Memories (メモリーズ) is a 1995 theatrical anime anthology film based on one of Katsuhiro Otomo’s short manga stories. The anthology is directed by three people (one per story); Kōji Morimoto, Tensai Okamura, and Katsuhiro Otomo and produced by studios Studio 4°C and Madhouse. Staff credits also include writers Satoshi Kon and Katsuhiro Otomo, and music composed by Takkyū Ishino, Yoko Kanno, Jun Miyake and Hiroyuki Nagashima. The film first theatrically released in Japan in December 1995.
Background:
“Episode 1: Magnetic Rose
Alone on a mysterious ship in deepest space, she waits. Once a beloved diva, she is now nothing more than memories. And for unsuspecting travelers that respond to her beacon, she will be their undoing.
Episode 2: Stink Bomb
A junior scientist gets the flu, and decides to try out some newly developed pills. But he takes the wrong ones, turning him into a walking, talking, and exceptionally clueless weapon of mass destruction.
Episode 3: Cannon Fodder
A day in the life of a small family in a big city. In this city, there is only war. There are no dreams, there is only labor. And there is no god, only a gigantic cannon.”
Plot Synopsis via Anime Limited, October 2022.
Many will be familiar with Katsuhiro Otomo for his work on Akira, which blew everyone’s minds when it first released in theaters and still to this day for newcomers of anime. But Otomo also worked on other projects over the years, primarily films or shorter stories. Roujin Z, Steamboy, Short Peace and even the opening/ending segments for Robot Carnival he had worked on.
Memories is an anthology film consisting of three different stories. The big one is Magnetic Rose, written by the late Satoshi Kon and directed by Kōji Morimoto. Personally, this is my favourite of the three as it has that right atmosphere and tone plus the story is really good. The other stories included in this film are Stink Bomb, written by Katsuhiro Otomo and directed by Tensai Okamura, which is interesting and animated by studio Madhouse. And Cannon Fodder, written and directed by Katsuhiro Otomo, that feels more like a pilot episode than a full story but has a unique artstyle to it that reminded me of the likes of Tekkonkinkreet and Masaaki Yuasa works.
Memories was licensed and released in the UK first by Sony Pictures under their Animax label on DVD, which had a few films be released under that branding. It’s been available for a while but eventually the license expired, and it was rescued by two distributors. In North America, Discotek Media picked up the rights, provided a HD remaster and even dubbed the film for the first time which was a really solid effort by Sound Cadence and NYAV Post. In the UK, Anime Limited rescued the UK rights and re-used Discotek’s discs for their release.
Collector’s Edition Contents:
Much like a lot of the classic anime films released by Anime Limited, Memories also received the collector’s edition treatment.
The package is presented as a rigid box with an Amaray Blu-ray case to house the discs and alongside the case is a 36-page booklet and a poster. The booklet features interviews from the Japanese creators (that can also be viewed on the Blu-ray disc), and essays written by Andrew Osmond and Jonathan Clements about the film’s production.
The artwork is free of any information or BBFC content and the info sheet covers the information and specification like previous Anime Limited releases. The collector’s edition Blu-ray set is limited to 1000 units for SRP £39.99.
The film was made available for pre-order during Anime Limited’s July Early Bird pre-order line-up for £24.99, but with the Anime (Un)Limited discount lowered the price to £22.49.
Physical Contents:
- Rigid Box with Amaray packaging and clean artwork
- Info sheet for specification and BBFC description
- 36-page booklet
- Poster
On-Disc Contents:
Distributor: Anime Limited
Released: 3rd October 2022
The collector’s edition release for Memories includes the film on a single Blu-ray disc. The encode & authoring were produced by MediaOCD & Discotek Media. The audio options available include Japanese with English subtitles and the NYAV Post English dub (for Magentic Rose) and Sound Cadence Studio English dub (for Stink Bomb and Cannon Fodder) commissioned by Discotek Media.
The yellow subtitles are unlockable during playback, and the regions are locked to Blu-ray players set to B.
Parts of the film were upscaled and restored using AstroRes tech but there is an option to view the original as it was if you prefer that option.
Blu-ray Specs:
| Languages | English, Japanese |
| Audio | English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 |
| Video | 1080p High Definition Native format (some scenes are upscaled using AstroRes tech) 16:9 aspect ratio |
| Region | B |
| Subtitles | English |
| Locked Subtitles | No |
| Discs | 1 BD-50 |
Blu-ray On-Disc Extra Features:
- Memories Special Preview Video
- Making Memories in English
- About the Restoration
- Interview with Marc Swint, voice of Heinz in “Magentic Rose”
- “Magnetic Rose” English Dub Outtakes
- Original Theatrical Trailer
- English Blu-ray Teaser
- English Blu-ray Trailer
- “Cannon Fodder” Complete Storyboard Animatic
- Japanese Blu-ray Interview Booklet
Unboxing Photos:
Final Notes:
Memories is available to order across multiple retailers in the United Kingdom. The collector’s edition Blu-ray can be acquired through Amazon UK, Anime Limited’s store, MVM’s Anime-on-Line, and United Publications.
(Disclaimer: Amazon links are also included when available. They are affiliated so if you decide to order them, I’ll earn a small percentage if they ship which will help me with any hauls or small bills.)
The Normanic Vault 
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