“The First Slam Dunk” has recently made 1.29 billion yen (approx. USD 9.5 million) at the box office since its release on 3 December.
The movie, which is based on the hit Takehiko Inoue basketball-themed sports manga and later anime, was released in 378 theatres across Japan, and went straight to the top of the box office ranking.
The movie is personally directed by Inoue, who also wrote the script. In a recent post, the mangaka stated that he didn’t want to turn his beloved manga into a movie version at first, but that he was touched by the producer’s continuous efforts to persuade him over the past ten years.
The original manga, released from 1990 to 1996, tells the story of Sakuragi Hanamichi, a delinquent who decides to try his hands on basketball after falling for a girl named Haruko, whose brother is the captain of their school’s basketball team.
On the other hand, “One Piece Film Red”, which was in fourth place last week, has now fallen down to seventh – a great feat seeing that it is now in its 18th weekend.
(Photo Source: Epoch Times)