Netflix Gets Blockbuster Anime Movie With 100% Rotten Tomatoes Score

The ticket sales make it clear that The First Slam Dunk was a hit with general audiences, but it was also a huge success among critics. The movie has a perfect 100 percent among critics on Rotten Tomatoes, with an audience score that’s almost as high. Critics were particularly taken in by the movie’s heartfelt writing, high-quality animation, and likable characters. 

In addition to its stellar reviews and box office success, The First Slam Dunk received numerous awards and nominations. It won Animation of the Year at both the Japan Academy Field Prize and the Toyko Anime Award Festival. It won several other awards across various shows and was nominated for another five. 

A fairly straightforward sports anime, The First Slam Dunk follows Ryota Miyagi, the point guard of a high school basketball team. The story centers around his team’s game against the high school league’s championship team, depicting the climactic game between the two schools. Through flashbacks, the anime also explores Ryota’s relationship with his older brother and teammates.

Based on the Slam Dunk manga by Takehiko Inoue, the movie was first released in Japanese theaters on December 3rd, 2022. Takehiki Inoue wrote and directed the movie adaptation himself, keeping the film true to the original manga. Animated by Toei and DandeLion, the movie combined 2D and 3D animation to bring its sports story to life. 

While The First Slam Dunk may be the most successful version, it’s not the first adaptation of Inoue’s manga. Toei produced an extremely popular ongoing anime based on the manga that ran from 1993 to 1996. During the height of the series’ success, four anime movies were released, making the most recent film a bit of a comeback for the franchise. 

The First Slam Dunk was a mega hit upon its release in Japan and made decent earnings in its American release as well. Racking up around $9.5 million in its opening weekend in Japan, the movie made another $662,211 in its opening weekend in the United States. The film earned a worldwide total of $279 million at the box office, making it the fifth highest-earning anime movie in history. 

The First Slam Dunk could be a major hit for Netflix, which has gained a reputation as a great platform for anime in the United States. While sports anime isn’t generally as popular in the United States as it is in Japan, the movie’s theatrical success proves that there’s a surprisingly large international audience for this particular movie. You can see if the movie lives up to all the hype for yourself when it comes to Netflix on August 25th.