Hyakunen-go no aruhi

In 1942, shortly after the start of a new World War, the filmmaker-as-soldier is killed by a bomb. In the year 2032, one of his descendants brings his spirit back to Earth. Tokyo, as nameless “Central City”, has become a megacity. The time traveller is deeply impressed by the technological progress that is proudly on display, so he agrees to take part in a trip to Mars. But on the trip, the instruments suddenly go haywire. Because the spirit of a deceased person is on board, the missiles choose their own target ... Shigeji Ogino (1899 – 1991) was Japan’s leading amateur filmmaker. He made more than 400 films between 1929 and 1976. In Hyakunen-go no aruhi, a montage of animation and live-action footage, he even appears in one short scene, wielding his narrow-gauge Pathé camera. The modern viewer will be stunned by the way he predicted the precise timing of the outbreak of World War II in the Pacific. Among the other developments foretold in the film are a magnetic levitation train, full robotic automation of industrial manufacturing and atomic space rockets.