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Much has been written about the act of running, a healing activity with ability for therapeutic unburdening. In the sphere of elite athletics, however, the stress of competition can cause individuals to overlook of this primary objective. Adapted from the same-named comic, Kenji Iwaisawa’s enthralling anime goes past prizes and accolades to examine the existential drive that drives an athlete’s ambition.

Story Synopsis

100 Meters traces Togashi and Komiya, childhood friends whose career trajectories separate when they go pro. Previously the speediest young pupil in Japan, Togashi helps the less confident Komiya with the fundamentals. As the twosome move through their teens and their 20s, Komiya consistently improves up the ranking of top athletes, while Togashi is stuck in a slump; both struggle with worries and uncertainties. Covering more than 15 years, the story tracks their psychological barriers, laying bare the difficulties of an athlete’s life, locked in a cycle of media attention, result pressures and commercial obligations.

Visual Highlights

Perhaps it’s because of the original work, but the film’s response to these complex dilemmas is rather superficial; repeatedly, a protagonist’s uncertainties simply disappear after a extended discussion with a colleague or elder. But what the film lacks in plot refinement and pacing, it compensates for in dazzling visuals. Utilizing rotoscoping, in which animation is superimposed on live-action footage, the feature creates remarkably precise running sequences. The athletic effort of a race is visibly evident, and the suffering and elation of competition are engraved on the characters’ bodies.

Impactful Sequences

One especially significant race concludes in the downpour, with torrents of monochrome brushwork that immerse the scene. More than any dialogue, these flourishes of artistic excellence embody the almost spiritual high the animation aims to evoke.

The Sprint Film is showing in the United Kingdom from November 16.