is a 2022 Japanese animated adventure film produced by Madhouse and directed by Atsuko Ishizuka. It premiered in Japan on February 18, 2022.
Plot When they were children, "Toto" Mitarai and Roma Kamogawa formed their own club, the Don Glees. As Toto reaches 15, he moves to Tokyo to attend high school. He returns a year later to find Roma longing for his crush, "Tivoli" Urayasu, who has moved to Ireland. Toto goads Roma to contact Tivoli, even calling Tivoli long distance to get Roma to talk to her.
Toto also discovers that Roma has added a new member to the club, "Drop" Sakuma. Drop talks Roma into spending all his money to buy a drone. They want to use the drone to film a large professional fireworks display, while setting their own fireworks in a secluded field. On the night of the display, they cannot get their fireworks to light and Roma loses the drone. Hours later, a wildfire breaks out in the mountains. The following day, their schoolmates spread rumors that the Don Glees set the fire, based on the police finding their dud fireworks. The three friends locate their drone and decide to retrieve it to clear their names.
The drone lands in an isolated area in the mountains so they decide to hike overnight to reach it. To go, they lie about their plans and dodge police officers and bears. They settle down near a small waterfall as night falls. Drop tells the others how everyone should have a "treasure" they want more than anything else. He talks about his time living in Iceland, where he once found a working telephone booth next to a "golden" waterfall. He also mentions a stay at the hospital and asks the others if they would have any regrets if the world ended tomorrow. Meanwhile, Toto spends all his time panicking about his cram school studies and admonishing his friends' childish behavior. He even brings a textbook to the hike as he has an exam the next day. He eventually admits that he's not sure he wants to become a doctor as his father wishes. He also tells Drop about the origin of the club name. The name comes from "Don't glee" in English, referring to how he and Roma never smiled or played with other children. Toto eventually adds his textbook to their campfire, no longer caring as much. Roma figures out that Tivoli is his "treasure".
The next day, they find the drone and return, only to discover that everyone has forgotten about the fire. Days later, Drop dies. A devastated Roma destroys the Don Glees clubhouse in grief. However, among the wreckage, they find two bottles of Coca-Cola with a map of Iceland drawn on it with an "x" which they think is Drop's telephone booth. They decide to fly to Iceland to find the booth and after several days of hiking, they find Drop's "golden waterfall." Nearby, they find the phone booth with a working phone. Toto sees the number and realizes that he called the number by mistake when he tried to call Tivoli. They deduce that Drop picked up the phone when they called the wrong number which inspired him to seek Toto and Roma out. They also find a note left by Drop describing his treasure as friends who will help him on his last adventure.
Cast +CharacterJapaneseEnglishRōma KamogawaNatsuki HanaeAdam McArthurHokuto "Toto" MitaraiYuki KajiNick WolfhardShizuku "Drop" SakumaAyumu MuraseJonathan LeonChibori "Tivoli" UrayasuKana HanazawaVictoria GraceMako KamogawaRino SashiharaStephanie ShehTarō KamogawaAtsushi TamuraAlan Lee
Production In July 2021, it was revealed that the film would be produced by Madhouse, and directed and written by Atsuko Ishizuka, with Takahiro Yoshimatsu designing the characters and Kadokawa distributing the film. Yoshiaki Fujisawa will compose the music. The film's main theme song is "Rock the World" performed by Alexandros. The film was released in Japanese theaters on February 18, 2022. In North America, GKIDS acquired the rights to the film and it was released on September 14, 2022. Muse Communication licensed the film in South and Southeast Asia
Media Manga adaptation A manga adaptation, written and illustrated by Shinki, began serialization in Media Factory's Monthly Comic Gene magazine on October 15, 2021. The adaptation completed its serialization on February 15, 2022.
Reception
Accolades Award Date of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref. Annecy International Animation Film Festival June 18, 2022 Best Animated Film Goodbye, Don Glees! 15th Asia Pacific Screen AwardsNovember 11, 2022 Best Animated Feature Film Goodbye, Don Glees! 77th Mainichi Film AwardsDecember 21, 2022 Best Animation Film / Ōfuji Noburō Award Goodbye, Don Glees!
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