2500 years ago, in India, Siddhartha was born as a prince of the Shakya clan, but he gives up his position as a prince to see the world. He meets a strange boy named Assaji, who can predict the future, a monk with only one eye and Depa. Siddhartha continues traveling. Siddhartha is overwhelmed by the sufferings he witnesses around him. Meanwhile, Prince Ruri of Kosara begins his attack on the Shakya clan. Second Buddha movie from Tezuka Productions.
Direction
Komura frames suffering as breathtaking tableaux.
Cinematography
Osamu Tezuka's vision realized in painterly landscapes.
Score
Haunting score that never tells you how to feel.
Director
Toshiaki Komura
Sayuri Yoshinaga
Lady Maya (voice)
Kenichi Matsuyama
Tatta (voice)
Yoko Maki
Prince Ruri (voice)
Hidetaka Yoshioka
Siddhartha Gotama / Buddha (voice)
Shin'ya Ohwada
King Bimbisara (voice)
Hiromasa Taguchi
King Pasenadi (voice)
Nana Mizuki
Migaila (voice)
Miyuki Sawashiro
Assaji (voice)
Keiji Fujiwara
Devadatta (voice)
Ryuuzaburou Ootomo
Yatala (voice)
Sumi Shimamoto
Prince Ruri's Mother (voice)
Kanako Toujou
Lady Pajapati (voice)
Yumi Kakazu
Princess Yashodara (voice)
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Tezuka's Buddha manga (1972-1983) predates mainstream Western Buddhist pop-culture by decades, influencing everything from The Matrix to Avatar: The Last Airbender.
The film compresses Tezuka's entire 8-volume arc, meaning characters like Tatta get fused arcs that manga readers would recognize from separate timelines.
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