Much has been recorded about the act of running, a healing activity with potential for therapeutic unburdening. Within the context of elite athletics, however, the strain of competition can lead athletes to forget of this primary objective. Adapted from the eponymous manga, Kenji Iwaisawa’s spellbinding anime transcends trophies and medals to examine the existential drive that spurs an athlete’s ambition.
The 100-Meter Film follows Togashi and Komiya, childhood friends whose career trajectories split when they go pro. Previously the speediest young pupil in Japan, Togashi assists the less self-assured Komiya with the basics. As the twosome enter their adolescence and adulthood, Komiya progressively advances up the ranking of top athletes, while Togashi is trapped in a decline; both confront anxieties and insecurities. Encompassing more than 15 years, the tale follows their mental obstacles, revealing the difficulties of an athlete’s life, caught in a pattern of media attention, achievement demands and commercial obligations.
Perhaps it’s because of the base story, but the movie’s approach to these complicated problems is a bit simplistic; time and time again, a character’s inner doubts simply disappear after a extended discussion with a fellow athlete or mentor. But what the anime is deficient in story nuance and tempo, it compensates for in breathtaking graphics. Using rotoscoping, in which drawn art is drawn atop filmed sequences, the film produces exquisitely intricate running sequences. The physical exertion of a race is clearly shown, and the pain and the joy of contests are engraved on the protagonists’ forms.
One particularly momentous race finishes in the storm, with torrents of grey strokes that overwhelm the scene. Beyond spoken words, these displays of stylistic brilliance encapsulate the almost spiritual high the movie aims to inspire.
100 Meters is released in Britain from the 16th of November.
A professional gamer and strategy analyst with over a decade of experience in competitive esports.
