A 4K remaster of Daft Punk‘s iconic anime film Interstella 5555: The 5tory of the 5ecret 5tar 5ystem is set to hit cinemas worldwide for the first time ever.
Originally released in 2003, Interstella 5555 was created in collaboration with Leiji Matsumoto and Toei Animation, and served as a visual companion to the band’s celebrated album Discovery.
Now, fans around the world will have the rare opportunity to catch the 65-minute film in theatres for one night only on 12 December, 2024.
To celebrate the event, Daft Punk will be releasing a limited number of Discovery: Interstella 5555 Edition physical albums which feature the original Japanese edition artwork of Discovery, as well as merch. The limited release will consist of 5,555 gold vinyl, 5,555 numbered CDs, and 25,000 black vinyl.
It all sounds incredibly exciting — at least until you consider the growing concerns from fans who have expressed doubts about the remaster after watching the teaser video for the new Interstella 5555.
One prevalent criticism centres around the alleged use of artificial intelligence to upscale the film, which a user on the Daft Punk subreddit slammed as a “disgrace to Leiji Matsumoto.”
This is a disgrace to Leiji Matsumoto.
byu/topprock inDaftPunk
I don’t know how to feel about this..
byu/_alabast3r_ inDaftPunk
“Even watching this trailer on a small phone, you can immediately tell AI was used,” one commenter wrote. “The crowd scenes in particular are a dead giveaway. It looks so bad, there’s no way I’d spend money to see this in a theatre where the imperfections are going to be giant.”
Another added: “I don’t see why this was needed. It seems like a lazy cash grab.”
Aesthetics concerns aside, a number of fans have also pointed out the irony of supposedly using AI to remaster a film that’s “about the corporate world transforming artistry and music into soulless sludge”.
“The Daft Punk label will rot in hell. It is evil to AI upscale Interstella 5555 and make it look this garbage,” wrote user Moe9times on Twitter/ X.
Interstella 5555 (Remastered) in cinemas for one night only on December 12. Tickets on sale November 13.
Discovery: Interstella 5555 Edition available for pre-order now.
Discovery: Interstella 5555 Merchandise Collection available now. Full info at https://t.co/wdlZaWExaO pic.twitter.com/9xo3TVMR4v
— Daft Punk (@daftpunk) October 30, 2024
Tickets to Interstella 5555 (Remastered) will go on sale Wednesday, 13 November.
More information is available on the Daft Punk website.
