A legendary military strategist is mysteriously transported to modern day Japan, where he becomes determined to assist a young singer in finding fame for her voice that he believes could bring world peace
Eccentric films are interesting, regardless of if you like them or not. Every now and then, one comes along that’s so quirky and weird that you can’t help but love it. Enter Ya Boy Kongming!, a wildly outrageous journey through high concept giggles and fantastically produced music, all woven together through a story that feels exactly like a manga come to life. Because it is. If you’ve ever wanted to see a live action film that truly captures the feeling of anime and manga, look no further than Ya Boy Kongming! Never shying away from overindulgence in eccentricity and instead fully embracing the oddball narrative, it’s a film that won’t be for everybody, and yet that’s exactly what I loved most about it.
Brought to life in uber wild display by Shuhei Shibue, with a screenplay by Nonji Nemoto based on the manga of the same name by Tato Yotsuba and Ryo Ogawa, Ya Boy Kongming! is everything a fan of the series could want, while also offering an entry level starting point for those of us unfamiliar with it before now. It’s hilarious, endearing, well paced, and just an all around fun time from beginning to end with how unabashedly weird it allows itself to get. And that’s commendable, too, considering so many films pander to a wider audience and inadvertently lose what makes them unique and special. If anything, this one tries its best to make up for that by being the weirdest it can possibly be. And it works surprisingly well.
With performances that pull the entire story together, including the titular Kongming, played by the wonderfully endearing and adorable Dean Fujioka, the film is a culmination of not only great acting talents, but also incredible musicians, too. Featuring appearances by some of Asia’s most energetic and fantastically talented singers and performers, like Avantgardey, Avu-chan, Kamei Masaya, and &TEAM, this isn’t just a spectacle of filmmaking; it’s an all out experience that feels as much like a movie as it does a high octane music competition.
Featuring a fun and catchy theme song by Lilas Ikuta, it’s hard not to get lost into the world of music and dance on display. But then there’s the absolutely stellar special effects, too! It’s visually moving in every way, with spectacular CGI, and even more notable, beautiful cinematography that captures the world in ways that leave you stunned. From bright neon lights to the warm outdoorsy sequences of the past, every scene in Ya Boy Kongming! looks like a piece of artwork, much like the manga on which is based.
If there’s one thing to be said about Ya Boy Kongming!, it’s that there’s nothing else out there like it. It embraces every little weird and eccentric nuance it can find, and we all get to enjoy the results. And it’s so pretty to look at, too.
Fantasia 2025 runs from July 16th to August 3rd 2025