{Tatsumi screens at the Seattle International Film Festival, 5/27 and 5/29, 9pm at the SIFF Cinema Uptown}

I don't consider myself especially a fan of manga. As such this animated film described as biographical material about a famous Japanese comic artist seemed like a stretch for me. But I'm glad I decided to give it a try, as Tatsumiis a fascinating immersion into a world I didn't really know existed. And isn't that at least some of the time why we go to the movies?

Tatsumi is a cinematic adaptation of Tatsumi Hoshihiro's autobiographical book "A Drifting Life." He's a leading figure (and I gathered the originator) of a sub-category of Japanese manga called Gekiga. Which are comics/graphic-novels that are intended for adults. Not because they're full of fornicating octopuses, but because they deal with more serious, often darker subject matter and are drawn in a realistic manner. I'd imagine it's similar to the comic book Vs. "graphic novel" distinction made here. 

I've included a trailer for the film that shows the graphical motion-comic feel of the picture – usually I'm not big on trailers, but in this case the picture equaling a thousand words cliche is apt.

The film includes stories that Tatsumi is famous for, as well as a stand-in character that narrates his growth as an artist, and the creation of the Gekiga concept. While I found the biography part interesting it was the five Tatsumi stories adapted to the screen that kept me riveted. They're not light subject matter, and parts could be offensive to some. But they're all incredibly emotionally evocative. In particular a tale of survivor guilt after Hiroshima early in the film around a photograph that didn't necessarily depict the meaning people ascribed to it was incredibly powerful. The look of the work onscreen varies with the themes and timeframe being depicted, but it's consistently sharp and eye catching.

It's impossible to sense anything but deep love by the director Eric Khoo for Tatsumi's work. Even though it's the first time I'd been exposed to the material that affection is plainly clear. The film isn't necessarily going to turn me into a Gekiga reader by itself – but it absolutely opened my mind to the concept and piqued my curiosity in a serious way. It was certainly one of the more interesting and unexpected screenings I attended this year in Palm Springs. Now that it's in Seattle I hope folks will check it out and enjoy the same experience. Manga fans or not.