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A great deal has been documented about the practice of running, a restorative movement with ability for emotional liberation. Within the context of competitive games, though, the strain of rivalry can lead athletes to forget of this fundamental aim. Reimagined from the same-named comic, Kenji Iwaisawa’s mesmerising anime goes past awards and honors to investigate the inner motivation that fuels an athlete’s ambition.

Plot Overview

100 Meters traces Togashi and Komiya, childhood friends whose personal journeys separate when they enter elite competition. Once the quickest elementary student in Japan, Togashi helps the less self-assured Komiya with the essentials. As the duo move through their adolescence and adulthood, Komiya consistently improves up the ranking of top athletes, while Togashi is trapped in a decline; both battle worries and uncertainties. Encompassing more than 15 years, the story tracks their internal hurdles, laying bare the struggles of an competitor’s existence, trapped in a pattern of public scrutiny, achievement demands and endorsement requirements.

Artistic Strengths

Perhaps it’s due to the source material, but the movie’s approach to these complex dilemmas is somewhat facile; frequently, a protagonist’s uncertainties just vanish after a lengthy conversation with a fellow athlete or mentor. But what 100 Meters falls short in plot refinement and tempo, it redeems itself with in breathtaking graphics. Using rotoscoping, in which cartooning is traced over filmed sequences, the movie generates remarkably precise sprinting scenes. The athletic effort of a sprint is on full display, and the pain and the joy of rivalry are imprinted on the protagonists’ forms.

Impactful Sequences

One especially significant race finishes in the downpour, with cascades of charcoal lines that engulf the screen. More than any dialogue, these displays of stylistic brilliance encapsulate the almost spiritual high the film aims to evoke.

The 100-Meter Anime is in UK cinemas from 16 November.