[JAPAN MOVIE 2012-2014] るろうに剣心 -明治剣客浪漫譚- / RUROUNI KENSHIN

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id="firstHeading" class="firstHeading" lang="en"Rurouni Kenshin (Live Movie)

Kenshin the wanderer (るろうに剣心)

A Japanese film adaptation of Rurouni Kenshin based on the popular manga of the same name. Originally created by Watsuki Nobuhiro (和月伸宏) and directed by Otomo Keishi (大友啓史).

Two sequel movies are expected to come out:

• Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Taika-hen

Historical Terms

Bakumatsu 幕末 - The end of the Edo era that marked the end of the Tokugawa shogunate.

Meiji period 明治時代 - The era when Japan moved from an isolated feudal society to a more westernized one.

Isshin-shishi 維新志士 - Means "Restoration" and "men of high purpose". This is the group the Kenshin worked for during the Bakumatsu. For the most part, they worked to usher in the Restoration, putting in place the Meiji emperor and ushering in the Meiji era.

Shinsengumi 新選組 - The "newly selected force" were the special police of the late shogunate period. That put Hajime at odds with Kenshin and explains why he has a pseudonym as a police officer during the Meiji era.

Major Battles Mentioned

• Battle of Aizu - This is where Megumi's family died.
• Boshin War 戊辰戦争 - It was during this battle that the Meiji Emperor achieved victory over the shoguns, ushering in the new age. This is the battle that Kenshin and Hajime are in at the beginning of the movie.

Schools of Sword Styles

Kamiya Kasshin-ryuu 神谷活心流

The name comes from Kamiya (Kaoru's family name) and Kasshin, which means roughly "active heart".

The school where Kaou is the assistant instructor. Their philosophy is "A sword that gives life." Currently its only student is Yahiko, since most people abandoned it after Jine started murdering while saying he was using the Kamiya Kasshin-ryuu style.

Hiten Mitsurugi-ryuu 飛天御剣流

Name roughly translates to "The sacred sword in flight through the sky/heaven".

An ancient sword style that focuses on dispelling large groups of people quickly.

Battou jutsu 抜刀術 - This is a technique that turns the movement of unsheathing the sword into a deadly strike. Kenshin's specialty in this is what earned him the title Hitokiri Battousai.

Souryuusen双龍閃 (Twin Dragon Flash) - This attack involves drawing the sword to strike, then using the sheathe as a secondary weapon on the opponent, hence the twin dragons in the name. In the movie Kenshin says the full name Hiten Mitsurugi-ryuu Battoujutsu Souryuusen.

Nikaidouheihou 二階堂兵法

Jine's technique. Actually based on real techniques.

Haishatou 背車刀 (Back wheel sword) - Jine's technique of putting the sword behind his back, so his opponent can't tell from which direction he'll swing from.

Shin no ippou 心の一方 (One-sided heart) - Sending out chi from the eye to freeze one's opponent.

Cast

• Himura Kenshin 緋村剣心 - Satou Takeru
• Kamiya Kaoru 神谷薫 - Takei Emi
• Udou Jine 鵜堂刃衛 - Kikkawa Koji
• Takani Megumi 高荷恵 - Aoi Yu
• Sagara Sanosuke - Aoki Munetaka
• Gein 外印 - Ayano Gou
• Inui Banjin 戌亥番神 - Sudo Genki
• Myoujin Yahiko 明神弥彦 - 田中偉登
• Chief of Police Uramura 浦村署長 - Saitou Yousuke
• Sekihara Tae 関原妙 - Hirata Kaoru
• Sanjou Tsubame 三条燕 - Nagano Mei
• 我荒・兄 Older brother - Hirayama Yusuke
• 我荒・弟 Younger brother - Fukami Motoki
• Man in Western Clothes ?Kodama 洋装の男・児玉 - Honda Daisuke
• Man in Western Clothes ?Kikuchi 洋装の男・菊池 - Okamoto Koutarou
• Man in Western Clothes ?Mitsui 洋装の男・三井 - Yamasaki Jun
• Man cut down 斬られる男 - 上舎裕貴
• Kubo Husband 久保・夫 - Yashiba Toshihiro
• Kubo Wife 久保・妻 - Anami Atsuko
• Apothecary 漢方医 - Arifuku Masashi
• 水島 - Ochiai Motoki
• Investigating officer 取調官 - Nagahori Taketoshi
• Man in white 白衣の男 - Matsushima Ryota
• Kiyosato Akira 清里明良 - Kubota Masataka
• Katsura Kogorou 桂小五郎 - Miyakawa Ichirota
• Yamagata Aritomo 山県有朋 - Okuda Eiji
• 徳永淳
• Harada Hiroaki
• Kousen
• Takano Ryou
• 川鶴晃裕
• 内藤和也
• 渡辺菜月
• 河村愛子
• 松尾諭
• Saitou Hajime 斎藤一 (Pseudoname Fujita Gorou) - Eguchi Yousuke
• Takeda Kanryuu 武田観柳 - Kagawa Teruyuki

Music

The Beginning

Singer: ONE OK ROCK

Trivia

• Kenshin's name during the Bakumatsu is Hitokiri Battousai.
  • Hitokiri 人斬り just means "killer", literally "man slasher".
  • Battousai 抜刀斎 means "master of the sword draw technique". That's because Kenshin's specialty is battoujutsu 抜刀術, which is a technique of slashing the sword using the motion of drawing the sword from its sheathe.
• Kaoru notes in the movie that Kenshin's name means "heart of sword" since the kanji in his name are sword (ken 剣) and heart (shin 心). This is also a reference to an ending theme song sung by T.M.Revolution, also called "Heart of Sword."

