Nostalgia Kinky

Cult Epics continues its extraordinary Nobuhiko Obayashi 4K/Blu-ray collection with the iconic director’s 1983 sci-fi romantic fantasy, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (1983). Featuring hours of archival and new bonus material, along with a sparkling new 4K restoration, this Cult Epics collection is as lovely as the film, continuing its finely curated look at Obayashi’s work.

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time stars the charming teenage pop-star Tomoyo Harada playing Kazuko, a young student who discovers she can time-travel after smelling a strange lavender-like chemical in her school’s science lab. Based on the acclaimed book by Yasutaka Tsutsui, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is fairly easy to follow but difficult to explain. Filled with nostalgia, warmth, passion, and a lot of sorrow, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is a powerful, poetic film from a filmmaker unlike any other.

In the scope of Cult Epics Obayashi collection, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time falls chronologically between my favorite School in the Crosshairs (1981) and The Island Closest to Heaven (1984). In the scope of his filmography, Obayashi created two movies between Crosshairs and this. By 1983, the visionary filmmaker was more than half a dozen features deep into his filmography, and The Girl Who Leapt Through Time continues to expose him as one of the great filmmakers of the post-war era and amongst the most missed.

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is a remarkably tender film, graceful and subtle in both its fantastical and romantic properties. Obayashi creates a wonderfully serene film that still contains hints of the horrors of House and the anarchy of School in the Crossharis. The spectre of both lost friendship and lost love hangs heavy over the film, as though Obayashi is paying tribute to his lost loved ones from the horrors of the Atomic bombs that were dropped on his childhood during World War 2.

The eerie piano-based score by Masataka Matsutōya and the marvelous cinematography of Yoshitaka Sakamoto, both of whom worked with Obayashi frequently, help guarantee the film sounds and looks spectacular. The in-camera effects, still-photography, cut-outs, and more visual work Obayashi injects help make the film very much part of his own strong auteur vision. This is just such a pleasure to experience.

For such a visually stunning film, it’s surprising just how much the cast manages to be amongst The Girl Who Leapt Through Time‘s greatest pleasures. The majority of this fine ensemble had worked with Obayashi and continued to do so, making this very much a ‘family’ affair. For Harada, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time stands as one of her earliest films, after her very memorable debut in 1982’s Sailor Suit and Machine Gun. She’d, of course, continue making unforgettable appearances in Obayashi’s films and thankfully still acts on screen to this day. Harada is very moving throughout The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, appearing in nearly every scene and singing the ear-catching theme song.

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is a rare film that will delight both children and adults. A lot of how it plays will depend on the person watching it, as it is both whimsical and tragic. As someone who thinks about the past and lost loves a lot, I found this completely devastating.

Cult Epics continue to do holy work, bringing these often unseen classics to American shores. This beautiful slipcover/reversible sleeve collection includes a wonderful reproduction of the film’s colorful promotional booklet, along with the exhaustive collection of supplements. These include an excellent new commentary by critic Alex Pratt, two new lengthy visual essays, a slew of older interviews with Obayashi, a vintage program about Harada, and even the original music video for the infectious title track. Best of all is the new restoration, stunning via both the 4K UHD disc and Blu-ray. I want so badly to live in Onomichi, as it’s presented in these Obayashi films.

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time continues my newly formed love affair with the films of Nobuhiko Obayashi. I’m so excited to continue seeing more of his films, and I hope Cult Epics continues this wonderfully vibrant and necessary collection.

Burabō!

-Jeremy Richey, April 2026-

Order the deluxe version, with a collectable website exclusive postcard, of The Girl Who Leapt Through Time at Cult Epics. Standard editions are available from MVD.