# The Red Spectacles

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1987 Japanese film

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The Red Spectacles 20-year anniversary movie poster Directed by Mamoru Oshii Written by Kazunori Itō Mamoru Oshii Based on Characters created by Mamoru Oshii Produced by Shigeharu Shiba Daisuke Hayashi Starring Shigeru Chiba Machiko Washio Hideyuki Tanaka Cinematography Yosuke Mamiya Edited by Seiji Morita Music by Kenji Kawai Distributed by Omnibus Promotion Release date February 7, 1987 (1987-02-07) Running time 116 minutes Country Japan Language Japanese

***The Red Spectacles*** (紅い眼鏡, *Akai Megane*) is a 1987 Japanese [science fiction](/source/Science_fiction) [neo-noir](/source/Neo-noir) film directed by [Mamoru Oshii](/source/Mamoru_Oshii), co-written with Kazunori Ito, and starring [Shigeru Chiba](/source/Shigeru_Chiba) and [Mako Hyōdō](/source/Mako_Hy%C5%8Dd%C5%8D). The first film in Oshii's *[Kerberos Saga](/source/Kerberos_Saga)*, but the second installment overall after its [radio drama](/source/Radio_drama) companion piece *[While Waiting for the Red Spectacles](/source/While_Waiting_for_the_Red_Spectacles)* (which aired a month prior), the film follows Kōichi Todome, a former police [detective](/source/Detective) who, after fleeing Japan following a failed rebellion by his dissolved unit, returns several years later per a promise to his colleagues, only to find [Tokyo](/source/Tokyo) completely unrecognizable and increasingly strange and surreal.

*The Red Spectacles* was released on February 7, 1987. It would be followed by several works intended to explain and expand the film's universe, the most notable of them being *[Kerberos Panzer Cop](/source/Kerberos_Panzer_Cop)*. The film was followed by two [prequels](/source/Prequel)—*[StrayDog: Kerberos Panzer Cops](/source/StrayDog%3A_Kerberos_Panzer_Cops)* in 1991, and *[Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade](/source/Jin-Roh%3A_The_Wolf_Brigade)* in 1999—that adapted the established stories and settings from *Kerberos Panzer Cop*.

[Kamui Fujiwara](/source/Kamui_Fujiwara) adapted the film into manga in 2024.[1]

## Plot

In the 20th century, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department lost control of crime in Tokyo. In response, it establishes the Anti-Vicious Crime Heavily Armored Mobile Special Investigations Unit, nicknamed "Kerberos", a heavily armed police tactical unit tasked with combating crime and evil, equipped with machine guns and reinforcement gear. However, while Kerberos succeeds in its mission, by the 1990s, its overzealous actions and fanatical hatred of evil lead to it becoming increasingly aggressive, cruel, and corrupt. When a Kerberos member beats a misdemeanor offender to death, it sparks a massive controversy that leads to the unit's disbandment. However, three elite Kerberos members—Kōichi Todome, Washio Midori, and Sōichirō Toribe—refuse to disarm and flee to the Port of Tokyo, where they plan to escape in a helicopter. After repelling an ambush by bounty hunters, a grievously injured Sōichirō and Midori order Todome to leave in the helicopter alone, but they make a promise that Todome will return for them.

Three years later, Todome, a fugitive from the government, returns to Tokyo, but finds the city inexplicably no longer resembles the one he left behind: the buildings have decayed at an exponential rate, and everything is strange, surreal, and nondescript. He wanders, trying to find some semblance of his past and to find Sōichirō and Midori, and along the way encounters strange and unusual characters—a mysterious young lady clad in red, hitmen led by Bunmei Muroto, and eccentric con artists called tachiguishi who swindle inexplicably-illegal stand-and-eat food stalls (tachigui) after they were deemed to violate public order and standard of decency.

In the end, it is revealed that most of the film’s events were a dying dream. Todome was attacked and killed in a shower soon after returning to Tokyo. His suitcase, expected to contain his armor, is instead filled with red spectacles, to Bunmei’s dismay. The lady in red watches Todome’s body being carried away, then takes a taxi to seek her next “dream.”