Toku actors

• Kenshin's actor, Satou Takeru, made his toku breakthrough as Nogami Ryoutaru / Kamen Rider Den-O.
• Ochiai Motoki was also in Den-O ep. 1-2. He played Tetsuo.
• Kikkawa Koji (Jine) played Kamen Rider Skull and sung the songs for W and Kabuto.
• Hirata Kaoru plays Tae the waitress (also appears in the scene with the poisoned people). She was MagiRed's love interest in MagiRanger.
• Sudo Genki (Inui Banjin) played the Luna Dopant in Kamen Rider W.
• Kubota Masataka (Kiyosato Akira) was Keita from Keitai Sousakan 7.
• Saitou Yousuke (Chief of Police) played Priest Akaza in Garo Red Requiem.
• Ayano Gou (Gein) played the Spider Orphenoch on Faiz.
• Yamasaki Jun played Houjou Tooru on Agito and Centipede Orphenoch on Faiz.
• Yashiba Toshihiro (Kubo) was Aoki on Makai Senki and on Abaranger.
• Arifuku Masashi played Don Katayama on GaoRanger.
• Kousen was on Ryuki 11.

credit:  tvnihon

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Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno




Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno (Japanese: るろうに剣心 京都大火編; Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Taika-hen, literally "The Great Kyoto Fire Chapter"), is the sequel to the first Rurouni Kenshin live action movie adaptation of 2012. Returning casts include Takeru Satoh as Kenshin and Emi Takei as Kaoru, while the main villain Shishio Makoto is played by Tatsuya Fujiwara. It premiered in Japan on August 1, 2014.This film is immediately followed by its sequel The Legend Ends.Unless otherwise stated below, tropes from the source material about the Kyoto Arc and the first movie (as well as those related to the plot and characters) also apply here.

Tropes associated with Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno:

• Adaptational Angst Upgrade:
  • Compared to the source material, Aoshi has been grieving the deaths of his fallen comrades for a whole if not over a decade.
  • Inverted with Kaoru, Megumi and Yahiko, who didn't took Kenshin leaving for Kyoto as hard as in the source material. Even Sano, the only one voicing how upset he is about it, wasn't as angry in this continuity.
  • Possibly also inverted with Misao since she is aware of the tragic fates of Aoshi's comrades in this continuity. She's also not as affected by Aoshi's madness compared to the source material.

  Adapted Out:

  • Sanosuke did not learn Futae no Kiwami, as he did not cross paths with Anji at all en route to Kyoto.
  • Similarly, Senkaku was nowhere to be seen during the Shingetsu sub-plot
• 
  

  Adaptational Badass: A majority of the skillset of the main characters and supporting cast were expanded upon in this film:

  • Kaoru, apart from her kendo skills, is shown to be capable of wielding a naginata (albeit a wooden training one) at the height of the Kyoto Inferno operation. She's nevertheless reduced to Improvised Weapon after it breaks from stress.
  • Yahiko is equipped with a bokken and is shown to be easily taking down many of Shishio's mooks himself (when the most he's been able to defeat prior to the Kyoto Arc were Yutaro, and Hiruma Gohei in filler).
  • Misao was able to show off her close-quarter combat capabilities, whereas she almost always relies on kunai in the source material.
  • Okina, beyond using his trademark tonfa, was also comfortable in using a katana. He also manages to last long in his battle with Aoshi without getting a hand maimed by a kodachi.
  • Hōji is more of an Action Survivor than a complete Non-Action Guy like he is in the source material.
  • Not necessarily to a character but to a weapon: Sawagejo Chō, "the Sword Hunter", used the two-bladed Renbatou as his ultimate weapon against Kenshin (as the Whip Sword Hakujin no Tachi of the anime is quite impossible to do without CGI). The Renbatou can be utilized creatively and deployed as massive scissor-like blades.
  • Most remarkable, however, is the fact that Saizuchi is capable of wielding a naginata and was among the first to attack Kenshin at his climactic faceoff with the Juppongatana at the Rengoku (see also Adaptational Attractiveness).
• Adaptational Modesty:
  • The Oniwabanshuu's outfits are more ninja-like compared to their somewhat Stripperific ones (of the females at least) in the source material.
  • Yumi Komagata's kimono doesn't sport an Impossibly-Low Neckline like in the source material and instead sports an "off- the-shoulder" one.

  Adaptation Distillation: Once again, while it's relatively justified considering the vast scope of the Kyoto Arc (the storyline is continued in The Legend Ends), many details events in the series unfolded differently, leading to a quite original narrative altogether.

