Movie Review: Rurouni Kenshin

Nearly four months after it was released in Japanese theaters, the epic film adaptation of Nobuhiro Watsuki's "Rurouni Kenshin" has graced audiences in the Philippines. Initially working through a licensing and distribution process, the film finally came through to our shores as an exclusive in SM Cinemas. Much to the delight of fans of the beloved samurai manga/ anime series, it will be shown retaining its native Japanese language and is complete with English Subtitles. 

Now, after waiting for what seemed like an eternity, this period piece detailing the story of a wandering samurai atoning for his past is finally here. Was it worth the wait and does it deliver to its fanbase? Find out in this review.

Movie: Rurouni Kenshin 

Release Date: August 25, 2012 (JP), December 5, 2012 (RP) 

Starring: Takeru Sato, Emi Takei, Yosuke Eguchi, Koji Kikkawa, Yu Aoi, Munetaka Aoki 

Directed By: Keishi Otomo 

Celebrating 15 years of adventure and slice n' dice action, Rurouni Kenshin is blessed to be one of the most popular Japanese manga and anime series known to man from both sides of the east and west. Without giving too much away, the premise is simple and pretty easy to follow:

One a legendary swordsman called "Battosai The Slasher", Kenshin Himura gives up his life as an assassin after the end of the Tokugawa era and becomes a wanderer to atone for his past by helping others and vowing not to kill. Ten years later, he aids and meets Kamiya Kaoru, a young instructor of the Kamiya Dojo who holds high ideals and welcomes Kenshin into her home after he saves her. As he settles into his new life, he meets new faces and forges friendships with unlikely allies. All that however is soon tested, as new evils and ghosts from his past start to stir up trouble, forcing the former assassin into action once more while upholding his vow not to kill.

Rurouni Kenshin Trailer 2
Much like the source material itself, Rurouni Kenshin is a brilliant film that combines fiction with a period in Japanese history, resulting in a romanticization that works well and captures the attention of its audience. It's hard to believe that the franchise is celebrating its 15th anniversary already, and with so much potential still left in this series, it falls to director Keishi Otomo to create what is possibly one of the greatest manga/ anime - movie pieces I've ever seen. EVER. The film was even distributed by Warner Bros. in Japan, so it just goes to show how BIG a franchise RK is, which is also known overseas as Samurai X to western audiences!

Takeru Sato, known to most Tokusatsu viewers as Kamen Rider Den-O, has been superbly cast as the titular character Himura Kenshin. Despite not sounding quite effeminate like his anime counterpart, he gets the job done spectacularly with his quirks and calm demeanor as the wanderer, and is able to transition swiftly to display the powerful skill and determination his character demonstrates as a swordsman, both in his former life as "Battosai The Slasher" and as "Kenshin the Wanderer" in the present. It's easily a well-cast part, and as someone who's seen Sato perform multiple parts albeit voice dubbed over in Den-O to demonstrate multiple personalities, his interpretation of Kenshin/ Battosai is spot on. Obviously this will be a career defining role for the young Japanese actor, and he will forever be revered for being the live-action Himura Kenshin.

Other roles to note would fall squarely on the aptly named "Kenshin Gumi" or Kenshin Gang. Emi Takei portrays the strong-willed Kamiya Kaoru, owner of the Kamiya dojo and love interest of Kenshin. She's cute and fits the role well, although the live action version doesn't show much of her fight prowess after the first half of the film. The chemistry between her and Kenshin's actor onscreen though is unquestionable and nicely done, so there's a lot of potential to come when future sequels come in the future. Myojin Yahiko appears here too, played by young Taketo Tanaka and showing promise to become the young Kamiya dojo apprentice who looks up to Kenshin wholeheartedly. The beautiful Yu Aoi plays an absolutely gorgeous Takani Megumi, and her part in this film is just as large as Kaoru's, albeit in a reverse sense.

One character I will go on to make special note of is Sanosuke Sagara. The badass "Street Fighter" and Sekihotai survivor gets his time to shine in this one, although his epic confrontation with Kenshin left a lot to be desired somewhat. Still, it's good to know that Munetaka Aoki, the actor who portrayed my favorite character in the Rurouni Kenshin saga, was pretty comical and angsty, the way that Sano should be given his position as Kenshin's best bud and "guy who's got your back". I'm hoping he gets more screen time in future installments, but for now he's ok here and very effective to boot.

Finally, we have the badasses. First thing's first: Saito Hajime. Actor Yosuke Iguchi does well to play the former Shinsengumi member turned police officer, and his rivalry with Kenshin continues into the new era after the war. He feels like a toned down version of his badass anime/ manga counterpart, but there are already several liberties taken with the film version of RK that make it excusable. I'm sure we'll be seeing more of him in the future, as well as other notable adversaries that didn't make the cut but were given nods or alluded to in this film. One of the main bad guys though is Kanryu Taneda, and actor Teruyuki Kagawa plays this evil and selfish rich man to a tee. While he may be the big boss who hounds Kenshin and those close to him with typical mob threats, the real threat looms in the horizon... 

And what better way to have Kenshin's first real nemesis in the form of Udo Jine, a fellow Samurai who barges back into Kenshin's world relentlessly and retaining his mean killing streak. Koji Kikkawa, who also happens to be a Kamen Rider like Kenshin himself (portraying Kamen Rider Skull in Kamen Rider W and its movies), lends his intensity and badass demeanor into the role wholeheartedly, and I can see no perfect adversary for Takeru Sato to face in this film than him. All the talk of "Den-O vs Skull" pretty much paid off with this one.

I cannot stress how AWESOME the fight scenes are, and they were put together so nicely for this movie. Every action and maneuver Kenshin uses is choreographed so well in this film that it's almost impossible not to like it. His speed, agility, and swordmanship go hand-in-hand and give a realistic look at Hiten-Mitsurugi Ryu done in a live-action sense. His fights with opponents like Jine are just as intense, and brawling with over a dozen men compliments how superhuman the character looks sometimes... And that's not a bad thing. I will go on to say that some moves looked downright silly, and I'm looking at Saito on that note. Sanosuke's got his moves too, and there's nothing like seeing good old fashion asskicking done by him, with hilarious and cocky dialogue to boot.

Overall, what's more to say about Rurouni Kenshin? Nothing more than "MUST WATCH" for anybody like myself who grew up watching the anime, whether it was dubbed as Samurai X or retained in its original form and subtitled in English. With only a few days to run as an SM Cinema exclusive, Filipino audiences should do what they can to catch this one before it ends. Anyone who misses it may have to wait for the DVD/ Blu-Ray release, and that's not necessarily a bad thing considering there may be extra scenes or sequences that didn't make the final cut. Still that's no excuse to miss this majestic Samurai piece on the big screen, and anyone who adores action will absolutely dig Rurouni Kenshin.

Rating - 5/5

And on that note, I leave you with the movie's official theme by ONE OK ROCK - The Beginning.

ONE OK ROCK - The Beginning