Produced by Toei Animation and Dandelion Animation Studio, the “First Slam Dunk”, based on the manga series by Takehiko Inoue who also functions as the director here, was another crowning success in the box office not only of Japan, but also of the neighboring Asian countries. As such, the movie became the fifth highest-grossing anime of all time in Japan, the second in S. Korea (and the second highest grossing film overall this year so far) while it also broke a number of records in the Chinese box office. Lastly, it was awarded the Japan Academy Prize for Animation of the Year at the 46th Japan Academy Film Prize in 2023.
The First Slam Dunk is screening at Japan Cuts
Despite its title, the movie actually adapts the last chapter of the manga, which has the underdogs of Shohoku high school basketball team facing the reigning champions Sanno, which feature a number of the best players in the country. The focus, however, is split in two, as, apart from the game, the story also deals with the past of the protagonists and how they eventually became members of the team, with Ryota Miyagi's family story taking the lion's share. In that regard, the movie dwells deep into the way his older brother, a basketball star, and particularly his death impacted both Ryota's life decisions, and his mother's temperament, who suffered a second death in her family. The rest of the players' background also gets some screen time, adding an element of teenage/school drama to the aforementioned family one.
This juxtaposition of drama and sports works quite well for the movie, although there are times that one will feel that the flashbacks could have been toned down a bit, as the game is quite impactful on itself. This choice probably aimed at people who do not enjoy the particular game as much, or have no particular knowledge of the background of the characters, and in that regard, it works nicely, although again, a bit less of it would not be that bad. The comment about how trauma affects people and how parents' actions and unpredictable moments can shape one's life , however, is communicated quite eloquently from Ryota's background.
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What is the most impressive aspect, though, is the game itself. Japanese sports anime tend to exaggerate almost every moment in the games they present, but this is definitely not the case here, although the drama is not missing. On the contrary, the realism is of the highest degree we have ever seen not only in anime, but in any kind of sports movie actually. The creators of the movie asked the help of professional basketball players to review how the game was depicted, and the result is exceptional, as they seem to have captured an intense amount of detail regarding how the sport is played. From the effort of the defender not to allow the attacker to receive the ball easily, to the on-ball defense, the double and triple teams, the zone-press, the passing game, the fakes, the rebounding (both offensive and defensive) and the battles in the paint, all are here presented in a combination of artistry and realism that ends up being quite impressive.
Regarding the drama mentioned, the presence of Hanamichi and his willingness to sacrifice his body in order to succeed in all the little details that define who emerges victorious, takes care of a large part of the aspect. The second main source of drama comes from the score itself, since Shohoku find themselves trailing significantly but manage to turn the game around. In that regard, one should also mention the impact of “Dear Boys”, another basketball anime which ended in disappointment for the protagonists, a very similar group. As such, the finale of “The First Slam Dunk” is also not set in stone, thus upping the agony regarding the outcome, which is masterfully placed towards the very end, in a series of last minute plays.
Furthermore, and to get back to the realism of the movie, attention has been paid also to the way the coaches and the assistant coach of Shohoku react, as much as the reactions of the crowd, with Sanno's fans winning the ‘battle of the stands' from the beginning. The combination of 3DCG for the basketball scenes, with the addition of some 2D ones where the animators used motion capture for reference to portray basketball movements with as much realism as possible, works quite nicely for the game, with the job done by Toei Animation and Dandelion Animation Studio being outstanding. Furthermore, that the non-game scenes are all hand-drawn also works nicely here, as an impressive combination of the two. Yasuyuki Ebara's character design (he is also the animation director) is occasionally a bit faulty in the presentation of the anatomy of the players, but as time passes, and the movements in the court become more intense, this aspect is actually toned down and both the design and the movement emerge as top notch.
“The First Slam Dunk” is a very entertaining movie that will appeal particularly to fans of sports anime and of the particular series, while there are elements that will also touch a different audience, in an overall excellent title.