  • Most remarkable in this respect is the radical change in Aoshi's Origin Story, by virtue of being Adapted Out from the first film: He snapped 10 years earlier at the fall of Edo and the Tokugawa Shogunate, when he failed to save the members of the Oniwabanshuu (here regular people) from execution by the surrendering Shogunate soldiers themselves.
  • Since the fight between Kenshin and Saito have already happened in front of Yamagata in the first film, Kenshin was fetched by Kawaji to Okubo's office to discuss the business with Shishio, with only Sanosuke being with him. This leads to the protests of Kaoru, Yahiko and Megumi being left unheard by Okubo himself.
  • As Saito has already left for Kyoto at this stage, Sanosuke being beat up before heading for Kyoto was done by Aoshi instead.
  • The farewell conversation between Kaoru and Kenshin were done during late afternoon instead of nighttime; in turn, Kaoru was more composed (if a bit distraught) in seeing Kenshin off, instead of crying herself out. Subsequently, Kaoru and Megumi's conversation about Kenshin's human limits was moved up from the end of the Kyoto arc into being Megumi's attempt to convince Kaoru to follow Kenshin in Kyoto. (This is because Kaoru, in this continuity, was trying to move on with her life and dojo management instead of pining away, making Megumi's scolding of Kaoru unnecessary).
  • Kenshin and Misao, by virtue of their lack of mutual connection with Aoshi in this continuity, were forced to work together by Eiji's sudden appearance and kicking off the Shingetsu plot.
  • The story removes Senkaku altogether in the context of Shingetsu's conquest, giving off the assumption that Shishio did it himself.
  • Since Kenshin has yet to renew his training under Hiko Seijuro (this was moved to The Legend Ends), Kaoru and Yahiko reuniting with Kenshin was substituted for Misao witnessing his fight with Chō, as well as discovering that Arai Shakku's last sword was the sakabatō shinuchi.

  
  

• Adaptation Expansion: The Kyoto Inferno operation was originally a covert arson attempt nipped in the bud at the last minute by Kenshin, Saito and Sanosuke coordinating with the Oniwabanshu (who informed the entire population), even ending with the destruction of the Rengoku. In this film, the Kyoto Inferno battle was a more major threat, considering it involved hundreds of mooks, policemen, Oniwabanshu, as well as Kaoru and Yahiko, compressing the original and the defense of the Aoiya from the anime. This sets up for the twist that after all the Kyoto-based forces were spent, Shishio and the Juppongatana were able to sail with the Rengoku intact and with Kaoru in tow, allowing Shishio to actually threaten Tokyo and the Meiji government.

• A Father to His Men: Once again, Saito plays the part with seething vengeance after his unsuccessful bid to capture Shishio ends with the death of almost his entire squad (save himself).
  • The film portrayal of Kawaji Toshiyoshi is portrayed along this light as well, with the same Tranquil Fury while showing Kenshin the corpses of dead police officers, supposedly murdered by Shishio's men to coincide with Okubo Toshimichi's assassination.
  • Probably the main constant factor in Aoshi's revised Origin Story: trying (and failing) to save his men from execution by their own allies in the Shogunate led to his bitterness against the changing world and his obsessive grudge on Battosai.

  And Starring: The CBB lists Tatsuya Fujiwara (Shishio's actor) this way.

• Ascended Extra: Not exactly translating to screentime, but the swordsmith Arai Shakku (whose face was obscured in the manga and anime) appears here in full view and with a proper exchange with Kenshin himself.
• Badass: Again, obviously.
  • Badass Adorable: Kenshin again.
  • Badass Beard: Okubo and Okina sports one. For a non-combatant swordsmith, Shakku's beard is also remarkable.
  • Badass Grandpa: Okina and Saizuchi.
  • Colonel Badass: Saito again.
  • Cute Bruiser: Misao and Yahiko would definitely count, considering their mowing of hundreds of Shishio's mooks, in contrast to their age and size.
  • Handicapped Badass: Shishio.

  Bad Boss: It is a mystery how Shishio can command the Undying Loyalty of so many of his mooks when he seems to have little regard for their welfare and job security. See how he callously brings down two of his lairs with his men in it, and how he basically picks a few of them to kill for sport with the recently-acquired Nagasone Kotetsu.

