Since the early 1970s, there have been more "Lupin the Third" television series, specials and spinoffs than you can shake a Walther P38 at. By comparison, there have been relatively few cinematic outings for Japan's most famous animated thief and his partners in crime.
Still, the list of auteurs who have taken Lupin out for a theatrical spin is an interesting one. Hayao Miyazaki, the anime world's most famous director, made his feature debut with 1979's "Castle of Cagliostro," usually considered the best “Lupin” film. Seijun Suzuki, better known for whacked-out live-action cult classics like "Branded to Kill" (1967), and CG artist extraordinaire Takashi Yamazaki, most recently of "Godzilla Minus One" (2023), have also been in the "Lupin" director's chair. Now throwing his hat into the ring is Takeshi Koike, whose "Lupin the IIIrd the Movie" hits screens in Japan on June 27.
The film — officially the first main line, 2D-animated “Lupin” film since 1996 — is the culmination of a series of “Lupin” specials Koike has been directing for the past decade. Each of those specials, meant to evoke the hardboiled feel of the original “Lupin” manga and TV series, focused on Lupin's associates such as sharpshooter Jigen (voiced by Akio Otsuka), samurai Goemon (Daisuke Namikawa) and femme fatale Fujiko (Miyuki Sawashiro) as they were put to the test by strange and powerful assassins. (The latest of those specials debuts on streaming services June 20, a week before this film.)
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