“Ninja Scroll” tackles themes of action, fantasy and history, set in feudal Japan, within an 1993 Japanese animated feature film. This film, directed by Yoshiaki Kawajiri, is well-respected for its action-oriented features, linear and complex plot, as well as mature themes which reinforce its stature as one of the classics in the anime genre.
Synopsis
Jubei Kibagami’s tale is of interest as he is portrayed in the film as a superb mercenary swordsman wandering the lands. Because of an incident where he was forced to eliminate his own associates, Jubei has known the life of a lone mercenary. He meets Kagero while she is trying to escape from an evil ninja named Tessai, who belongs to a group known as the Eight Devils of Kimon. Kagero, a kunoichi of the Koga clan, has an unusual trait around women: her family has toughened and numbed her fingers, thus she is unable to touch someone without harming them.
Dakuan, the deceitful government spy, manages to persuade Jubei to assist in stopping the plans of the Eight Devils to overthrow the Tokugawa Shogunate. Jubei is, however, unwilling to assist Dakuan and Kagero in the face of such powerful oppositions, each having different kinds of supernatural skills. Jubei ventures deeper and learns that the Eight Devils’ leader is Genma Himuro, an evil man from his past who he killed once before. Genma who apparently has the power to regenerate and is realistically immortal wants to make the world know fear.
The trio’s share of the hardships includes fighting against the remaining Devils, clan infighting and other outbreak strain to add on the list. It reaches its height with an epic battle between Jubei and Genma in the last scene which takes place on a burning ship filled with gold, stereotypical of the treachery they try to stand against. Every triumph has cost and with this one, Jubei comes out victorious for all good reasons but at the end leaves the audience with a bitter taste about life lessons such as sacrifices, honor codes and the fact that nothing lasts forever.
Cast & Crew Director and Writer: The creator of such dark fantasy anime projects as ‘Wicked City’ and ‘Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust’, Yoshiaki Kawajiri once again proved to be an exceptional storyteller in ‘Ninja Scroll.’ Other Works: Yoshiaki Kawajiri.
Voice Cast:
Kōichi Yamadera as Jubei Kibagami: Kōichi has made this typical Yōkai look very impressive due to excellent stylizations.
Emi Shinohara as Kagero: Shinohara appears to do justice to the character of Kagero who appears both menacing yet delicate because of her horrific curse.
Takeshi Aono as Dakuan: It is plausible that Dakuan, the government spy in Aono’s portrayal, is indeed crafty and deceitful.
Daisuke Gōri as Genma Himuro: The viewers are spellbound since Gori plays the role of a ruthless and almost unrealized foe.
Crew: Increasingly invited to US projects, Kaoru Wada has created a rhythm track that is integrated into the film and accentuates the camera action perfectly.
Animation Studio: Overall, the film belongs to Madhouse, which is quite rightfully considered one of the best studios in terms of quality and influence in the anime industry.
Ninja scroll has many wards and praise with IMDb scoring 7.8 out of ten, taken from 41,000 user’s votes. Film has highly earned appreciation from its viewers and critics due to its beautiful and engaging animations, story, and well coordinated fighting scenes. The film contains shocking violence, and adult content has been both an asset and a source of disputes which contributes to it being a cult classic. It could be heard in every anime and in Western pastime because it helped to leave Japan and to make an adult animation here. The Legend Of Hana’s Heart Legacy ‘Ninja scroll’ is most of all given responsibility for the first penetration of the mature oriented anime industry into the foreign market. Its success was an evidence of animation for adults could work globally which influenced the distribution and production of such works. The movies interaction between real history and elements of a fantasy world motivated hundreds of creators and still is one of the pinnacles of discussions about the influential anime films.
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