• Blood Knight: Shishio and Aoshi are in fine form in this film.
• Body Double: The Japanese term itself (影武者, kagemusha) was invoked by Kenshin, after learning that the Shishio which appeared amongst the chaos of the Kyoto Inferno battle was only among one of dozens of doubles dressed up like Shishio, sent to wear his stamina down further.
• Cliffhanger: The movie ends with Hiko Seijuro taking the unconscious Kenshin to his home, presumably to train him once he regain his consciousness.
• Covert Group with Mundane Front: True enough, the Aoiya managed by Okina served as the legitimate front of the Kyoto Oniwabanshu during the Tokugawa period, and facilitated their members' successful integration to the civilian population after the Meiji Revolution. As shown in the film, their networks are still active and operational.
• Covert Pervert: A more subtle example than most: in Yahiko's first outing to Kyoto, he was unable to stop looking at the Geishas he came across with.
• Deadly Fireworks Display: Invoked by Shishio's mooks during the beginning of the Kyoto Inferno operation.
• Death by Adaptation: Due to being Adapted Out in the first movie, Aoshi's comrades died at the dawn of the Meiji era instead of at the hands of Kanryuu during the Megumi Rescue Arc.
• Demoted to Extra: The rest of the Juppogatana except Shishio (obviously) Sōjirō, Chō, Yumi and Hōji doesn't have enough screentime nor a single line.
• Disney Death: Kaoru was thrown off the Rengoku by Hōji to the stormy sea, forcing Kenshin to jump after her and be overwhelmed by the waves as well. The last minutes of the film did not addresss what happened to her; her survival, however, was pretty much confirmed by the trailer to The Legend Ends.
• Doing in the Wizard : The circumstances regarding the killing and survival of Shishio were, arguably, changed for a more plausible explanation: after being shanked with so many swords and thrown into a funeral pyre at the Battle of Toba-Fushimi, the snowfall that followed the battle (an event portrayed in the first film) put out the funeral pyre, leaving Shishio nicely cooked, alive, and very pissed off.
• Foregone Conclusion: Faithful to the manga and anime, Okubo Toshimichi's assassination being Truth in Television (as well as the Historical In-Joke in the series about the Real Life Ichiro clan supposedly merely taking credit for Sōjirō's deed).
• Gender Flip: It is implied that this version of Kamatari is an actual woman instead of a Badass Gay cross-dresser.
• Hidden in Plain Sight: The first scene involves the Kenshin-gumi watching a kabuki performance about the assassin Bakkyusai. Apart from the blue kimono, exaggerated shaguma for hair and the cross-shaped scar of Bakkyusai looking closer to a Buddhist manji, no one's commenting on the fact that someone who looks exactly like the guy on stage is part of the audience. Also doubling as Your Costume Needs Work to an extent.
• History Repeats: Shishio's "Kyoto Inferno" plot is a perverse mirror of how the Boshin War and Meiji Restoration played out, specifically invoking the plots prevented in the Ikedaya Incident and Tokugawa Yoshinobu's feint against the Imperialist forces at the Battle of Toba-Fushimi.
  • The prologue involving Shishio's flaming wooden lair, which involved the deaths of Saito's men and the Buddhist monks inside, highly invokes the massacre in Mt. Hiei ordered by Oda Nobunaga (incidentally also Shishio's hideout in the manga/anime). Fittingly, Shishio's ambitions and charisma have been traditionally attributed to Nobunaga himself in fiction
• Kuudere: Invoked by Yahiko about Kenshin, after the latter calmly expresses disappointment at Kaoru following him to Kyoto:

  Yahiko: See, I told you he's alright. A man treats a woman like a pest when she's around, but he's actually very happy to see her.

• Large Ham: Shishio opens the movie in a flaming lair, delivers somber put-downs to Saito and his current career, and brings down the house literally with everyone inside save Saito. One can accuse Shishio of many things. Lack of showmanship is not one of them.
  • Considering who his master is (and how fanatical he is from the source material), Hōji is fittingly the Juppongatana's hype-man during the launch of the Kyoto Inferno operation (with even a megaphone-like conical device). He basically gobbles up chunks out of the Rengoku while manhandling Kaoru, and then kicking her off the ship down to the raging sea.
• Le Parkour: Both Kenshin and Sōjirō are doing it in fine form: the latter using it to chase Okubo's carriage and carry out the assassination, the former hopping across rooftops and bridges to lay the smackdown during the Kyoto Inferno battle and chasing Sōjirō on horseback, who successfully knocked out and kidnapped Kaoru.
• Madness Mantra: Aoshi's defining trait in this film is his repeated shouting of "Battosai wa doko da?!" (Where is Battosai?!)
• Malevolent Architecture: A shocking live-action example: the flaming hideout of Shishio where Saitou and a regiment's worth of policemen stormed into (platforms and niches made out of wood, standing under a sea of flames and filled to the brim by dozens of Buddhist monks chanting incessantly) is probably the stuff of nightmares (and probably what Shishio's vision of Naraka/Jigoku might be). Less horrifying but no less imposing is the dock where Shishio's ship, the Purgatory/Rengoku is being built and supplied. Both sets were intentionally obliterated at the end of their scenes: the former commanded to be brought down by Shishio himself (together with his men, the monks and Saito's), the latter when the Rengoku sets sail during the middle of a storm. Considering how easily-destroyed they could be, this also probably doubles as No OSHA Compliance.
• Man in White: Kenshin sports a white kimono during the climatic battle. Likewise, Chō sports a white Badass Longcoat. Incidentally, both men are wearing red at the source material. Of course, Sano has been sporting these ever since (even if his white-and-black outfit has been quite grimy for a while now).
• Militaries Are Useless: Subverted. The authorities in the Kyoto arc films (mostly implied to be civilian politicians) are both demoralized from Shishio's actions and straining to keep a straight face before the Western powers. As a result, they're forced to rely almost entirely on Kenshin to save the country. On the other hand, the police forces under Saito's command make a good accounting of themselves.

