Mutafukaz[a] (Japanese: ムタフカズ －MUTAFUKAZ－, Hepburn: Mutafukazu, released as MFKZ in some markets)[4] is a 2017 French-Japanese adult animated science fiction film based on the comic series and the short film of the same name.[5] The film was a co-production between French studio Ankama Animations and the Japanese Studio 4°C,[2] directed by Shōjirō Nishimi and Guillaume "Run" Renard.[6] The comic would be published in English as M.F.K.Z. by Behemoth Comics' Happy Tank imprint beginning in June 2021.[7][8] Mutafukaz was released in France on May 23, 2018 and in Japan on October 12, 2018. At the end of December 2022, it was added to Hulu's streaming platform.
| Mutafukaz | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by |
|
| Screenplay by | Guillaume "Run" Renard |
| Based on | Mutafukaz by Guillaume "Run" Renard Mutafukaz: Operation Blackhead by Team Chman |
| Produced by |
|
| Starring |
|
| Edited by | Ivy Buirette Marie-Laure Vanglabeke |
| Music by | The Toxic Avenger Guillaume Houzé |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | Tamasa (France) Parco (Japan) |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 94 minutes[1] |
| Countries | France Japan |
| Languages | French[2] Japanese[2] English[2] |
| Box office | $461,724[3] |
Plot
editA young woman carrying an infant is chased by black-suited men. Some of the men are killed by a dog who sprouts black tentacles. The woman manages to hide the baby in a dumpster before she is killed by one of the men.
22 years later, the infant named Angelino, lives in a run-down apartment in Dark Meat City (DMC) with his friend Vinz and countless "pet" cockroaches. While making a delivery, Angelino is distracted by Luna, a beautiful young woman, and is hit by a truck. This causes Angelino to start having headaches and hallucinate. The MIB, strange men in black suits led by a white-suited man named Bruce, begin pursuing Angelino. Angelino calls his friend Willy, and they hide in the rundown crime neighborhood of Palm Hills. Angelino and Vinz are later found again by the MIB, who engage the local gangs in a gunfight, killing people from both sides. Elsewhere, a Luchador tells his comrades about a vision he had about a potential evil they must combat.
In the restaurant they frequent, Angelino and Vinz run into Luna, who is actually working with the MIB and gets the two captured. Luna's father, Mr. K, is the leader of an alien race called Macho who have infiltrated the Earth including politicians and the police in order to eventually colonize the planet. Angelino is the child of a Macho father and a human woman which results in unpredictable and potentially powerful combinations that Mr. K wants to exploit. Mr. K tries to brainwash Angelino and convince him to kill his friend Vinz, while Luna switches sides after witnessing Angelino's past. They are rescued by the group of Luchadors who have followed Angelino's pet cockroaches that instinctively tracked Angelino down, and are joined by a scientist named Fagor who was the only one out of several kidnapped scientists working with the Macho.
Crocodile (a MIB from earlier) arrives at Willy's house and holds him hostage. Angelino and Vinz decide to return and Angelino rescues Willy. The Luchadores and Fagor launch the rocket, triggering it to snow across the country, freezing and killing all of the hidden Macho, while causing a news helicopter to crash, destroying Willy's house and killing Crocodile. Angelino, being half Macho, begins freezing, but is saved by Luna's kiss and she apologizes to him. Bruce arrives for a climactic fight against Angelino, who saves Luna from being killed and refuses to use his Macho powers. Before Bruce takes the opportunity to kill Angelino, the local gangs gun him down as revenge for previously invading their hood and for shooting their leader in the eye.
Two months later, everything goes back to "normal" with people forgetting about the incident. Vinz finally gets a job at the restaurant they frequent. Angelino writes letters to Luna who disappeared after his fight with Bruce despite not knowing where in DMC she is. Willy, who also disappeared after the fight, creates his first music single. Mr. K is shown to have survived and has set up a base on the moon, where he begins sending UFOs to potentially invade earth.
