Momotarō: Umi no Shinpei

Momotarō: Umi no Shinpei (桃太郎 海の神兵) is the first Japanese feature-length animated film. It was directed by Mitsuyo Seo, who was ordered to make a propaganda film for the war by the Japanese Naval Ministry. Shochiku Moving Picture Laboratory shot the 74-minute film in 1944 and screened it on April 12, 1945. It is a sequel to Momotarō no Umiwashi, a 37-minute film released in 1943 by the same director.

Plot
Like the prior film, the movie features the "Peach Boy" character of Japanese folklore. The film is about the surprise maneuver on Sulawesi island, depicting parachute troops' actions. The whole movie also depicts the Japanese "liberation of Asia", as proclaimed by the Government at the time.

There are some musical scenes. Of note is The Song of AIUEO (アイウエオの歌), a scene where Japanese soldiers teach local animals how to speak.

Background
The Naval Ministry previously showed Seo Fantasia, a 1940 Disney film. Inspired by this, Seo tried to give dreams to children, as well as to instill the hope for peace, just as he did in the prequel movie, Momotaro's Sea Eagles.

The Song of AIUEO (アイウエオの歌) is famous for being given a homage in the series Kimba the White Lion (ジャングル大帝) by Osamu Tezuka (Tezuka watched the film in April 1945. He later said that he was moved to tears by the movie's hints of dreams and hopes, hidden under the appearance of war propaganda).

For a long time, the film was presumed to have been confiscated and burnt by the American occupation. However, a negative copy of the film was found in Shochiku's depot in 1984. A reproduced movie was later screened and the VHS package is now available in Japan.

Credits

 * Production: Shochiku Moving Picture Laboratory (松竹動画研究所)
 * Auspices: Naval Ministry of Japan
 * Movie organization: Kiichiro Kumaki (熊木喜一郎)
 * Script, Choreography, and Direction: Mitsuyo Seo (瀬尾光世)
 * Shadow play: Kenzo Masaoka (政岡憲三)
 * Musical direction: Yuji Koseki (古関裕而)
 * Lyrics: Hachiro Sato (サトウハチロー)