• Mythology Gag: Several nods to the source material are peppered throughout the film:
  • Kenshin's changing kimonos (red, blue with floral patterns, white) are actually outfits he wore in some official artwork from the manga.
  • The entire "souvenir" plan of Shishio involving Kaoru being kidnapped, placed in mortal danger and then seemingly succumbing is pretty much the central point of Yukishiro Enishi's Jinchu.
  • The Body Double (影武者, kagemusha) tactic above was a concept Aoshi discussed when he was investigating Kaoru's kidnapping disguised as her murder in the Jinchu arc.
  • Among Aoshi's subordinates killed in the fall of Edo Castle was a man with long hair and a remarkable vertical scar over his eyes. While he was explicitly called Ryujo, his last stand protecting Aoshi from gunfire pretty much harkens Shikijo's Heroic Sacrifice (protecting Aoshi from Kanryu's Gatling gun), even delivering last words similar to his.
  • Misao packed multiple kunai during their preparations for the Kyoto Inferno battle, nodding to her iconic usage of them in the series.
  • Kenshin bought a toy windmill in the streets of Kyoto as a gift for Seiku's son Iori, which he was supposed to give before finding out the boy was kidnapped. A toy windmill was prominently featured in the end credits of the Tsuiokuhen/Trust and Betrayal OVA.
  • While Chō's final weapon was the Renbatou, the leather straps inside his cloak were arranged nonetheless to resemble the absent Hakujin no Tachi.
  • Shishio declared that bringing down the Battosai was as big a victory as conquering Japan itself, and must be done if he is to succeed. Indeed, in forcing him to go after Kaoru in the sea and knocking him out of commission, he is now free with the Rengoku and the Juppongatana to threaten Tokyo.
• New Era Speech: Shishio's monologue to Saito inside his flaming lair loudly declares his desire to usher in another age reminiscent of both the worst of the Sengoku period and World War II-era Imperial Japan.
• Once an Episode: A few similar scenes from the first film:
  • Kenshin will almost always begin a fight with dozens (if not hundreds) of mooks via blocking the sword-wielding arms with his crossed wrists, and then end with a closeup of the last mook's face after being knocked out. In this film, however, this was split between the Shingetsu battle and the Kyoto Inferno battle.
  • There will always be dead people (most likely Meiji government policemen) being mourned by their orphaned relatives, and Kenshin will almost always flash back to his murder of Kiyosato (and witnessing Tomoe mourn).
  • Like in the previous film, Sanosuke has to swing the zanbatou (still intact) and leave it with the mooks, and yet get it again afterwards.
  • Similarly, Kaoru has to be kidnapped by the villains and placed in mortal danger.
• The Remnant: The Oniwabanshu/"Hidden Watcher" ninjas in Kyoto are a surviving remnant of the old Shogunate's spy network. Okina himself says, nonetheless, that unlike most cases of this trope (and in sharp contrast to Aoshi's Edo/Tokyo Oniwabanshu units, who were eliminated), they were better-adapted to survive the changing times than most.
• Say My Name: Aoshi, multiple times Aoshi. BATTOSAI WA DOKO DA?!?!
  • Kenshin eventually emits a feral SHI-SHI-OOOOOOO!!!! after he threatens to burn Kaoru's face, and then kill her.
• Social Darwinist: Shishio. And much like his manga incarnation, he seeks to shape Japan into this, essentially bringing about the Imperial Japan of World War II several decades early.
• Sleeves Are for Wimps: Evidently, Chō follows the trope with a sleeveless white longcoat.
• Taking the Bullet: The Oniwabanshu members under Aoshi, literally, defended him from Shogunate personnel shooting at him when he was trying to save them.
• The Chains of Commanding: Straight from the source material, Kenshin's remark about Okubo's aging was responded to by the latter lamenting how "it is easier to destroy and old era than to build a new one."
• The Only One Allowed to Defeat You: Shishio and Aoshi share this burning desire to defeat/kill Battosai, subsequently claiming the title of the strongest, which is present in the source material. The film, however, plays this Up to Eleven considering how they obsessively compete for his attention (Shishio more successful in gaining the attention of his "senpai" in this respect).
• "Well Done, Dad" Guy: Shakku, apparently, felt this way about his career as a swordsmith and the livelihood he left to his son Seiku, which explains why the last sword he made was the sakabatō shinuchi (and is also expressed in the death poem engraved in the blade).
• Would Hit a Girl: Shishio's Mooks fight Kaouru and Misao without holding back. In the climatic scene, Hōji kicks Kaoru off the ship.
• Would Hurt a Child:
  • Like in the source material, Chō took Arai Shakku's infant grandson Iori hostage, in order to get his last creation.
  • Shishio's Mooks fight Yahiko without holding back
• Wrecked Weapon: The iconic first match between Kenshin and Sōjirō leads to the splitting of the first sakabatō, but also did not leave the cutting-edge of Shishio's prized Nagasone Kotetsu unscathed

credit: tvtropes

[pechumori]

class="at_title"‘Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno’ Burns Through The Japanese Box Office, Will It Find A Home In The US? By Staff Writer | August 19, 2014



"Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno," the live action film version of the popular manga series (and anime series) opened at number one earlier this month in Japan. With the wild success of the previous film in the franchise and the announcement of the final installment due out September, will U.S. fans be able to experience the epic samurai story at their own movie theaters?

As reported by Anime News Network in the film's first three days, "'Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno' sold 645,086 tickets for 822,734,430 yen (about US$8 million). In the process, it garnered the biggest opening of any Japanese live-action film this year." Even now in its third week in theaters, it has increased its revenue to a total of 31,210,644 yen, currently number 3 in the Japan box office.

