'Cardcaptor Sakura' Is Returning To U.S. Theaters

Cardcaptor Sakura is currently in the middle of a huge revival thanks to the airing of its sequel Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card, and fans who are now interested in the older series will have the chance to experience for themselves in a major way.

Crunchyroll has announced that it will screen the Cardcaptor Sakura: The Sealed Card film in theaters as part of its next movie night event. These screenings will take place January 31, February 3, and February 4. These screenings will also include the prologue episode of Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card and will be in Japanese with English subtitles.

Crunchyroll describes the film as:

"In Cardcaptor Sakura: The Sealed Card, Sakura and Syaoran are reunited at last -- but as Sakura tries to come to terms with her feelings for Syaoran, the two must face off against the strongest Clow Card ever made!"

Tickets are currently on sale for this movie night event (which you can purchase here), and those in attendance will also be gifted with a limited edition postcard. Cardcaptor Sakura: The Sealed Card is the franchise's second film, and debuted in Japan in 2000. The film has also be re-screening in Japan recently, and had been licensed for an English dub home video release by Geneon in 2003.

For those unfamiliar with Cardcaptor Sakura, the series follows Sakura, an elementary student who discovers she has magical powers after accidentally releasing a set of magical cards from a mysterious book. CLAMP's original manga ran for 12 volumes from November 1996 to July 2000.

The original 1990s series will also be receiving a 4K remaster that scans its original 35mm film negatives digitally into 4K. The 11-disc set features the anime's two seasons: the "Clow Card" arc, which ran for 46 episodes from April 1998 to June 1999, and the "Sakura Card" arc, which ran for 24 episodes from September 1999 to March 2000.

CLAMP launched the Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card sequel manga in June 2016 and follows Sakura in junior high school. After a prophetic dream about a mysterious figure, the Sakura Cards turn blank and are rendered completely powerless. Sakura and her friends then set out on a quest to find out what is wrong. Along with her guardians and protectors, Cerberus and Yue, Sakura must find and capture the transparent cards using a new, and much stronger key.

Director of the original 1990s series and films Morio Asaka is returning to direct the new series for Madhouse. CLAMP's Nanase Ohkawa is handling the composition, and will contribute to the scripts. Animation director for the previous series and films Kunihiko Hamada is the character designer, and CLAMP's Mokona will handle costume and card designs. Masafumi Mima will sound direct, and Takayuki Negishi is composing the music. Maaya Sakamoto will also be returning to perform the opening theme song, "CLEAR."