## Cast

- [Shigeru Chiba](/source/Shigeru_Chiba) as Kōichi Todome

- [Machiko Washio](/source/Machiko_Washio) as Washio Midori

- [Hideyuki Tanaka](/source/Hideyuki_Tanaka) as Sōichirō Toribe

- [Tesshō Genda](/source/Tessh%C5%8D_Genda) as Bunmei Muroto (Reappears in the unrelated [Gosenzo-sama Banbanzai!](/source/Gosenzo-sama_Banbanzai!))

- [Mako Hyōdō](/source/Mako_Hy%C5%8Dd%C5%8D) as Young Lady

- [Hideyo Amamoto](/source/Hideyo_Amamoto) as [Moongaze Ginji](/source/Moongaze_Ginji)

- Offscreen actors as Hamburger Tetsu, Beefbowl Ushigoro, Medium Hot Sabu, Baked Bean Pastry Amataro, and Crepe Mami

- [Ichirō Nagai](/source/Ichir%C5%8D_Nagai) as Middle-aged man in billiards, taxi driver's voice

- [Yasuo Ōtsuka](/source/Yasuo_%C5%8Ctsuka) as Taxi driver

- [Oikawa Hiroe](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Oikawa_Hiroe&action=edit&redlink=1) as Oriental Hotel receptionist

- [Fuyuki Shinada](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Fuyuki_Shinada&action=edit&redlink=1) as Soba Udon cook

- [Fumi Hirano](/source/Fumi_Hirano) as Airport announcer

- Kintaroh Sakata as Umibōzu

## Production

*The Red Spectacles* is Oshii's first feature-length live-action film. Several of the cast members are voice actors and appeared in *[Urusei Yatsura](/source/Urusei_Yatsura)*, which Oshii worked on as chief director and head writer.

The film features a number of literary references including [William Shakespeare](/source/William_Shakespeare)'s *[Julius Caesar](/source/Julius_Caesar_(play))* and [Alexander Pushkin](/source/Alexander_Pushkin)'s *[The Captain's Daughter](/source/The_Captain's_Daughter)*. A variety of philosophical concepts such as [free will](/source/Free_will) and [determinism](/source/Determinism) are presented through fables including "The Magnet's Story," attributed to [Oscar Wilde](/source/Oscar_Wilde),[2] and [The Fisherman and the Jinni](/source/The_Fisherman_and_the_Jinni). Kerberos is the original pronunciation of [Cerberus](/source/Cerberus), the three-headed watchdog in [Greek mythology](/source/Greek_mythology), and the film concludes with a visual reference to *[Little Red Riding Hood](/source/Little_Red_Riding_Hood)*.

## Releases

*The Red Spectacles* premiered on February 7, 1987 in Japan.

On February 25, 2003, the DVD edition was made available in Japan as part of the *Mamoru Oshii Cinema Trilogy* anthology box set, which contained four DVDs and one soundtrack CD. On November 4 of the same year, a subtitled version of *Akai megane* was released in North America as both a single DVD and also as part of a US release of the box set. The US version of the trilogy box set has different box artwork and lacks the "Revisited Scene & Production" DVD of the Japanese version.

The American *The Red Spectacles* DVD edition was reprinted in 2004, and since then is only available in the box set which was printed three times as of 2006 and remains the only edition released outside Japan.

A crowdfunded [4K](/source/4K_resolution) restoration of the film was shown at the 2025 edition of [Beyond Fest](/source/Beyond_Fest)[3] and then at the New York [Metrograph](/source/Metrograph) theater in November 2025.[4]

## Reception

*[The A.V. Club](/source/The_A.V._Club)*, reviewing it as part of the 2003 DVD release with the other parts of the trilogy, called the story "alternately hilarious, bizarre, and incoherent, right up to the disappointingly conventional ending."[5]

*[Screen Rant](/source/Screen_Rant)'*s Gregory Nussen, reviewing the film at its 2025 [Beyond Fest](/source/Beyond_Fest) screening, said that fans of Oshii's later film *[Ghost in the Shell](/source/Ghost_in_the_Shell_(1995_film))* "will recognize the paranoia here over totalitarianism and Oshii's play with light and flatness of image. But they might not recognize just how glib and jovial the film is, despite its unflinching dark presentation of modern society. [...] *The Red Spectacles* is not always successful. It is overlong, and frequently bogged down by its irreverance. But at its core, the film functions as a fundamental question about whom, or what, is responsible for the pervasive evil in any society. [...] In its most provocative form, Oshii's film poses the existential possibility that if our world feels like a constant, surrealist fever dream, perhaps it really is."[3]

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["Mamoru Oshii's The Red Spectacles Movie Gets Manga"](https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-12-18/mamoru-oshii-the-red-spectacles-movie-gets-manga/.219167). *Anime News Network*. December 18, 2024. Retrieved October 20, 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** Selleri, A. (2024). "Literature and Philosophy in the 'Long-Late-Victorian' Period". *Literature and Philosophy in Nineteenth Century British Culture*. Vol. III (1st ed.). Routledge. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.4324/9781003427872](https://doi.org/10.4324%2F9781003427872).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-sr_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-sr_3-1) Nussen, Gregory (30 September 2025). ["The Red Spectacles Review: Mamoru Oshii's First Live-Action Film Is A Brilliantly Unique, Bizarre Diamond"](https://screenrant.com/the-red-spectacles-movie-review-1987/). *[Screen Rant](/source/Screen_Rant)*. Retrieved 17 November 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Rouse, Isaac (14 November 2025). ["Ghost in the Shell director's cult live-action sci-fi movie gets a rare 4K re-release — and we have the trailer"](https://www.polygon.com/red-spectacles-4k-release-trailer-mamouru-oshii/). *[Polygon](/source/Polygon_(website))*. Retrieved 17 November 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["The Red Spectacles"](https://www.avclub.com/the-red-spectacles-1798199113). *[The A.V. Club](/source/The_A.V._Club)*.

## External links

- [Kerberos saga official website](https://web.archive.org/web/20070110195318/http://www.kerberos-saga.jp/) (*Japanese*)

- [*The Red Spectacles*](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0228456/) at [IMDb](/source/IMDb_(identifier))

v t e Works directed by Mamoru Oshii Feature films Urusei Yatsura: Only You (1983) Urusei Yatsura 2: Beautiful Dreamer (1984) The Red Spectacles (1987) Patlabor: The Movie (1989) MAROKO (1990) StrayDog: Kerberos Panzer Cops (1991) Talking Head (1992) Patlabor 2: The Movie (1993) Ghost in the Shell (1995) Avalon (2001) Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (2004) Tachiguishi-Retsuden (2006) The Sky Crawlers (2008) Assault Girls (2009) The Next Generation: Patlabor (2014–2015) Garm Wars: The Last Druid (2014) Tōkyō Mukokuseki Shōjo (2015) Short films Killers (".50 Woman"; 2003) Onna Tachiguishi-Retsuden (2006) Shin-Onna Tachiguishi Retsuden ("Assault Girl: Hinako The Kentucky", "The Golden Fish Girl"; 2007) OVAs/ONAs Dallos (1983) Angel's Egg (1985) Mystery Article File 538 (1987) Mobile Police Patlabor (1988–1989) Gosenzo-sama Banbanzai! (1989–1990) Vlad Love (2021)

v t e Works by Kazunori Itō Animated series Urusei Yatsura (1981–1984) Creamy Mami, the Magic Angel (1983–1984) Dirty Pair (1985) Maison Ikkoku (1986–1987) Patlabor: The TV Series (1989–1990) .hack//Sign (2002) Absolute Boy (2005) Animated films Patlabor: The Movie (1990) Patlabor: The Movie 2 (1993) Ghost in the Shell (1995) Digital Monster X-Evolution (2005) .hack//The Movie (2011) Live action films The Red Spectacles (1987) Necronomicon (1993) Gamera: Guardian of the Universe (1995) Gamera 2: Attack of Legion (1996) Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris (1999) Avalon (2001) Pistol Opera (2001) OVAs Kimagure Orange Road: Shonen Jump Special (1985) Prefectural Earth Defense Force (1986) Time Knot: Reflection (1987) Patlabor: The Early Days (1988–1989) Patlabor: The New Files (1990-1992) .hack//Liminality (2002–2003) Video Games .hack (2002–2003)

v t e Kerberos Saga by Mamoru Oshii Kerberos arc While Waiting for the Red Spectacles (1987 radio) The Red Spectacles (1987 film) Kerberos Panzer Cop (1988 manga) StrayDog: Kerberos Panzer Cops (1991 film) Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade (1999 film) Kerberos Saga Rainy Dogs (2003 manga) Kerberos Panzer Jäger (2006 radio) Kerberos & Tachiguishi (2006 manga) Tachiguishi arc Tachiguishi-Retsuden (2006 film) Onna Tachiguishi-Retsuden (2006 short film) Shin-Onna Tachiguishi Retsuden (2007 film) Other Characters Illang: The Wolf Brigade (2018 film)

v t e "Little Red Riding Hood" Film Red Riding Hood (1901) Little Red Riding Hood (1920) Little Red Riding Hood (1953) Little Red Riding Hood (1954) Rotkäppchen (1962) Tom Thumb and Little Red Riding Hood (1962) About the Little Red Riding Hood (1977) Red Riding Hood (1987) Little Red Riding Hood (1997) Red Riding Hood (2003) Red Riding Hood (2006) Red Riding Hood (2011) Once upon a Crime (2023) Animation Little Red Riding Hood (1922 cartoon) Dizzy Red Riding Hood (1931 cartoon) Old King Cole (1933 cartoon) The Big Bad Wolf (1934 cartoon) Little Red Walking Hood (1937 cartoon) The Bear's Tale (1940 cartoon) Red Hot Riding Hood (1943 cartoon) Goldilocks and the Jivin' Bears (1944 cartoon) Little Red Riding Rabbit (1944 cartoon) Who's Cookin' Who? (1946 cartoon) Little Rural Riding Hood (1949 cartoon) Little Red Rodent Hood (1951 cartoon) Red Riding Hoodwinked (1955 cartoon) Red Riding Hoodlum (1957 cartoon) Now Hare This (1958 cartoon) Little Woody Riding Hood (1962 cartoon) Rough Riding Hood (1966 cartoon) For the Love of Pizza (1972 cartoon) The Magic Riddle (1991 film) Redux Riding Hood (1997 film) Hoodwinked! (2005 film) Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil (2011 film) Video games Little Red Riding Hood's Zombie BBQ (2008) The Path (2009) Overlord: Dark Legend (2009) Dragon Fin Soup (2015) Stage adaptations Little Red Riding Hood (1911 opera) Grimm (2014 musical) Literary adaptations The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck (1908) Anguish Languish (1956) Chapeuzinho Amarelo (1970) Flossie & the Fox (1986) Lon Po Po: A Red-Riding Hood Story from China (1989) Wolf (1990) Little Red Cap (1999) Scarlet (2013) Other adaptations "Li'l Red Riding Hood" (1966) The Company of Wolves (1984) The Red Spectacles (1987) Freeway (1996) Black XXX-Mas (1999) Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade (1999) Tokyo Red Hood (2003) A Wicked Tale (2005) "Red-Handed" (2012) "Child of the Moon" (2012) Little Dead Rotting Hood (2016) Related Big Bad Wolf (character) Red (character) Akazukin Chacha (1994 anime series) Goldilocks and the Jivin' Bears Now Hare This Deadtime Stories Baby Bear and the Big, Bad Wolf Simsala Grimm (Animated TV series) Into the Woods (1986 Broadway Production) Once Upon a Time (TV series) Xuxa em O Mistério de Feiurinha (2009 film) Into the Woods (2014 film) RWBY

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [The Red Spectacles](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Red_Spectacles) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Red_Spectacles?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.