This success is followed by the film's release in the Philippines, the first Asian country to receive the film other than Japan. According to the Philippine Daily Inquirer, the film lives up to the hype as indicated by the applause and cheers at the August 6th premiere. The review itself goes on to say that overall, "'Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno'" is a good balance of action, drama and comedy."

The success in both Japan and the Philippines seem to point to a possible "Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno" U.S. release. It helps that the film is already owned by Warner Bros. Japan, so at least U.S. fans won't have to wait for the film to be purchased by an U.S. film company. But if the review from Variety counts for anything, the running time may have to be cut down before the film is confirmed for U.S. audiences.

As "Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno" continues to gain attention internationally, all signs point to a good chance that the film to find a U.S. release. In the meantime, if you can afford a random trip to Japan, the final installment "Rurouni Kenshin: The Legend Ends" opens on September 13th.

credit: kpopstarz

[pechumori]

Good box office prompts manga film producers to premiere sequel in Manila

August 07, 2014 

JAPANESE ACTORS Tareku Satoh, Emi Takei, and Munetaka Aoki arrived in Manila for the premiere night of their movie Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno on Wednesday at SM Megamall in Mandaluyong City.

The actors arrived with director Keishi Otomo for the only premiere night of the blockbuster movie outside Japan, an event that was organized by film producer Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc.

Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno is the sequel to the 2012 movie Rurouni Kenshin. Both movies are live action adaptations of the manga (Japanese comics) of the same name originally written by Nobuhiro Watsuki.

Mr. Satoh, who plays the title role of a former assassin turned wanderer who has made a vow never to kill again, expressed gratitude to his Filipino fans by speaking in Filipino.

"Kamusta kayo? Masaya ako makita kayo [How are you? I am happy to see you]," Mr. Satoh said to delight of the gathered crowd.

The first Rurouni Kenshin movie was a surprise hit in the Philippines when it was shown exclusively in SM Cinemas in December 2012.

The huge box-office turnout of the first movie in the Philippines prompted producers to hold a premiere night for the second film in Manila, officials of Warner Bros. said in a statement released last month.

"Moviegoers in the Philippines have helped create a wave of anticipation and excitement for the Rurouni Kenshin sequels," Warner Bros. Philippines General Manager Francis Soliven was quoted as saying in the statement.

Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno opened last Friday in theaters in Japan. Reports said the movie sold about $8 million worth of tickets on opening day alone, making it the biggest opening day of any Japanese live-action film this year to date.

The film will open in Philippine theaters on Aug. 20.

During a short program before the screening of the movie last Wednesday, Mr. Satoh thanked the movie’s Filipino fans who showed up as early as 1 p.m. for the 8 p.m. event.

"I am extremely happy to meet all of you," Mr. Satoh said as translated to English by an interpreter. "I can’t believe how fast it [the movie] will be shown in another country. I thank all of you," he added.

Rurouni Kenshin became popular in the Philippines in the 1990s when the anime (cartoon) version was aired on local TV under the title Samurai X.

Ms. Takei, who plays a kendo school owner Kamiya Kaoru in the movie, said she is very happy to be in the Philippines because it was her first time to attend a premiere outside Japan.

"Thank you very much for the very warm welcome. I am very surprised," Ms. Takei said through an interpreter.

Mr. Aoki -- who plays Sagara Sanosuke, a street fighter who befriends Kenshin -- delighted Filipino fans by saying through an interpreter that he is willing to return to Manila for the screenings of the third Rurouni Kenshin movie, Rurouni Kenshin: The Legend Ends.

The third installment is scheduled to be shown in Japan on Sept. 13, and is set to open in the Philippines on Sept. 24.

"I will be very happy to come back to see all of you again," Mr. Aoki said through an interpreter. -- J. O. Valisno 

credit: bworldonline

[pechumori]

8 Reasons You Must Watch Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno!
By Gelo Gonzales  August 7, 2014

SM Megamall played host to a momentous occasion last night, August 6, as it hosted the premiere of a film that Pinoy anime fans have been eagerly waiting for: Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno.

It was the first time that a Japanese film received the red carpet premiere treatment in the Philippines, so to make the ceremony more epic, the cast of the film was present to greet a rabid crowd of Samurai X fans.

Specifically, these guys:

The first Japanese dude is director Keishi Ohtomo, below him are the real-life Battousai The Slasher, the cutest dojo instructor ever Kaoru Kamiya, and the brash, impulsive, Sanosuke—played by Takeru Sato, Emi Takei, and Munetaka Aoki, respectively.

Like their on-screen characters, Takeru was cool, calm, and mysterious; Emi was the epitome of kawaii, and made us think about immigrating to Japan again; and Aoki was, well, brash and impulsive, oftentimes getting the crowd wild by yelling, "Mahal ko kayo!" Also, he paired his flashy suit with slippers, which gave him extra cool points in our eyes. What a hero, that guy.

The feverish reception they received last night only rose further as the actors signed autographs for the fans, and showed genuine appreciation for the overwhelmingly positive response from their Philippine following.

Later that night, all that hype would be fully justified with the film's screening, which was marked by collective wooting, awws, and whoas from a truly dedicated fanbase. When the film officially opens on August 20 (mark that date, mga batang '90s!), we're betting that screenings would be no different!

Why? Here are eight reasons we came up with after watching Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno, with minimal spoilers!

