Kenshin le vagabond

I have heard of "Samurai X" but I have not really read the manga or seen any of anime about this character named Himura Kenshin. This live action movie had come with very high recommendations or else I may have just given this a pass. I am glad I made time for this movie.

Himura Kenshin is an assassin of the highest skill during that transition between the Imperial/Samurai Age and the New Age adapting Western practices. After a particular assignment plants in him a massive guilt-trip, he decided to "disappear" and become a wanderer, using his fighting skills to defend the helpless WITHOUT KILLING.

In this story, Kenshin meets and helps a young lady named Kaoru, whose fencing school was vandalized. They then get entangled in the affairs of a notorious ruthless drug dealer Kanryu Tanaka, when his drug chemist Megumi escapes and seeks shelter in Kaoru's school. On top of all this, there is a mad killer on the loose with mad sword skills calling himself the Battosai, a title bestowed on Kenshin in his murderous past which he would rather disown.

With all of these stories and more that the movie tries to tell, the running time is about two hours. However you will not feel the time at all as you get enthralled by the fantastic look of the movie and its spectacular fighting scenes. Either with sword, bare hands or firearms, the fights were choreographed with excitement. The cinematography, color palette and visual effects were impeccably executed.

I did not know how the anime drawings of each character before I watched, so I could not comment on that. It is sort of odd looking that with lead actor Takeru Sato, a highly skilled sword fighter looks so androgynous. Afterwards we see that he really does look like that in the anime series. So did the cute Emi Takei (as the feisty Kaoru), Munetaka Aoki (as the rash and brash street fighter Sanosuke)or even Yosuke Eguchi, the samurai turned police chief Hajime Saito.

As someone who had no prior knowledge about Samurai X, I was completely taken by this very good-looking film, enough that I may even seek out the animated TV series. This is highly recommended for fans of historical fiction and Japanese culture. Catch it only in SM Cinemas, as this is being locally shown exclusively there.

...you will love this live action version. The actor portraying Kenshin was perfect. So are Saito, Sano and Megumi--so perfect in fact, that I recognized each of them at first sight. And was filled with all sorts of warm/fuzzy feelings as if I was seeing long lost friends again for the first time in years.

I am not sure how people new to the Kenshin franchise will respond, because the film's creators leave out a lot of character development that we get in the slower paced manga and anime TV series in order to jump straight into the action. Since this is one of the best manga/anime series to come out in a long time, I suggest reading the manga, seeing the anime and THEN watching the live action film for maximum enjoyment.

"Oro!"

I have never even seen a manga so approached this movie with no preconceptions or prior knowledge of the characters. A bit like seeing a Batman movie without ever having read a comic, I imagine. The result was a very pleasant surprise. The principle characters were largely convincing, the photography was very attractive and the story line reasonable given the limits of the genre. The fact that it kept me interested for the entire 2+ hours speaks for itself. I found the sub-titles very effective in keeping me involved which is normally not the case. I am not sure if they are integral to the movie or a third party add-on, but were much better than a dubbed English version which would have taken away much of the authenticity of the movie. I am looking forward to the next episode.

First off - many of the reviewers thus far seem to be comparing this movie adaptation to "Samurai X" instead of its source material which is the manga. What they must realize is that "Samurai X" was an OVA created for western audiences done by people who had no connection with the manga or the original anime and thus was a departure from the original intent and feel of what the creator of the manga had in mind. He even disagreed with how "Samurai X" ended regarding the fate of Kaoru and Kenshin, so much so that he insisted on having the proper ending he envisioned for his own characters put into a collector's box edition of the original anime released in Japan. Even though it was gorgeously rendered, it was overly depressing and moody. Whether you want to believe it or not, Kenshin really wasn't that way. The whole point of his redemption was that, in spite of the pain of his past, he was still able to appreciate the simple joys in life and even laugh at things. The Kenshin in "Samurai X" was a somber, overly-wrought, super-tortured fellow who was awash with his own suffering. As a fan of RK, seeing him portrayed that way in "Samurai X" really broke my heart because a huge chunk of his personality went missing and all that was left was this emo dude. Onto the review:

PLOT/STORY: Understandably, this movie had a hard time trying to capture everything in the first volume of the manga in just over two hours. Because the manga was continuous, there was no way for the movie to be cut and dry in terms of villains and side characters. The director had to draw the line somewhere so the movie could have an ending. So, many fan favorite scenes were cut or changed in order to accommodate a more fluid movie. Time constraints didn't allow for a deep fleshing out of all the characters but, since this the first installment of other movies to come (it has been greenlit as a continuing series) I suspect that the audience is going to be exposed to that over time. I was taken aback at just how many things were changed (Sano's intro, Jin'e's concocted connection to Kanryu, Hanya's choice of weapons, the Oniwabanshu but no Aoshi?!) but I felt they did their best to stay true to the spirit of the story by trying to streamline events. There is even a flashback scene of Kenshin's past included in this movie but it gave you a hint (just a hint) of his tortured past and leaves you wondering.

