As someone who loved the anime, I have to say that the movie was a bit disappointing. Call it bias, but what can I do, the anime set the standards high. Soundtrack was overused it was sometimes misapplied. Also, Samurai X, as in most animes, incorporate some comic dialogues which unfortunately this movie tried and it was just as it is..it tried. And failed. Rurouni Kenshin, the anime, was a serious one. I don't even know if the director really intended the movie to be laughable at some scenes which supposedly, should be a serious one (I'm not even going to talk about that Kanryu Takeda battle with that money confetti scene). There are some things which are better left untouched..leave it to the series if you can't successfully pull it off.
I think I was even more frustrated with their choice of saga, so to speak. Takeda was just a minimal, episode-filler type of opponent. Yet, he was built up to appear like Kenshin's reputation depended on him. I even think half of the movie centered on him. Jin'e was even forgettable a character in the series but at least insofar as the movie is concerned, he was someone not to be taken lightly. Or so I thought. And so it was supposed to be. But he was taken out of the limelight at times. I even came to the point of forgetting him and then when the scene includes him, I go, Oh yeah..there's Jin'e, he's still alive. Now if they're aiming for a sequel where they could emphasize on the bigger opponents Kenshin had (like Makoto Shishio for example) then I think they were a bit successful seeing how most watchers who were not able to watch the series was enticed by the movie. But I won't dwell on that because despite these downsides, I have to give credit where its due. Credit goes to the team for the effort.. The effort to at least impart the story of Kenshin Himura, aka Battousai, and synthesize his colorful life in just one movie. That's not an easy task. Especially with just much time, one cannot successfully fill in everything. But kudos to the movie for still being able to somehow include the highlights of Kenshin's life, especially on the past he wanted to erase and a reformed life he wanted to live. I also have to give it to the cast (and the director of course) for pulling off well how the characters were in the series. I mean, everyone of them was just the way they were portrayed in the series. Of course, its not how perfectly one imagined, but hey, they were the closest they could get. Now I think the greater burden is on Takeru Sato who played Kenshin. And good news for him, if he reads this, good job! He was just the Kenshin Himura in real-life form. Baby-faced, handsome, medium-built, even the way he stood, his signature moves..everything just felt right. Well-executed, well-prepared. Perfect.
Still, I'm not giving up on this. I even have to thank them for giving life to such well-loved anime. If ever a sequel comes on the way (and yes I'm still watching it despite my disappointment), I would love to see one whole movie with only the Shishio saga in it.
I think I was even more frustrated with their choice of saga, so to speak. Takeda was just a minimal, episode-filler type of opponent. Yet, he was built up to appear like Kenshin's reputation depended on him. I even think half of the movie centered on him. Jin'e was even forgettable a character in the series but at least insofar as the movie is concerned, he was someone not to be taken lightly. Or so I thought. And so it was supposed to be. But he was taken out of the limelight at times. I even came to the point of forgetting him and then when the scene includes him, I go, Oh yeah..there's Jin'e, he's still alive. Now if they're aiming for a sequel where they could emphasize on the bigger opponents Kenshin had (like Makoto Shishio for example) then I think they were a bit successful seeing how most watchers who were not able to watch the series was enticed by the movie. But I won't dwell on that because despite these downsides, I have to give credit where its due. Credit goes to the team for the effort.. The effort to at least impart the story of Kenshin Himura, aka Battousai, and synthesize his colorful life in just one movie. That's not an easy task. Especially with just much time, one cannot successfully fill in everything. But kudos to the movie for still being able to somehow include the highlights of Kenshin's life, especially on the past he wanted to erase and a reformed life he wanted to live. I also have to give it to the cast (and the director of course) for pulling off well how the characters were in the series. I mean, everyone of them was just the way they were portrayed in the series. Of course, its not how perfectly one imagined, but hey, they were the closest they could get. Now I think the greater burden is on Takeru Sato who played Kenshin. And good news for him, if he reads this, good job! He was just the Kenshin Himura in real-life form. Baby-faced, handsome, medium-built, even the way he stood, his signature moves..everything just felt right. Well-executed, well-prepared. Perfect.
Still, I'm not giving up on this. I even have to thank them for giving life to such well-loved anime. If ever a sequel comes on the way (and yes I'm still watching it despite my disappointment), I would love to see one whole movie with only the Shishio saga in it.