1)   The blink-and-you'll-miss-it action scenes

The first film had amazing fight scenes, but Kyoto Inferno definitely tops those. The up-close camera work brought an in-your-face intensity. The tornado-like choreography took our breath away. The high-flying scenes and the lightning-fast running reminded us of old-school Chinese martial arts films...in fast forward.

It was fast, furious, and frenetic. By the time the movie ended (it's a long movie at around two hours and 30 minutes), we could only wish to see more in the follow-up, Rurouni Kenshin: The Legend Ends, showing on September 24.

2)   The faithful character rendition

If you were a fan of the anime, you will love just how faithful the film sticks to its source material in terms of characterization.  

The Kyoto Fire arc is the series' most popular storyline, and produced some of its best characters. To keep the surprise level at a maximum, and to ensure that you get that "Uy, si ano yan ah!" reaction, we won't reveal the list of characters who will make a big appearance in the adaptation.

But know this: All the actors did a fine, fine job in translating an anime character into a real-life one. From the gestures to the costumes, the film hits the nail on the head. And given the multitude of characters being injected into the story, the film was masterful in giving each important character their chance to make their mark on the audience.

That said, guess who this guy is:   

3)   Hollywood-level production values

With the first film having broken the box office record in Japan with ticket sales of $540,000, Kyoto Fire had a lot to live up to. Simply put, it had to be bigger and more epic, for the lack of a better term.  

And we're glad to report that it surpasses those expectations. The polish we noticed in the overall production had the feel of a big-budget Hollywood flick. The film was part period piece, part superhero film, draped in fantastical costumes, and shot against a bewilderingly diverse backdrop of the Japan of old—occasionally allowing itself to simply go all-out in its biggest scenes.

4)   The Sanosuke scenes

In a film that lends itself to frequent stabbing and dismemberment, Sanosuke's scenes are a joy to watch, if only to lighten the film up when things start to get a bit too dark and heavy. We look forward to see the guy shine in a major battle, but for now, Kenshin's BFF shines as the film's major source of comic relief. 

Even in real life, Sanosuke seems like a cheerful guy as he routinely worked up the crowd at the premiere:

5)   Kenshin's swordfights

Remember that sense of "OH MY GOD, SO COOL!" moments you experienced as a kid while watching a great anime scene? Any swordfight that involves Kenshin Himura in Kyoto Fire will have at least one moment like that. 

For example, this pose:

We thought we've gotten too old for mimicking cool anime moves, but we found ourselves secretly swinging an imaginary sword by the time we got home.

6)   More blood and gore

Compared to the first movie, Kyoto Fire is more unapologetic in depicting violence, and doesn't shy away from fully confronting its dark themes as embodied by this two-part movie's baddest antagonist, the infamous Shishio.

Also, there are more (good) Michael Bay-isms:

7)   Nostalgia value

If you were at any point in your life, a Samurai X fan, the film will remind you frequently of the simpler times when all that mattered were superhuman swordfighting...and cute anime ninjas.  

Seriously, prepare your Squeals Of Delight when your favorite character finally appears, for those awkward, hinting-at romance moments between certain characters (there's even a bit of bro-mance in there, bro), and whenever Kenshin Himura transforms from harmless-looking, salakot-wearing former samurai to his DO-NOT-MESS-WITH-ME version.

In case you were wondering how he looks like when it's rather not advisable to mess with him, here's a telling stance:

8)   The beautiful (and half-Pinay!) Maryjun Takahashi

Shout out to our homegirl, Maryjun Takahashi, the Japanese actress whose mother is a Filipina! As we revealed in an earlier article, Maryjun plays the role of Shishio's main squeeze, Yumi—and a source of pride for FHM whenever we saw her on screen.

Unfortunately, she wasn't able to join the cast for the Philippine premiere of Kyoto Fire. We only have one wish: After you guys watch it on August 20, let's start the Bring-Maryjun-To-The-Philippines petition right away!

credit: fhm

[pechumori]

"Rurouoni Kenshin" at the LA Eigafest 2012


The Rurouni Kenshin live action had its North American debut at LA Eigafest in Hollywood on December 14th, 2012, as the feature of the festival’s opening night. After the film, we were able to have a short Q&A session with director Keishi Otomo and actor Munetaka Aoki! (and photos. they actually, I think, stuck around to take photos with everyone who asked for one!)

However, since my cell phone is not quite great at video recording of any kind (especially those longer than ten minutes), I’ve provided a transcription of the session below, for any curious eyes out there - although, since aforementioned phone isn’t all to great, there may be some gaps/my paraphrasing due to noise/terrible memory/translator paraphrasing/etc.

(also, warning: spoilers ahead. kind of? only one for a specific scene, though)

Opening remarks, kind of

MC: So I think I can speak for a lot of fans here, of the original manga, who might have been a little nervous when they heard that this film - that this manga was going to be made into a film, and how it was going to turn out, and I think - can we just get another round of applause? [audience cheers, claps]

Otomo: You enjoyed? [audience cheers louder; some guy shouts ‘THANK YOU!’] It was definitely a challenge to turn 2-D manga into a 3-D live action film; there were definitely a couple challenges - the biggest one was mostly bringing the characters to life, and to do that, we tried a lot, in the costumes, we worked a lot on the costumes to get the right tone and film, so it wouldn’t feel too much of a…costume play? For example, the black kimono, that Jin-e is wearing, is made out of leather, actually. And so, you know, given those small  textual details like that brought the film to life.

