There are twofeature films based on themanga andanime seriesYu Yu Hakusho byYoshihiro Togashi. The films were produced byStudio Pierrot and released in Japan theatrically, the firstYu Yu Hakusho: The Movie in 1993 and the secondYu Yu Hakusho the Movie: Poltergeist Report in 1994. BeforeFunimation Entertainment acquired the rights to the anime in 2001, the films were dubbed and released in North America by two other companies.[1] The first byAnime Works and the second byUS Manga Corps, both released in 1998. However, the first film and theOVAs (Eizou Hakusho I and II) have since been acquired by Funimation and they produced a new English dub of the film using their original cast from the anime.[2] These were released together asYu Yu Hakusho: The Movie & Eizou Hakusho on December 13, 2011.[3]
| Yu Yu Hakusho: The Movie | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Japanese logo for the television program and movie. | |||||
| Japanese name | |||||
| Kanji | 幽☆遊☆白書 | ||||
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| Directed by | Noriyuki Abe | ||||
| Written by | Yukiyoshi Ohashi | ||||
| Produced by | Ken Hagino | ||||
| Starring | Nozomu Sasaki Megumi Ogata Nobuyuki Hiyama Sanae Miyuki Shigeru Chiba | ||||
| Music by | Yusuke Honma | ||||
Production company | |||||
| Distributed by | Toei | ||||
Release date |
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Running time | 30 minutes | ||||
| Country | Japan | ||||
| Language | Japanese | ||||
Yu Yu Hakusho: The Movie, also known asThe Golden Seal, is a 30-minute film that was released theatrically in Japan on July 10, 1993 at the seasonal Toei Anime Fair.[4][5] The movie was directed byNoriyuki Abe. The movie wasEnglish dubbed byAnime Works andAnimaze and released onVHS on June 9, 1998 and on a singleDVD withNinku: The Movie on January 30, 2001.[6][7]Funimation Entertainment later released the film to DVD, along with theEizou Hakusho OVAs, on December 13, 2011 asYu Yu Hakusho: The Movie & Eizou Hakusho, featuring a new English dub with their original voice cast from the anime.[2]
Like the television series, it features the songs "Smile Bomb" and "Sayonara Bye Bye" byMatsuko Mawatari (Sarah White andStephanie Nadolny in the FUNimation English version) for its opening and closing credits respectively.
While vacationing,Koenma is kidnapped by a pair of demons known as Koashura and Garuga, who demand the possession of Lord Enma's coveted "Golden Seal".Botan findsYusuke Urameshi andKazuma Kuwabara on their summer vacation as well, and asks for their assistance in Koenma's rescue.
| Character | Actor[8] | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | English | ||
| Media Blasters, 1998 | Funimation, 2011 | ||
| Yusuke Urameshi | Nozomu Sasaki | Jonathan Fahn (asJonathan Charles) | Justin Cook |
| Kazuma Kuwabara | Shigeru Chiba | Lex Lang | Christopher Sabat |
| Kurama | Megumi Ogata | David Hayter (asSean Barker) | John Burgmeier |
| Hiei | Nobuyuki Hiyama | Kirk Thornton (asSparky Thornton) | Chuck Huber |
| Botan | Sanae Miyuki | Lia Sargent | Cynthia Cranz |
| Koenma | Mayumi Tanaka | Brianne Siddall (asJetta E. Bumpy) | Sean Teague |
| Garuga/Yasha | Takeshi Aono | Kevin Seymour (asDougary Grant) | Christopher Ayres |
| Koashura | Rica Matsumoto | Julie Maddalena (asJulie Kliewer) | Greg Ayres |
| George Saotome | Tomomichi Nishimura | Robert Martin Klein (asBob Marx) | Kent Williams |
| Winged Demon | Mitsuaki Madono | Doug Stone | J. Michael Tatum |
| Tree Demon | Masami Suzuki | Milton James (asRichard Barnes) | Jeff Johnson |
| Kotennyo | Yuri Shiratori | Wendee Lee | Kate Bristol |
According to Martin Ouelette ofProtoculture Addicts, the movie did little to satisfy fans of theYuYu Hakusho series during its original release due to its short running time.[9] Reviewing the Funimation release, Carl Kimlinger ofAnime News Network gave the subtitled version a "B+", the English dub a straight "B", and called the story disposable stating the film is more focused on "having fun with its theatrical budget".[10]
