Tamala 2010: A Punk Cat in Space: Standard Edition – Deaf Crocodile (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Japan, 2002
Director: Tol
Writer: Tol
Cast: Béatrice Dalle, Takeshi Katô, Hisayo Mochizuki, Shinji Takeda

Release Date: February 11th, 2025
Approximate Running Time: 91 Minutes 54 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Stereo Japanese
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region A
Retail Price: $29.95

"TAMALA 2010 is a futuristic techno fever dream that flows back and forth in time, following the adorable wide-eyed kitty Tamala on her home world of Meguro City, Cat Earth, a BLADE RUNNER-like mega-city controlled by the Catty & Co. corporation. Escaping into space, she's waylaid by the God of Death and crash-lands near Hate City on the Planet Q, where she meets a new boyfriend, goes bowling and shopping in a thrift store - and realizes she may be the latest reincarnation of an ancient Greek cat cult with ties to the omnipresent Catty & Co. A heady." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 5/5

Tamala 2010: A Punk Cat in Space comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 40.2 GB

Feature: 24.6 GB

The source looks excellent.

Audio: 5/5

This release comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD stereo mix in Japanese with removable English subtitles. The audio sounds clear, balanced, and robust when it should.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a new Talama film teaser (1 minute 2 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo, text in English), two original 'Tamala' short films Tamala on Parade (24 minutes 28 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles) and Tamala’s Wild Party (16 minutes 20 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), a video essay by journalist and physical media expert Ryan Verrill (The Disc Connected) and film professor Dr. Will Dodson titled Doesn’t She Ever Die?’ The Punkification of Late Capitalism (14 minutes 55 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with co-director/co-creator K. of t.o.L., moderated by Dennis Bartok for Deaf Crocodile (59 minutes 50 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English and Japanese with Japanese to English translation by Christian Storms, an audio commentary with film historian Samm Deighan, and an insert with URL that has PDF's for Doesn’t She Ever Die?’ The Punkification of Late Capitalism and Samm Deighan's audio commentary.

Summary:

Tamala 2010: A Punk Cat in Space is a film that proudly wears its influences and cultural references. The characters that populate Tamala 2010: A Punk Cat in Space are reminiscent of Hello Kitty and Astro Boy. Tamala 2010: A Punk Cat in Space adapts elements from Thomas Pynchon's novel The Crying of Lot 49. Also, throughout Tamala 2010: A Punk Cat in Space, there are several pop culture references, like the twin girls from The Shining and KFC’s Colonel Sanders, who walks around with an axe in his head.

The narrative revolves around Tamala, a female cat who, in the year 1869, was genetically engineered to remain one and a half years old, and thus she is immortal. Behind Tamala’s genetic engineering is the mega-conglomerate CATTY & Co., who use her likeness on all of their advertisements. Bored with her life on Cat Earth, Tamala, who was born in the Orion Constellation on the Odessa star, decides to return home.

Tamala 2010: A Punk Cat in Space employs 2D and 3D animation, which is mostly in stark black and white, which reinforces its dystopian landscapes. Also, Tamala 2010: A Punk Cat in Space is filled with social commentary exploring subjects like capitalism and commercialism. Though Tamala 2010: A Punk Cat in Space’s look draws from Hello Kitty and Astro Boy, it is not kid-friendly; there is an ample amount of on-screen carnage and language not suitable for children. Ultimately, Tamala 2010: A Punk Cat in Space is a film that is equally entertaining and thought-provoking.

Tamala 2010: A Punk Cat in Space gets an excellent release from Deaf Crocodile that comes with a solid audio/video presentation, two bonus short films, and insightful extras; highly recommended.

Note: There is a deluxe release of Tamala 2010: A Punk Cat in Space that comes in a slipcase, and a 60-page booklet with an essay by film critic Walter Chaw (Film Freak Central), and an essay by Jennifer Lynde Barker.

Written by Michael Den Boer