No, Kick-Heart is not the romantic comedy parody of the postmodern superhero flick, Kick-Ass – it’s many things, it’s not that. Kick-Heart is the first ever short animated Japanese film (or anime, if you’re an otaku [or nerd who likes Japanese stuff, if you’re one of them]) to be funded through Kickstarter. Kick-Heart is “a love story between two people that each have a secret to hide. One a pro-wrestler, the other a Nun. Losing never felt so good.” according to the film’s Kickstarter page. And now, you can watch it if you live in the U. S. A. (or Canada).
Kick-Heart is available to watch through Vimeo on Demand – one dollar to rent, two dollars to buy. The film is objectively gorgeous, which isn’t surprising considering it comes from the prolific anime studio, Production I.G (Ghost in the Shell, Blood the Last Vampire, Attack on Titan, Batman: Gotham Knight) and director Masaaki Yuasa (The Tatami Galaxy, the episode “Food Chain” from Adventure Time).
The film clearly takes influence from Mexican lucha libre (wrestling, often involving leaps through the air and masks), which is quite popular in Japan, don’t you know?
Check out this, baffling, bizarre, and beautiful creation on Vimeo right now.
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