| Yu Yu Hakusho the Movie: Poltergeist Report | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Cover for the film | |||||
| Japanese name | |||||
| Kanji | 幽☆遊☆白書 冥界死闘篇 炎の絆 | ||||
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| Directed by | Masakatsu Iijima | ||||
| Written by | Hiroshi Hashimoto Sukehiro Tomita Yukiyoshi Ohashi | ||||
| Produced by | Haruo Sai Ken Hagino Naoji Hōnokidani | ||||
| Starring | Nozomu Sasaki Megumi Ogata Nobuyuki Hiyama Sanae Miyuki Shigeru Chiba | ||||
| Music by | Yusuke Honma | ||||
Production companies | |||||
| Distributed by | Toho | ||||
Release date |
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Running time | 95 minutes | ||||
| Country | Japan | ||||
| Language | Japanese | ||||
| Box office | ¥3.3 million[11] | ||||
Yu Yu Hakusho the Movie: Poltergeist Report, known in Japan asYū Yū Hakusho: Meikai Shitō Hen - Honō no Kizuna (幽★遊★白書: 冥界死闘篇・炎の絆, lit. Yū Yū Hakusho: Chapter of Underworld's Carnage - Bonds of Fire), is the second of the films based on the series. The 95 minutes long film was released in theaters in Japan on April 9, 1994.[5][12] The film was later dubbed into English byCentral Park Media and Skypilot Entertainment and was released on VHS on March 3, 1998, and DVD on October 8, 2002.[13][14] A DVD reprint was later issued by Central Park Media on January 31, 2006.[15] The film was later released on Blu-ray as a part of theYu Yu Hakusho: 25th Anniversary Box collection on July 27, 2018.[16][17]
The film features the ending theme "Sayonara wa Iwanai" composed by JILL and sung byPersonz.
The story begins in the Spirit World, where theRiver Styx is overflowing, due to a tsunami. As this is no ordinary storm, Koenma gives a mysterious item to Botan, and tells her to give it toYusuke Urameshi, but Botan gets hurt badly and hides it instead. The storm was apparently caused by the forces of the Netherworld, which was banished into cold space ages ago by Lord Enma. To restore balance in the now flooded Spirit World and with Hinegashi's guidance, Yusuke and the others must track down five spots on Earth that contain a large amount of spiritual energy. However, their mission is thwarted when the ruler of the Netherworld, Yakumo and his three demon gods decide to use the same energy to restore their place on Earth. The race begins to save the Spirit World, and now the Human World as well.
| Character | Actor[18] | |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | English | |
| Yusuke Urameshi | Nozomu Sasaki | Rik Nagel |
| Kazuma Kuwabara | Shigeru Chiba | (dub: Kazuma Kuwahara) Cliff Lazenby |
| Botan | Sanae Miyuki | Kathleen McInerney |
| Koenma | Mayumi Tanaka | Eric Stuart |
| Kurama | Megumi Ogata | Chris Orbach (asHideo Seaver) |
| Hiei | Nobuyuki Hiyama | James Stanley |
| Keiko Yukimura | Yuri Amano | Shannon Conley |
| Genkai | Hisako Kyoda | Caryl Marder |
| Yakumo | Hirotaka Suzuoki | Bruce Winant |
| Hinageshi | Chisa Yokoyama | Elisa Wain |
| Raiko | Nobuaki Fukuda | Peter Patrikios |
| Kuronue | Hochu Otsuka | Eric Stuart |
| Majari | Yuji Mitsuya | Jack Taylor |
| Yukina | Yuri Shiratori | Veronica Taylor |
| George Saotome | Tomomichi Nishimura | |
| Yoko Kurama | Shigeru Nakahara | Chris Orbach |
Reviewing the 2002 DVD release, Allen Divers ofAnime News Network gave the subtitled version a "B" and the dubbed version a "C". He noted that the film has all the action, drama and comedy that makes the TV series great, but with higher-quality animation and artwork due to a theatrical budget. Divers stated that the dub was well-done and close to the original Japanese, but said it was disappointing that a different English voice cast from the TV series was used.[19] The VHS version was the 31st-best selling video during its release week in North America.[20] It fell to number 37 the following week and rose to number 34 the third week.[21][22]
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