the DVD as a special feature. When ADV Films first acquired the rights to the film, they originally had contacted Lisa Ortiz, who had been the voice of Lina Inverse in the Slayers Series, to reprise her role in the film. But at the last second, Lisa had to turn down the part because of scheduling conflicts; and ADV Films was forced to open up a last minute casting call for Lina, and cast Cynthia Martinz, who made her acting debut as Lina in the film. The movie makes a passing reference to manga/anime Dragon Half. At one point in the film, Naga encounters a group of Slime-halves and tells them to go play with some Dragon-halves. The similarities between Naga and Princess Vina (who is a Slime-half in the Dragon Half manga) and between Lina and Mink (the eponymous Dragon-half) are apparent. In the English dub, the voice actor playing Joyrock makes several references to Looney Toones characters, including introducing himself as Joyrock, Michagin J. in his frog for (a reference to a frog of a similar name), and saying a line from Sylvester and Daffy Duck (sufferin' succotash).