Comet in Moominland (film)

1992 Japanese animated film

Comet in Moominland (ムーミン谷の彗星, Mūmindani no Suisei) is a Dutch Japanese anime film by Telecable Benelux B. V. The film is based on the novel of the same name by Finnish illustrator and writer Tove Jansson, originally published in Swedish. It was the first full length Moomin film, and serves as a prequel to the 1990 anime series Moomin, introducing characters that would later appear in the series. It was released in Japan first theatrically on August 8, 1992 as a triple feature with two unrelated shorter films, and was later released on home video with 10 minutes of extra footage. In 2020, the film was planned to be re released theatrically to coincide with the 75th anniversary of the Moomin franchise. This version of the film is remastered in 4K, and includes a reworked soundtrack and newly recorded voice acting. The film's re release was halted indefinitely as a result of the COVID 19 pandemic, with it eventually being released in September 2023. The film's streaming and television rights have been acquired by C More and MTV.

Before the events of the film, Moomin's father had finished building Moominhouse. During one rainy evening, the Muskrat suddenly appears at the front door to stay because his riverbank home had been destroyed by Moominpappa's bridge, built earlier that day. The next day, the rain's turned everything black and according to Muskrat, it is soot from outer space. He believes that a threat is coming from space and nothing can be done. Moominpappa gets an idea about the astronomical observatory in the Lonely Mountains, where a telescope can see far into space. The next morning, on their way, the trio meets Snufkin for the first time, who has heard about a comet that could crash to Earth at any time. He joins the group, and they climb the steep mountains towards the observatory. On the way, Moomin finds a golden anklet, which Snufkin knows belongs to the Snorkmaiden. They arrive at the observatory, where they discover that the comet will be colliding in two days. On the way back home, Moomin saves the Snorkmaiden from a giant carnivorous plant, and they immediately fall in love with each other. Both Snorks join the group while they try to reach Moominvalley before the comet. Two days later, Moomin and friends meet the Hemulen and when a hurricane strikes them, they all fly to the Moominhouse with Snufkin's tent. Back home, they all decide to move to a cave Sniff had found for shelter. Sniff is lost during the move when he sees a kitten and begins to follow it with a piece of cake. When there are only minutes left to the expected moment of the comet impact, Moomin and Snufkin find Sniff, who is paralyzed with fear, and they carry him into the cave at the last minute. The comet almost crashes into Earth, but suddenly changes its course and turns away. The next morning, the sea returns and the characters celebrate on the beach, where Moomin gives Snorkmaiden a pearl he had found.

The film premiered in Japan on August 8, 1992, and in Finland on April 2, 1993. In 1993, Comet in Moominland was the seventh most watched film in Finland with 166,738 viewers. The film has been released on VHS and DVD. In addition to the Finnish version, the original Finnish DVD contains a Swedish version, as well as a Finnish version with Sámi subtitles. In 2012, VL Media released new editions of the film, which included a Swedish version in addition to the Finnish version, as well as a Finnish version with Sámi subtitles. The film was included in the Blu Ray box set for the Moomin anime series, which was released in Japan in 2012. In 2018, the film was re released on DVD, which was remastered digitally. At the time, the film had not been re recorded in Finnish by the current voice actors who voiced the characters in the Moominvalley television series, so the new DVD release also included the original version of the film. However, unlike previous DVD releases, the new release does not include other language options or subtitles.