Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki’s The Wind Rises (Kaze Tachinu) anime film stayed at #1 during its seventh weekend. The film centers on Jir Horikoshi (played by Evangelion director Hideaki Anno), the designer of Japan’s famed Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter plane of World War II. The film earned 338,587,147 yen (US$3,411,942) on 454 screens for a new sum of 8,837,365,379 yen (US$88,674,124).
The Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae o Boku-tachi wa Mada Shiranai. (anohana) film debuted at #3. The film retells the anohana story from the character Menma’s point of view with a new epilogue. Box Office Mojo did not list the film on its chart, but Kogyo Tsushinsha’s Cinema Ranking Tsshin website reported that the film sold 161,225 tickets for 198,177,700 yen (about US$1.989 million) in its opening weekend on 64 screens.
The live-action Sadako 3D 2 film debuted at #6. The film ranked at #3 on Box Office Mojo’s chart and earned 160,524,267 yen (US$1,617,603) on 233 screens.
The live-action Gatchaman film directed by Toya Sato (live-action Grave of the Fireflies, Sexy Voice and Robo, Kaiji, Gokusen) fell from #6 to #8 in its second weekend. Tori Matsuzaka (.hack//The Movie, live-action Ky, Koi o Hajimemasu, Samurai Sentai Shinkenger, Kamen Rider Decade) stars in the film as Ken, the head of the eponymous team. G Ayano (second-in-command J), Ayame Griki (explosive yoyo-wielding Jun), Tatsuomi Hamada (youngest member Jinpei), and Ryhei Suzuki (main pilot Ry) circular out the cast. The film earned 80,360,577 yen (US$809,793) on 307 screens for a new sum of 314,724,028 yen (US$3,171,474).
The Pokmon the Movie: ExtremeSpeed Genesect film fell from #11 to #13 on Box Office Mojo’s chart in its eighth weekend. Kunihiko Yuyama’s feature film is billed as the final chapter of Pocket Monsters: Best Wishes! (Pokemon: Black and White!). It features a confrontation between the legendary Pokmon ExtremeSpeed Red Genesect and Mewtwo, who returns in this installment in an alternate form. The film earned 56,394,943 yen (US$568,291) upon 345 screens for a new total of 3,003,929,420 yen (US$30,270,596).
The Kamen Rider Wizard in Magic Land and Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger: Gaburincho of Music films fell #12 to #14 upon Box Office Mojo’s chart in its fifth weekend. Kamen Rider Wizard, the latest live-action tokusatsu (special-effects) television series in the long-running Kamen Rider franchise, premiered in Japan last year. The film follows the protagonist Haruto, Koyomi, and a boy named Shiina after they are transported to “Land of Magic” by a rainbow-colored whirlwind. There, they meet Kamen Rider Sorcerer (Takanori Jinnai). The films earned 45,743,049 yen (US$460,952) upon 303 screens for a new total of 1,177,539,524 yen (US$11,815,431).