ACTORS: The casting was very well done for this movie. Kenshin is supposed to be relatively diminutive and almost feminine in his looks and stature (the creator based him on an actual historical figure who could carry out assassinations in broad daylight, he was that good), which is why people always underestimated him in a fight or commented on his slight figure. He was a Jekyll and Hyde that way. He could go from unassuming, humble Rurouni to out-and-out killer who's eyes would change into a murderous gaze when the "hitokiri" side was provoked (straight outta the manga). You could say Kenshin can "hulk-out" lol. Sato, with his pretty looks and physicality, really did well in portraying the conflicted character of Kenshin. Emy was cute as a button, perhaps too cute, since Kaoru is supposed to be a bit more plain and a tomboy but it was satisfying to see her bickering with Yahiko. The kid playing Yahiko was spot-on with the brashness and stubborn pride. Sanosuke's portrayal was a little goofy. There is no allusion to what drives Sano into being a fighter for hire but read the manga for clarification and you will see why he and Kenshin create such a strong bond of friendship. In the movie, there was no time to do so, I guess and Sano's a lot tougher than he is portrayed. Megumi's actress did her justice, I think. Again, not too deep in fleshing out her past either but still, you can see her intelligence and intensity underneath her manipulations. Lastly, Saitou's actor was awesome. He captured the cold, brutal carriage of the Wolf of Mibu very well with his stoic face and the constant badgering of Kenshin. I will stop at the main characters or else this will be too long. All in all, the casting was superb.

MUSIC AND CINEMATOGRAPHY: The music ranges from fairly modern (techno beats with tribal vocals) to standard orchestral. I don't remember hearing any traditional Japanese instruments being played over scenes but I could be mistaken. Sometimes the music seemed to be out of place or over-used. For example, dramatic fight scenes seemed to bring out that techno song again and again). A part of me wishes they had somehow incorporated Kenshin's theme from the original anime series; just s simple wooden flute part or something as a nod since it's so recognizable. Otherwise it was fine. The look of the movie is fantastic. Whether it's a war-torn forest or just a village scene or a shot of Kaoru's dojo, it looks thick and substantial. I remember seeing shots of the creator of the manga (Nobuhiro Watsuki) on the set of the movie and watching over the set building. It gave me great comfort that he was there to see it through.

Overall, this is one of the best, if not THE best, live-action adaptations of a manga I've yet seen. For those of you who are going to see it, if you haven't read the manga yet it certainly isn't required in order to enjoy the movie but it was thoroughly more enjoyable to see these beloved characters come to life on screen. In any case, I am greatly looking forward to the next installment and will relish in trying to figure out what storyline is going to be featured next!!

In 1868, after the end of the Bakumatsu war, the former assassin Kenshin Himura (Takeru Sato) promises to defend those who needs without killing and wanders through Japan with a sword with inverted blade during the transition of the samurai age to the New Age.

When Kenshin helps the idealistic Kaoru Kamiya (Emi Takei) from the gangsters of the powerful opium drug lord Kanryuu Takeda (Teruyuki Kagawa) that wants her school for his production of opium, Kaoru invites Kenshin to stay in the school. But the drug chemist Megumi Takani (Yû Aoi) escapes from Kanryuu and seeks shelter in the school. Meanwhile the killer Battosai is murdering police officers and leaving messages attached to their bodies. When the cruel Kanryuu poisons the population to get the school, and Kenshin and the street fighter Sanosuke Sagara (Munetaka Aoki) join forces to attack their common enemy.

"Rurôni Kenshin: Meiji kenkaku roman tan" is an excellent samurai movie with spectacular choreography of the fights and a good story. I have just learned that it is based on a manga and I really liked a lot. I saw this movie in the airplane and unfortunately my flight arrived and I did not see the conclusion of the story. The worst thing is that I will have to wait since this movie has not been released in my country yet. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): Not Available

Note: Fortunately Internet does exist and today (30 December 2012) I have just finished watching this awesome movie again, this time until the very end.

On 13 August 2016, I saw this film again on DVD.