Voice cast
edit| Character | French | Japanese | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| Angelino | Orelsan[1] | Tsuyoshi Kusanagi | Kenn Michael[9] |
| Vinz | Gringe[1] | Tokio Emoto | Vince Staples[9] |
| Willy | Redouanne Harjane[1] | Shinnosuke Mitsushima | Dino Andrade[4] |
| Mister K | Féodor Atkine[1] | Hidekatsu Shibata | Giancarlo Esposito[4] |
| Luna | Kelly Marot | Sumire Uesaka | Dascha Polanco[4] |
| Bruce Macchabée | Julien Kramer | Hayato Fujii[ja] | Danny Trejo[4] |
| El Diablo | Julien Kramer | Kazushi Sakuraba | Antonio Alvarez |
| Randy Crocodile | Emmanuel Karsen | Songha[ja] | Michael Chiklis[4] |
| El Tigre | Alain Dorval | Yuki Nakai | Jorge Gutierrez[4] |
| Professor Fagor | Gilbert Levy | Minoru Kihara | Bill Lobley[4] |
| Popeye / Shakespeare | Frantz Confiac | Songha | RZA[4] |
Release
editMutafukaz had its world premiere on June 13, 2017 at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival.[2] The film was released in France on May 23, 2018. Parco released the film in Japan on October 12, 2018.[10][11]GKIDS released the English dub of the film in a limited theatrical run in the U.S. and Canada on October 11 and October 16, 2018.[4][12] MFKZ was added to Hulu's streaming platform at the end of December 2022.
Reception
editOn Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a score of 39% based on 18 reviews with an average rating of 4.90/10.[13]
Notes
edit- ^ An eye dialect of "mother fuckers".
References
edit- ^ a b c d e "Mutafukaz-Annecy Film Credits". Archived from the original on 2018-09-10. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- ^ a b c d e "Mutafukaz-Annecy Programme". Archived from the original on 2018-09-10. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- ^ "MFKZ (2018)". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on July 30, 2022. Retrieved November 22, 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "MFKZ in Select U.S. Cinemas Nationwide on October 11 & 16". Archived from the original on 2018-09-10. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- ^ Lang, Jamie (June 11, 2017). "Annecy: See the First English-Subtitled Trailer for Ankama's 'Mutafukaz' (Exclusive)". Variety. Archived from the original on January 5, 2019. Retrieved September 9, 2018.
- ^ Lang, Jamie (June 12, 2017). "Mutafukaz creator-director Guillaume 'Run' Renard talks inspiration, animation and adaptation". Variety. Archived from the original on July 11, 2018. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
- ^ Johnston, Rich (February 22, 2021). "Behemoth Comics Launch New YA Publishing Imprint Happy Tank For May". Bleeding Cool. Archived from the original on February 22, 2021. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
- ^ Dohm-Sanchez, Jeffrey (February 22, 2021). "BEHEMOTH COMICS ANNOUNCES THE LAUNCH OF THEIR HAPPY TANK IMPRINT". ICv2. Archived from the original on February 22, 2021. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
- ^ a b Blais-Billie, Braudie; Strauss, Matthew (September 27, 2018). "Watch a New Trailer for the Vince Staples-Starring Anime Film MFKZ". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on September 20, 2019. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
- ^ "French-Japanese "Mutafukaz" by STUDIO 4°C Gets Japan Release!". Archived from the original on 2018-09-10. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- ^ Goodfellow, Melanie (February 15, 2018). "Celluloid Dreams sells 'Mutafukaz' to UK, Germany (exclusive)". Screen Daily. Archived from the original on June 12, 2018. Retrieved September 9, 2018.
- ^ French, Alan (July 26, 2018). "GKIDS picks up North American Rights to MFKZ". Awards Circuit. Archived from the original on September 8, 2018. Retrieved September 8, 2018.
- ^ "MFKZ (2018)-Rotten Tomatoes". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on March 15, 2024. Retrieved April 20, 2022.