Cosmolina 2

Cosmolina 2 is a 2003 Japanese animated superhero black comedy film written and directed by Mamoru Hosoda, animated by Studio Ghibli for Tokuma Shoten, Nippon Television Network, Hakuhodo, Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Mitsubishi and Toho and distributed by the latter company. The film is the second installment in the Cosmolina film series and a sequel to Cosmolina (2000). Set one year after the events of Cosmolina, the film finds Emica Kugano struggling to manage both her personal life and her duties as Cosmolina, which affects her civilian life dramatically. Meanwhile, in hiding, Suki, Anthony, Guillaume, and Kimota try to adjust to a new normal life, with Henry nowhere to be found. Meanwhile, Sunshine must navigate her place in The Mighty Seven as Maximan sets his sights on taking complete control. His power is threatened with the addition of Electricia, a social media-savvy new Supe, who has an agenda of her own. On top of that, the Supervillain threat takes center stage and makes waves as Klein seeks to capitalize on the nation’s paranoia. The film stars Ashley Johnson, Tara Strong, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Gary Oldman, Samuel L. Jackson, Vincent Cassel, Glenn Close, Gina Gershon, Brendan Fraser, Jennifer Connolly, Cuba Gooding Jr., Sam Rockwell, Morgan Freeman, Embeth Davidtz, Anthony Hopkins, Sigourney Weaver, Christopher Lee, Judi Dench, Vic Mignogna, and Chloë Sevigny. The film received high praise for the animation, humor, themes, screenplay, storyline, action sequences and performances, especially Johnson, Oldman, Fraser and Sevigny.

Cast
Ashley Johnson as Emica Kugano / Cosmolina, a superhero and high school student with multiple superpowers.

Tara Strong as Samantha Vareny / Sunshine, a devout Christian, light-emitting superhero and member of the Mighty Seven. One of the few superpowered individuals sincere in helping the public, she questions her loyalty to the Mighty Seven after learning of their true character.

Sarah Michelle Gellar as Suki Morutaki, Emica's best friend.

Edward Norton as Kenji Toru, Emica's uncle who takes her in after the death of her parents. He cares deeply for his niece, but does not believe Emica has the confidence to stand up for herself after her aunt abandoned the pair.

Gary Oldman as Henry Atkinson, The leader of the Meerkats and former SAS operator who distrusts all individuals with superpowers. He has a particular hatred towards Captain Supreme, who he believes is responsible for the disappearance of his wife.

Samuel L. Jackson as Anthony Williams, a member of the Meerkats responsible for organizing and planning their operations. Formerly a medic in the United States Marine Corps, he is motivated by his attorney father working himself to death while attempting to bring Klein down.

Vincent Cassel as Guillaume, a member of the Meerkats and international arms trafficker skilled in munitions, ordnance, infiltration, and communications. After being coerced into joining to protect his criminal friends, he seeks redemption for his past crimes while battling Klein.

Glenn Close as Jenny Harrison, the original team leader of the Meerkats.

Gina Gershon as Mandy Atkinson, Henry's wife

Brendan Fraser as Maximan, the extremely powerful leader of the Mighty Seven. Beneath his public image as a noble hero, he is narcissistic, sadistic, and cares little about the well-being of those he professes to protect.

Jennifer Connolly as Chloe Smith / Queen Claire, a veteran member of the Mighty Seven with enhanced physical strength and durability. Although she once wanted to protect innocent lives, she has become disillusioned and suffers from burnout.

Cuba Gooding Jr. as Neil Mattson / Torpedo, a speedster member of the Mighty Seven. He is determined to maintain his status as the fastest speedster in the world, resulting in him becoming addicted to Omnium.

Sam Rockwell as Jasper Brokowski / H2O, a member of the Mighty Seven who possesses the ability to communicate with aquatic life and breathe underwater. He is looked down upon by the other members of the Mighty Seven due to his status as the group's token aquatic hero.

Morgan Freeman as Mark Jenkins, the corrupt CEO of Klein International.

Embeth Davidtz as Elizabeth Newton, a congresswoman who publicly opposes Klein.

Anthony Hopkins as William Henderson, the CSO of Klein International and Maximan's creator.

Sigourney Weaver as Tammy Vareny, Sunshine's emotionally abusive mother. She initially seems supportive of her daughter’s dreams of joining the Mighty Seven, but is only supportive for her own financial gain. Samantha cuts her off when she finds out her mother purposefully had her injected with Omnium, which is the real reason why her father left. Tammy tries to weasel her way back into her life and puts herself in danger by getting involved in Sunshine’s business.

Christopher Lee as Phillip Atkinson, Henry's father

Judi Dench as Marion Atkinson, Henry's mother

Vic Mignogna as Daisuke Tezuka, Kimota's brother who possesses telekinetic abilities.

Crispin Freeman as Firestarter, a pyrokinetic superhero and retired member of the Mighty Seven.

Chloë Sevigny as Bridget Visinger / Miss Sovereign / Electricia, the first successful Omnium subject and member of The Mighty Seven with several abilities, including the ability to discharge burning energy from her hands. A former Nazi, she holds bigoted views towards minorities and individuals without superpowers.

Release
The film was released on March 7, 2003.

Music
Although the soundtrack contains a portion of Marco Beltrami's score, a more complete album of the film music was released as Cosmolina 2: Original Motion Picture Score. 10 and 11 are listed as "Bonus Tracks" as they were not used in the film. Score performed by The Hollywood Studio Symphony; conducted by Pete Anthony.

Transcript
Cosmolina 2/Transcript

Opening logos




Critical reception
The film has an approval rating of 93% on Rotten Tomatoes.