Ninja Scroll
Jubei is a masterless ninja who travels the land alone, lending his services to those with gold—or a worthy cause. His fearsome abilities have served him well, but a plot to overthrow the government threatens to end his wandering ways—and possibly his life.
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- Cast:
- Koichi Yamadera , Emi Shinohara , Takeshi Aono , Daisuke Gori , Ryuuzaburou Ootomo , Akimasa Omori , Gara Takashima
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Reviews
Memorable, crazy movie
A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."
Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.
The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.
I really liked this movie. The characters are good and even though its only 94 minutes long the story line is amazing, some people might think that the fighting scenes are too short but in my opinion I think they are perfect. A follow up movie about what happened before everything took place in this movie could be nice.
"Ninja Scroll" is an action/anime made in 1993 by Yoshiyaki Kawajiri. This film is set in the feudal Japan.Basic plot: A wandering samurai named Jubei Kipagami, who originally served the Yamashiro clan for years ago, is traveling on the land alone. People in a small village have died by a mystical plague, so a team of ninjas is sent to investigate the case, only to get brutally killed one by one by a rock creature named Tessai. The only survivor, the beautiful Kagero, gets raped and blood poisoned by Tessai. But Jubei saves her and kills Tessai, and sets out to annihilate a group called the Eight Devils of Kimon lead by the demonic Gemma Himuro.Throughout this film, there are lots of sword violence and several supernatural violence, which often get bloody result. This is enough to keep the mature fans of Japanese animation and ninjas interested. The soundtrack fits well in many of these scenes, especially during Tessai's attack and the ending scenes. The animation and the graphics itself are beautifully made, and so are the scenes with Jubei and Kagero together.This film is the fourth 18-rated anime I've seen after "Shadow Skill", "Venus Wars" and "Akira", well this film was at least rated 18 in Norway when released on VHS by Polygram Video. Like the other three anime movies I mentioned, this film was also English dubbed, but not subbed in Norwegian. On the Norwegian DVD copy I have, this film has been heavily toned down from being 18 to being rated 10 (!), something I just didn't like because of the fact all the nudity and the gory violence are intact on this DVD edition. In my opinion this film should have gotten at least a 15-rating.Are you a fan of ninjas and anime in general but haven't seen "Ninja Scroll", I suggest you to check out this film at least once. Honestly, this have to be one of the better ninja anime I've seen, together with the "Naruto" franchise. My overall rating for this film is therefore 9/10.Some of the other movies from Yoshiyaki Kawajiri to be mentioned include: "Wicked City" (1987), "Demon City Shinjuku" (1988) and "Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust" (2000).
This is a review coming from a true anime fan. I must say that it really is a great film to watch. The animation is done brilliantly and the English dubbing is done realistically.The characters are all quite likable when they are made to be liked. The villains are very scary and the stone guy at the start, damn i won't want to mess with him. The animated scenery is amazing for the nineties. It really makes the characters stand out.The plot is very tense and exciting. Its about a young hero who has to protect a girl who has poisonous body which kills any man who sleeps with her from evil and demonic beings. He is assisted by a con-man and faces someone from his past. This does seem pretty similar to other sorts of films but it is still very gripping.But don't let this cross your mind. It is not a kids cartoon. This is strictly for adults. This is very graphic and the most violent anime since the legendary AKIRA. There is also a rather disturbing rape scene near the start which has definitely earned its 18 rating.
This film has resonated with me since the first time I caught it on late night television all those years ago. The characters are all wonderfully drawn out. The beautifully shot scenes of ninja battles and landscapes giving us an idea of feudal Japan. The dialogue, which you initially think is too simple and silly, becomes richer and more hilarious the more you watch and listen.I haven't seen a lot of manga but I believe this film is a perfect introduction for a Western viewer in broaching the genre. It has certainly piqued my curiosity about Japanese anime although I can't see myself enjoying any other anime film more than I enjoyed this one.If you haven't seen this movie, go out and get it, but be warned, it isn't for the faint of heart!