Alakazam the Great (西遊記 Saiyu-ki, lit. Journey to the West) is a 1960 Japanese musical anime film, based on the Chinese novel Journey to the West, and was one of the earliest anime films to be released in the United States.
Dubbing History[]
The film was released in the United States by American International Pictures on July 26, 1961. For the American release, a few scenes were heavily edited and rearranged and bandleader Les Baxter was hired to compose a new soundtrack. Teen idol Frankie Avalon supplied the singing voice of Alakazam (the speaking voice was done by an uncredited Peter Fernandez), and Sterling Holloway provided English-language narration. Other famous voices included Jonathan Winters, Arnold Stang, & Dodie Stevens.
Despite a large marketing budget and heavy promotion, the film was unsuccessful in America. The Los Angeles Times called it "warm, amusing and exciting... the art work is really excellent." It was included as one of the choices in The Fifty Worst Films of All Time, and is the only animated film featured in the book.
Cast[]
| Image | Character | Seiyū | Dub Actor |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Alakazam (Son Goku) |
Kiyoshi Komiyama | Peter Fernandez |
| Frankie Avalon (singing) | |||
|
DeeDee the Monkey (Rin-Rin) |
Noriko Shindō | Corinne Orr |
| Dodie Stevens (singing) | |||
|
Sir Quigley Broken Bottom (Chō Hakkai) |
Hideo Kinoshita | Jonathan Winters |
|
Max Lulipopo (Sa Gojō) |
Setsuo Shinoda | Arnold Stang |
|
Prince Amat (Hoshi Sanzō) |
Nobuaki Sekine | Larry Robinson |
|
King Amo (Shakyamuni) |
Kunihisa Takeda | Jack Curtis |
|
Queen Amas (Kanōn) |
Katsuko Ozaki | Joyce Gordon |
|
Filo Fester (Shōryū) |
Michiko Shirasaka | Billie Lou Watt |
|
King Gruesome (Gyū-Maō) |
Kinshiro Iwao | Jack Curtis |
|
Queen Gruesome (Ratsunyō) |
Tamae Kato | Joyce Gordon |
|
Herman McSnarles (Chō Ginkaku) |
Kiyoshi Kawakubo | Bernard Grant |
|
Vermin McSnarles (Chō Kinkaku) |
Shuichi Kazamatsuri | George Gonneau |
| Narrator | N/A | Sterling Holloway |
Additional / Unidentified Voices
- George Gonneau
- Bernard Grant
- Jackie Joseph
- Gilbert Mack
- Ray Owens
Notes[]
- Frankie Avalon and Dodie Stevens were credited as having voiced Alakazam and DeeDee, respectively, altogether, likely due to celebrity status and/or Peter Fernandez and Corinne Orr not being Screen Actors Guild performers. Most of the characters' voices are left uncredited aside from the ones voiced by celebrities and/or Guild members.
- As of March 2019, The DVD release to this film appears to be out of print.
Video Releases[]
| Distributor | Year | Format | Region | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HBO Home Video | 1986 | 
|
NTSC | United States | 
|
| Orion Pictures | 1995 | ||||
| |||||
| Movies Unlimited | 2015 | 
|
1 NTSC | ||
External Links[]
- Alakazam the Great (anime) at the Anime News Network
- Alakazam the Great at the Internet Movie Database