Mononoke Movie 1: Karakasa

Within the Inner Chambers—the luxurious garden of women destined only for the ruler of the nation—work burdens everyone from the lowest maid to the highest-ranking concubine. After arriving on the same day to start as servants, Asa and Kame quickly become friends. The two vow to overcome any challenges in their way as they begin their splendid new lives.

In the midst of intricate power relations, uncanny rituals, and untold secrets, the Inner Chambers are thrown into an uproar when strange incidents disrupt the arrangements for an upcoming ceremony. While shogunate officers are dispatched to investigate the matter, the strange Medicine Seller knocks on the gates and demands access to these forbidden quarters, claiming that their situation is much more dangerous than they imagined.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Kusuriuri Main

Kamiya, Hiroshi Japanese

Asa Supporting

Kurosawa, Tomoyo Japanese

Kame Supporting

Yuuki, Aoi Japanese

Sakashita Supporting

Hosomi, Daisuke Japanese

Kume Supporting

Hanai, Miharu Japanese

Tenshi Supporting

Irino, Miyu Japanese

Mizorogi, Hokuto Supporting

Tsuda, Kenjirou Japanese

Mizorogi, Futsukazuki Supporting

Watada, Misaki Japanese

Tokita, Fuki Supporting

Hikasa, Youko Japanese

Mizorogi, Mikazuki Supporting

Hiratsuka, Sae Japanese

Sudoku, Yuuki Producer

Satou, Kimiaki Producer

Nakamura, Kenji Director, Screenplay

Nagasaki, Yukio Sound Director

Reviews

Jul 26, 2024

WinterFireworks

Recommended

A must for Mononoke and Japanese horror fans, this goes without saying.

But even if you're new to Mononoke (not to be confused with Princess Mononoke), this movie will be a real trip. Beautiful visuals, amazing soundtrack and cast, interesting plot and characters. You'll find yourself sucked into a world of colour and emotion. Traditional Japanese elements mix with the supernatural and the occult, composing a feast for the eyes and senses.

Mononoke Karakasa, just like the TV series Mononoke, travels back in time to the Edo period to follow the steps of the mysterious figure of the Medicine Seller, who is here to fight ... the "mononoke", the malevolent spirit that appears and feeds off the feelings and actions of the characters in the story. Karakasa takes place in the Ōoku of Edo Castle, the women's quarters, where the mononoke starts getting stronger thanks to the women's grudges and resentment at having to sacrifice what was important to them in order to perform their duties. To be able to slay the mononoke, the Medicine Seller has to first figure out its Form, Truth and Reason.

Strong female presence, friendship, character development and a stronger mononoke than we've seen before that leads to an epic fighting scene, set this movie apart from the original TV series. It is worth a watch or maybe even a rewatch to be able to take in all the elements and symbolism of the story.

Reviewer’s Rating: 10

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Nov 30, 2024

niflh

Mixed Feelings

Well-written

Mononoke the TV series, along with the joining episodes of Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales, has been, since the late 2000s, my favorite show of all time. It's held a special place in my heart like none other. When I saw a movie was coming, I can't even begin to explain the joy and excitement that overtook me; the painstaking moments of waiting and checking to see if it'd been released yet. I thought, no I *KNEW*, I would love this... Unfortunately, I'd been quite wrong. My adoration for Kusuriuri-san and this series has kept my rating high, but the movie itself, although beautiful, falls short. ... It is hard to put my finger on, but the art, despite colorful and full of promise, is simply missing some key element of depth or "SOUL" the tv series had. In all its vibrancy, it is somehow still bland. The pacing of the animation is almost painful to watch at times - frequently flickering around from scene to scene at such a rate that you never really appreciate any one thing. The colors, which were once a great selling point, due to the aforementioned repetitive and fast movement, began to do nothing more than hurt my eyes. Kusuriuri-san himself seems to lack a certain elegance and refinement in the movie, and he feels as if a completely different character, from speech to mannerisms - not even considering the change in attire/appearance, which alone I'd consider an aesthetic downgrade. Was it silly for me to want for a movie that was a continuation of the show's original vibe, beauty, excellency, after so long? Maybe so. But as a die hard fan of what it has been all of these years, I simply cannot love what this movie is. I am sure there are many who will disagree, but this feels too much like it was heavy-handedly pushed in a weird and modern direction that completely disregards what made Mononoke so beautiful in the first place. It feels rushed. It doesn't feel like it was made with care. Sorry.

Edit: Though I still feel the movie felt 'weak' compared to the tv series, it appears the Kusuriuri-san in the movies is not the same character as in the tv series - which explains quite a bit (I was not aware of this while writing my review).

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Dec 2, 2024

rhoney1313

Not Recommended

Funny

I loved the original series and had been looking forward to this movie for ages. Sadly, I can only assume that whoever was in charge of it decided that since everyone loved all of the beautiful and artistic scenery, let’s quadruple them and then rapidly flash at least three for every sentence shown in the subtitles. So fast that you can barely keep up with the reading. I had to constantly pause just to read and still ended up with a massive headache and felt dizzy. What an appalling movie, I literally cried with disappointment.

It seems I cann’t publish ... this without more words, but I really have nothing else to say about this movie.

Reviewer’s Rating: 1

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	Poll: Mononoke Movie: Karakasa Episode 1 Discussion KiraYoshikage - Jul 20, 2024	40 replies	by Chika_tetsu »» Sep 5, 2025 5:23 PM
	Is this canon? apinzunime_ - Dec 8, 2024	2 replies	by Infernal_Fae »» Mar 16, 2025 9:19 PM
	Things I noticed and wanted to talk about. 5degree - Dec 26, 2024	18 replies	by 5degree »» Feb 18, 2025 2:16 AM
	Why the change in voice actors Petrtep - Jul 17, 2024	13 replies	by therealnagora »» Dec 1, 2024 1:56 PM
	Mononoke Movie: Karakasa is coming to Netflix RealNath - Aug 6, 2024	4 replies	by Readerio »» Oct 19, 2024 9:50 PM