VIZ Pictures to Release 20TH CENTURY BOYS 2: THE LAST HOPE on DVD

Special Theatrical Screening Planned for February 9th; DVD Arrives on February 16th Source: VIZ Media, MediaLab press releases Official Movie Site: 20thboysfilms.com (US), 20th Boys (Japanese) Special Thanks to Evelyn Dubocq and Erik Jansen

DVD cover art for the North American release of 20TH CENTURY BOYS 2: THE LAST HOPE. Photo courtesy of VIZ Pictures. © 1999, 2006 Naoki Urasawa, Studio Nuts /Shogakukan © 2009 “20th Century Boys” Film Partners

VIZ Pictures, an affiliate of VIZ Media, LLC that focuses on Japanese live-action film distribution, will release the science fiction feature 20TH CENTURY BOYS 2: THE LAST HOPE (20-Seiki Shonen: Dai 2 Sho- Saigo no Kibo, 2009) on DVD on February 16th in North America through its distributor, VIZ Media. 20TH CENTURY BOYS will carry a MSRP of $24.92 US / $35.99 CAN. The 20TH CENTURY BOYS saga is based on Naoki Urasawa’s manga series, 20th Century Boys (published in the US by VIZ Media), which has become a national phenomenon in Japan, selling over 20 million copies of the 24 volumes. Urasawa is the creator of many famous works such as the hit manga series, Monster and Pluto also published in the US by VIZ Media. The film is directed by Yukihiko Tsutsumi, who began directing commercials and music videos at Nihon Television. One of his most recent films includes HAPPILY EVER AFTER (Jigyaku no Uta, 2007) is also released by VIZ Pictures and distributed by VIZ Media. Both Naoki Urasawa and Music Director Ryomei Shirai are fans of the 1970’s rock music scene and chose “20th Century Boy” by T.REX (Imperial Records) as the main theme song. The story began in 1969 when a young boy named Kenji and his friends write The Book of Prophecy in which they write about a future where they fight against an evil organization trying to takeover the world and bring about doomsday. Years later in 1997, a mysterious cult being led by a man only known as "Friend" emerges and begins to gain strong influence over society. A series of catastrophic events begin to occur mirroring the prophecies made up by the young Kenji and the greatest fear is the climax of The Book becoming a reality; December 31st, 2000, a terrifying giant virus-spreading robot will attack the entire city of Tokyo leading to the end of mankind. The only people who know about The Book are Kenji and his childhood friends. Who is "Friend"? Will Kenji and his friends be able to save mankind and live to see the 21st Century? In 20TH CENTURY BOYS 2: THE LAST HOPE it is 2015, and “Friend” rules a disturbing new world. Kenji has been missing since the Bloody New Year`s Eve of 2000, and his niece Kanna is now in high school. Her history textbook contains a fabricated story about Kenji and his friends being the terrorists behind the horrific events of 2000. Kanna, knowing the truth, openly resents this, and as a result she is marked as a problem child by her teacher and sent to the Friend Land program because of her anti-Friend behavior. Friend Land is a facility where people with rebellious behavior are re-educated. As the program begins, Kanna and her classmate Kyoko Koizumi achieve high marks and are sent to the advanced program called the Bonus Stage, where they find themselves in a virtual reconstruction of 1971, when Kenji and his friends were kids. There, each of the girls learns crucial secrets about “Friend.”

The surviving secret base members have been separated since Bloody New Year`s Eve but each has spent the last 15 years in various activities opposing Friend and his regime. As Kenji`s friends all try to find out the truth about Friend, they discover the shocking existence of The New Book of Prophecy, the sequel to The Book of Prophecy. The New Book describes an event: In 2015, at a church in Shinjuku, a savior will rise to uphold justice but will be assassinated. Who is the savior? Once again, Doomsday looms near... To celebrate this DVD release, VIZ Pictures will be holding a special screening event at VIZ Cinema in San Francisco on February 9th at 7:30 pm. Ticket for admission is $25.00, which will include a ticket for the screening, a copy of the 20TH CENTURY BOYS 2: THE LAST HOPE DVD, poster, and pin! There is also a lower $10.00 admission for the screening only. Additionally, VIZ Pictures is raffling off 20th Century Boys T-shirts before the show so come watch the film for a chance to win! Tickets are available at the box office or online at vizcinema.com. “20TH CENTURY BOYS has been a mega hit since it mesmerized audiences with it’s U.S. theatrical premiere of 20TH CENTURY BOYS 1: BEGINNING OF THE END in the summer of 2009, and we are excited to announce the U.S. debut of 20TH CENTURY BOYS 2: THE LAST HOPE,” says Seiji Horibuchi, President and CEO of VIZ Pictures. “We also hope fans in the San Francisco Bay Area can join us for the one night only special screening at VIZ Cinema to experience 20TH CENTURY BOYS on the Big Screen.” 20TH CENTURY BOYS 2: THE LAST HOPE Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen Original Soundtrack Language: Japanese Sound Quality: Dolby Surround 5.1 - Japanese Subtitles: English Running Time: 140 Minutes Street Date: 2/16/10 MSRP: $24.92

About VIZ Pictures, Inc.

Based in San Francisco, California, VIZ Pictures, Inc. licenses and distributes selective Japanese live-action films and DVDs, with focus on Japanese "kawaii (cute) and cool" pop culture. VIZ Pictures strives to offer the most entertaining motion pictures straight from the "Kingdom of Pop" for audiences of all ages, especially the manga and anime generation, in North America. Some titles include DEATH NOTE, 20TH CENTURY BOYS, and TRAIN MAN: DENSHA OTOKO. VIZ Pictures is also the producer of NEW PEOPLE, a part of the J-Pop Center Project, a unique entertainment destination bringing Japanese pop culture through film, art, fashion, and retail products. For more information please visit VIZ Pictures or NewPeopleWorld.com.

For more information on 20TH CENTURY BOYS please see the earlier coverage here on SciFi Japan: