Prince of Light (found re-edit of Hindi-Japanese anime film; 2001)
Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama is a 1993 animated film co-produced by Japan and India and produced and directed by Yugo Sako, based on the Indian epic the Ramayana. The film was directed by Koichi Sasaki and Ram Mohan, and the music was composed by Vanraj Bhatia.
Background
In 2001, the film was distributed in the US by Showcase Entertainment. Released under new titles such as Prince of Light, The Prince of Light: The Legend of Ramayana[1] and Warrior Prince.[2] The film was also entirely re-dubbed and re-edited, with around 39 minutes cut from the original runtime, as well as additional music by Alan Howarth, added in. The voice cast for this version features mainly anime dubbing regulars from Los Angeles,[3] with narration by James Earl Jones and a then unknown Bryan Cranston as Rama.[4] This version was screened in Los Angeles on November 9, 2001.
Cast
- James Earl Jones – Narrator
- Bryan Cranston – Rama
- Edie Mirman – Sita
- Tom Wyner – Ravana
- Richard Cansino – Lakshmana
- Michael Sorich – Hanuman
- Mike Reynolds – Dasharatha / Malyavan
- Mari Devon – Kaikeyi
- Simon Prescott – Kumbhakarna
- Barbara Goodson – Shurpanakha
- Catherine Battistone – Tataka
- Tony Pope – Vishvamitra / Sampatha
- Kirk Thornton – Indrajit
- Steve Bulen – Sugreeva / Prahasta
- Eddie Frierson – Angada / Maricha
- Jeff Winkless – Jambavan / Nikumbha
- Michael McConnohie – Vibhishana / Kumbha
- Voice Director - Steve Kramer[5]
Availability
This particular version of the film has since become extremely scarce as no home video releases are known to exist in the US. As of June 2023, this version can only be found in Czech and Russian. There are DVD releases in Slovakia and Russia that contain the edited version with the English audio included, however, both of these releases have become rare and are currently unobtainable.[6][7] This version may have also been released in Spain as well, as there is a VHS release distributed by Dream Time Entertainment S.A. that is under the Warrior Prince title.[8] Though this release is likely in a Spanish dub form.
The full dub would eventually be uploaded then later taken down on YouTube, sadly still leaving it as lost media.
Gallery
External Links
References
- ↑ Archived promotional website for the film. Retrieved 26 Mar '23
- ↑ Beliefnet article about the film. Retrieved 26 Mar '23
- ↑ TCM article about the film. Retrieved 26 Mar '23
- ↑ ETimes article about the film. Retrieved 01 Apr '23
- ↑ Variety article about the film. Retrieved 26 Mar '23
- ↑ Slovak Prince Rama DVD on Niagara. Retrieved 01 Apr '23
- ↑ Russian Prince Rama DVD on store.bg Retrieved 06 June '23
- ↑ Warrior Prince VHS on Todocoleccion. Retrieved 01 Apr '23