Rurouni Kenshin is my favorite anime series of all time (hubby likes it, too). So much so that we had Kenshin and Kauro action figures as caketoppers atop our wedding cake. When we learned that the live-action film will have an exclusive screening on SM Cinemas, we got excited and marked the date on the calendar.
But alas, despite our intentions to watch it on the first showing day, work got in the way and it wasn't until 3 days later, a Saturday, when our schedule permitted us.
SM got the exclusive rights to screen the Rurouni Kenshin movie but it had limited run in some SM Cinemas near us, so we decided to head to SM Mall of Asia, where it is shown in 4 cinemas. We got there at around 12:30 p.m. and learned that the 2 p.m. schedule was already full. It must be a hit, I thought.
We bough tickets for the 5 p.m. slot and spent the next 4 hours strolling inside the mall. We honestly thought we were still early when we came up at 4:30 p.m., but was surprised to find a long queue waiting outside Cinema 1, where the 5 p.m. schedule will be screened. We even had to double-check if all these people were really lining up for Rurouni Kenshin. And they were. It was a hit indeed.
Rurouni Kenshin is the fictional story of Himura Kenshin, a legendary swordsman hired by the government as an assassin during the Meiji Restoration period. After killing so many people, he decided to become a wanderer and vowed never to take another soul again. Rurouni Kenshin loosely translates to Kenshin, the Wandering Swordsman, or simply Kenshin, the Wanderer. Here in the Philippines, the anime series was called Samurai X, referring to the X scar mark on Kenshin's face. And perhaps, an allusion to Kenshin being an ex-samurai.
Obviously, the movie also revolved around that story. They chose to tell the Takeda/Opium arc, where Kenshin and his friends fought Kanryu Takeda's group to stop them from peddling opium, and the Udo Jin-e arc, where he had to deal with Jin-e, another samurai murderer from his past, who believes that they who lived by the sword can never turn their backs from killing.
These story arcs were separate from each other, but in the movie, they were combined as a single story. As such, modifications in the story and some characters were inevitable, but forgivable because I understand that they had to compress everything into a 2-hour movie.
For example, Jin-e was not part of the Takeda's band of hired bodyguards. But in the movie, he was the leader of the group, replacing Shinomori Aoishi. The Oniwabanshu (Oni) group members were also misrepresented. There's a masked man, who at first we thought was Hanya, but had the hair and cape (in black) of Hiko Seijuro. When he revealed his face, his silver spiked hair resembled that of Enishi (Tomoe's brother), had a scarred face (which I couldn't identify), but talked like Aoishi.
Another glaring deviation was the inclusion of Jajime Saito, who didn't appear originally in any of the two arcs, but later at the beginning of the Shishio/Kyoto arc. For me, his inclusion was to pander to the fans. Sure, it would be nice to highlight the long-time rivalry between Kenshin and Saito, but the movie had too much going on already, to put a proper light on this angle. As a result, the duel between Kenshin and Saito, which to me is one, if not the best fight scene in the series, wasn't given justice. It wasn't even close to the real sword fight.
But as far as fighting scene goes, everything else was superb. Kenshin fought they way he fought in the series. I read somewhere that they used minimal CGI and relied mostly on rope-technique for the fighting scenes. The stance was perfect, the speed, the agility, the sword technique - it was believable. All that's missing was Kenshin's eyes turning amber when he turns into Battousai.
Casting and character portrayals were commendable as well. Sansouke and Yahiko were hilarious, Megumi was foxy and Kauro was cute and feisty. Together with the perfect setting, it's as if you're watching a live-action of the anime series (well, it is a live-action film of the anime series). What I also love is the small, subtle details that are distinctly Rurouni Kenshin (especially Kenshin's Oro face).
It is a great movie but it's not perfect. One flaw that others usually point out is the weak character development. There were a number of characters introduced without properly 'introducing' them. As a fan, it's easy (and fun and nostalgic, too) to identify these characters and understand their roles in the story. But it can be confusing if you're not familiar with the series. Also, I find some characters were not really necessary to the movie story, but it was delightful to see them in the movie nonetheless.
Rurouni Kenshin was a great movie adaptation of an equally great anime series. It stayed as faithful as possible to the plot and characters, and Kenshin's story was told beautifully while preserving the heart and soul of the series. But more than anything, it is a wonderful fan movie, made by a fan, for the fans. It's a good example of why anime series must be made into movies by people who know them by heart.
Here's hoping to a part 2 and 3. I'd love to see the Shishio/Kyoto arc and Tomoe/Enishi/Kauro arc on the big screen.
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