Tsubasa Chronicle the Movie: The Princess in the Birdcage Kingdom
Tsubasa Chronicle the Movie: The Princess in the Birdcage Kingdom (劇場版 ツバサ・クロニクル 鳥カゴの国の姫君, Gekijōban Tsubasa Kuronikuru: Torikago no Kuni no Himegimi) is a 2005 Japanese theatrical anime short film based on the manga Tsubasa -RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE- by the four-woman group CLAMP. Directed by Itsuro Kawasaki, animated by Production I.G, and distributed by Shochiku, it runs about 35 minutes and was shown in Japanese theaters as a double feature with xxxHOLiC the Movie: A Midsummer Night's Dream, a linked CLAMP story produced by the same studio.1 • 2
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Original title | 劇場版 ツバサ・クロニクル 鳥カゴの国の姫君 (Torikago no Kuni no Himegimi)2 |
| Japanese release | August 20, 2005, per Shochiku and Cinema Today; Production I.G's Japanese site and AnimeHack list July 20, 20052 • 3 • 4 |
| Runtime | 34 minutes per Shochiku's database; 35 minutes per Production I.G's English work list and Rotten Tomatoes; the DVD lists 30 minutes2 • 1 • 5 • 6 |
| Director / screenplay | Itsuro Kawasaki; screenplay by Midori Goto and Junichi Fujisaku, with Kawasaki also credited as a co-writer on some databases1 • 7 |
| Music | Yuki Kajiura; opening theme "aerial" by KinYa, ending theme "Amrita" by Yui Makino1 • 4 |
| Main voice cast | Miyu Irino (Syaoran), Yui Makino (Sakura), Tetsu Inada (Kurogane), Daisuke Namikawa (Fai), Mika Kikuchi (Mokona), Maaya Sakamoto (Princess Tomoyo)7 |
| Home video | DVD released February 25, 2006 by Shochiku, Dolby SR-D, 1.78:1 widescreen, Region 26 |
Spoilers
Story
The film follows the series' premise: Sakura has lost all her memories, which scattered as feathers across different worlds, and Syaoran travels across dimensions with the warrior Kurogane and the wizard Fai, guided by the creature Mokona, to recover them.8
The Birdcage Kingdom. The travelers arrive in a country where every citizen lives with a bird as a partner. The kingdom was once peaceful, but a king who obtained the power of mysterious feathers now rules by oppression: people who resist have their birds taken away, and citizens who are persecuted hide in the forest.3 • 6 Syaoran, Sakura, and Mokona are attacked by a boy named Koruri, who mistakes them for the king's royal guard; Koruri is protecting Princess Tomoyo, whose voice and partner bird have been sealed by the king, her uncle. Syaoran takes up the fight against the king for the sake of the princess, the forest people, and the persecuted citizens.6 The king's feathers may include one of Sakura's memory feathers, tying the local conflict to the travelers' quest.6
Place in the franchise
The film was the third anime adaptation of Tsubasa at the time, after the two seasons of the NHK Educational TV series Tsubasa Chronicle; Production I.G, which produced this film, later produced the 2007 direct-to-video series Tsubasa Tokyo Revelations.13 Unlike the television series, the film's story is not part of the manga's continuity, and it is generally treated as a side story for existing fans.10 Home video followed on February 25, 2006, when Shochiku released a single-disc Region 2 DVD in 1.78:1 widescreen with Dolby SR-D sound.6
Production
The film adapts Tsubasa -RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE-, a CLAMP manga serialized in Weekly Shōnen Magazine, into an original theatrical story. Shochiku's database notes that the screenplay was written jointly by Midori Goto, Junichi Fujisaku, and director Kawasaki, with Hiroko Kikuyama (菊地洋子) as character designer and Miki Sakuma, previously of DEAD LEAVES, as director of photography.2 Production I.G's English work list confirms the core credits: original story CLAMP, director Itsuro Kawasaki, screenplay Midori Goto and Junichi Fujisaku, music Yuki Kajiura, animation production Production I.G, distribution Shochiku.1
The voice cast centers on the series regulars: Miyu Irino as Syaoran (小狼, Shaooran), Yui Makino as Sakura, Tetsu Inada as Kurogane, Daisuke Namikawa as Fai, and Mika Kikuchi as Mokona. Maaya Sakamoto plays Princess Tomoyo of the Birdcage Kingdom, Sayaka Ohara plays the Dimensional Witch Yūko, and Joji Nakata plays the King.7 Makino, a singer making her voice-acting debut in this film, also performs the ending theme "Amrita" (アムリタ), while KinYa performs the opening theme "aerial".2 • 4
Release and reception
The film opened in Japan as the second half of a double bill with xxxHOLiC the Movie: A Midsummer Night's Dream, whose stories are linked; Shochiku distributed it, opening at the Shinjuku Cinema Milan and other theaters.2 • 3 Because of the shared billing, the film runs only about half an hour, and reviewers have described it as feeling like a slightly longer episode of the television series rather than a standalone feature.9
The film tells an original story and was not written by CLAMP; the Salem Press encyclopedia of manga records that it received mixed critical reviews.10 Viewer reviews on Letterboxd and Filmarks echo this split: praise for the improved animation over the NHK television series sits alongside criticism of rushed pacing, continuity cuts, and a story that assumes familiarity with the manga or the TV series.9 • 11 • 12 On Filmarks the film holds an average of 3.3 out of 5 from 433 user reviews.12
References
- Tsubasa Chronicle - The Princess of the Birdcage Kingdom, Production I.G Work List
- 劇場版ツバサ・クロニクル 鳥カゴの国の姫君, 松竹・映画作品データベース
- 劇場版 ツバサ・クロニクル 鳥カゴの国の姫君 (2005), シネマトゥデイ
- 劇場版 ツバサ・クロニクル 鳥カゴの国の姫君, アニメハック
- Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle the Movie: The Princess in the Birdcage Kingdom, Rotten Tomatoes
- 劇場版ツバサ・クロニクル 鳥カゴの国の姫君, PANDASTUDIO.TV
- 劇場版 ツバサ・クロニクル 鳥カゴの国の姫君, 映画.com
- 劇場版 ツバサ・クロニクル（年代記） 鳥カゴの国の姫君 (2005), allcinema
- Review by Mark Alvarez, Letterboxd
- Salem Press, Encyclopedia entry on Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle
- Review by Rui Ozpinhead, Letterboxd
- 劇場版 ツバサ・クロニクル（年代記） 鳥カゴの国の姫君, Filmarks映画
- CLAMP×I.G×講談社 「ツバサ」新作OVAアニメ製作発表, アニメ！アニメ！
Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026
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