Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi (2003 film)

Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi: The Movie is a 2003 American animated musical comedy-adventure film based on the pop/rock duo Puffy AmiYumi, known as the composers of Teen Titans' theme song and it was directed by Scott O'Brien, and produced by Sam Register, Ramsey Ann Naito, Michael Ouweleen, John Pomeroy, and Charlie Bean. The film stars the voices of Janice Kawaye, Grey DeLisle and Keone Young, with David Spade, Renée Zellweger, Jeffrey Tambor, Susan Egan, Halle Berry, Anne Hathaway and John Rhys-Davies. The film served as the pilot to the Cartoon Network animated television series Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi. The film is produced by Cartoon Network Studios and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. Unlike the film, however, the supporting roles are recast with Keone Young replacing David Spade as Domo, Grey DeLisle and Janice Kawaye replacing Susan Egan and Halle Berry as Jang-Keng and Tekirai, Sandy Fox replacing Renée Zellweger as Harmony and Will Ryan replacing Jeffrey Tambor as Wall.

In theaters, a Robot Jones short entitled Summer Bummer was shown prior to the film. The film was theatrically released on July 11, 2003. The film was met with very positive reviews from critics, and was a box office success, grossing $74.3 million worldwide against an $12 million budget.

Plot
Ami Onuki and Yumi Yoshimura are going from famous Japanese pop/rock duo to animated characters in their first movie ever to hit the big screen, as Puffy AmiYumi move out from Japan to unintentionally discover the weirdness of America and make new friends in the U.S., but when the new girl, Julie, and her father, Will, are up to no good, it's up to Ami and Yumi to try to stop Julie and her father, Will, from taking over the world, and their new home with mind-controlling angry music.

Main Characters

 * Janice Kawaye as Ami Onuki, the main protagonist of the movie.
 * Grey DeLisle as Yumi Yoshimura, the deuteragonist of the movie.
 * Keone Young as Kaz Harada, the tritagonist of the movie.

Recurring Characters

 * David Spade as Domo, Kaz's dog.
 * Renée Zellweger as Harmony, the self-proclaimed "Number One Fan" of the girls.
 * Jeffrey Tambor as Wall, a hulking yet slow-witted man hired by Kaz as the girls' bodyguard.
 * Susan Egan as Jang-Keng, Yumi's pet cat.
 * Halle Berry as Tekirai, Ami's pet cat.

Guest Stars

 * Anne Hathaway as Julie, the main antagonist of the movie.
 * John Rhys-Davies as Will, the father of Julie.

Production
Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi: The Movie was put into development after the film was announced. A pilot episode for the series was originally planned, but then it was being remade as a feature-length movie. Storyboard work on the movie took place between June 3, 1999 and March 18, 2002 and the animation work took place between July 2, 2002 and May 8, 2003.

Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi: The Movie is rated PG for parental guidance.

The film's animation was provided by Renegade Animation, with additional animation done at [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titmouse,_Inc. Titmouse] and Boulder Media.

Soundtrack
Danny Elfman composed the score for the film.

Promotional tie-ins
McDonald's released eight toys in their Happy Meals to promote the film.

Box office/Commercial reception
Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi: The Movie was released in theaters on July 11, 2003. With heavy competition and little promotion, the film grossed $74.3 million worldwide against a budget of $12 million.

Critical reception
The film received mixed to positive reviews from critics. Based on 105 reviews, the film has received a 74% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with its consensus reading, "Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi: The Movie has done so well on the big screen that kids will enjoy it again, and again". On Metacritic, the film achieved a rating of 66 out of 100, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".

Theatrical release
The film was theatrically released in theaters on July 11, 2003. In theaters, a Robot Jones short entitled Summer Bummer was shown prior to the film.

Home media
The film was release on VHS and DVD on November 18, 2003, by Warner Home Video. Despite being filmed in 1.85:1 aspect ratio, the DVD and VHS are in fullscreen only. It contains an 18-minute featurette, a Robot Jones short entitled Summer Bummer, The Making of Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi: The Movie, featuring interviews with most of the principal cast and crew; a 20-minute animatic segment featuring scenes from the film with dialogue by the original artists the film's trailer. On April 30, 2013, a 3-disc "10th Anniversary Edition" was released on Blu-Ray, Blu-Ray 3D and DVD.

Trivia

 * This is the first ever feature film to serve as a pilot to the series.
 * This is the first animated Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi movie to hit theaters.
 * This is the second theatrical film with a wide release in the 2000s, after "The Powerpuff Girls Movie" released a year before.
 * Because The Powerpuff Girls Movie bombed so hard in theaters, and was the worst grossing film in 2002, Cartoon Network quickly needed to make a theatrical feature that's colorful and poppy and way better than Craig McCracken's "The Powerpuff Girls Movie". The first Cartoon Network theatrical film to super seriously not bomb in theaters happens to be "Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi: The Movie".
 * This is the very first and only theatrical Cartoon Network film to rely solely on Flash animation instead of traditional hand-drawn animation, or Computer animation.

Credits

 * Main article: Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi: The Movie/Credits