MC: I’m sure many people here have much more detailed questions than I’m about to ask, and so maybe just to cover some, regarding how the film got started, can you explain how you at first got attached to this film, and why you were interested in adapting Kenshin to the screen?

Otomo: So the first big reason is, our lead actor, Takeru Sato, when I saw him, I thought: ‘Finally, there’s an actor who can play Kenshin.’

MC: So you were waiting for the right guy?

Otomo: I just waited!

MC: Were you a fan of the manga before then? Had you been reading it, was it something that you were, kind of a long time interested in?

Otomo: [english:] Actually, I…it’s very very famous, in Japan, so, I read, but I’m not so…[speaks in Japanese, unable to think of English words] I had so much fun, I love this kind of samurai manga, I love, but…[speaks in Japanese] Sorry, I’m mixing Japanese and English! [audience laughs]

[translator:] I was aware that Rurouni Kenshin, the original manga series, was very famous, and I liked it, but I was not necessarily that huge of a fan. And, so there was a huge amount of pressure going in, like, when there was the announcement that they were going to release this film, there were hundreds of mail coming in, saying, you know: “What are you going to do to my Kenshin story?!” And that was kind of the situation. [Otomo:] Everybody has like, each image, you know? Like…Aoki’s a ‘Bad’ Sanosuke.

[Aoki laughs, points to self: Bad?]



MC: Did you — you had done samurai period pieces before, like with Ryomaden, but those were more historical; this one is more of a manga, so, was there a difference in how you approached the material? And also, because of the time period — Ryomaden is based on the end of the Tokugawa Period, kind of transitioned to the Modern Period, and Kenshin's already in the Meiji Period, or the modernizing period; did Ryomaden kind of inform the film, in some way, and did you try to approach the film differently in respect to Ryomaden, or your previous period work?

Otomo: …I’m surprised you know Ryomaden.

MC: Ryomaden is very popular, even among us novices!

Otomo: There was this one character, in Ryomaden, which is one of the few dramas I made in Japan, whose name was Okada Izo, and he was played by Takeru Sato, actually! He was also a killer, an assassin. And so, what I had in mind was if he, if Okada Izo lived in that time period - in the actual Ryomaden story, he dies, but if he were alive, what would happen to that - that was the basic idea I worked off of.

MC: You talked a little bit about how you casted Takeru Sato, and how he was how you envisioned Kenshin to me, but maybe you can talk about how you casted the man to your left here, Munetaka Aoki, as Sanosuke Sagara.

Otomo: [speaks in Japanese]…actually, he went to New York! [points to Aoki] Rurouni! And he came back to Japan, after six months, and he was a little bit…fat. He was not my Sanosuke!

[translator:] After starring in a drama, Aoki had a huge break, but fortunately, he was on hiatus for six months; he was in New York, wandering, basically, like Kenshin, and so then he came back from New York, to Japan, and I saw him and he’s gained all this weight. So, to basically handle that situation first, I approached him to ask him, basically, to get back in shape.

Aoki: Diet!

[translator:] And so there are two approaches to acting, in my opinion: internal, and the other is from the outside, and from his approach, basically, we went from the outside and got him into shape, and he also had went through courses of boxing, karate, and all these martial arts to get the feeling of the street fighter, because you know, in the film, he looks very mad, but in actual life, he might not actually be that!

MC: [missed a few seconds of what the MC said, but basically along the lines of: “I took note that you did not”] have stunt doubles, so you wanted your actors to do their own stunts, but maybe you can talk about what stunts that you did that were particularly difficult for the film, and how that process worked.

Otomo: So at the beginning of the shooting process, I called together all the actors and basically told them that we were not going to use any CGI, or stunts, so they’re all going to do it themselves. So, in Takeru Sato’s case, for example, for the first two months he learned to swing a sword. That was all he was doing for the first two months, and basically  learning the basics of how to hold the sword, and how those samurai handled the sword. From those basics, he went on to try to get Kenshin’s style, which is breaking the basics, so that’s how we built his fighting style up. So, it is from scratch, and that’s what you see on the screen. And also, in the manga, he is referred to as having this godlike speed, like this insanely fast speed - and since he’s a samurai and, my god, not Spiderman, it was a challenge how to figure that out, but that was also a product of his training. And actually, what you saw, like him running was not fast-forward or anything at all! So, he was incredibly fast, and that basically blew all the other actors away. And from that, there was this competitive atmosphere among the actors to try to achieve their best, to try to do better than they originally could.

MC: Did Aoki-san ‘compete’ with Kenshin in some way on the set, or how were those - what was maybe one of the most difficult stunts? I know that the director said that you had to do boxing and all these different kind of activities, but what were some of the biggest challenges that you had, to try and play Sanosuke?

Aoki: For Sanosuke, the biggest challenge — so, Mr. Otomo’s shoots, some of the scenes were shot at night, so during the night it’d go on til the morning, so that’d be really exhausting…like the kitchen scene, the fighting scene, that shoot was 24 hours, so I was basically fighting 24 hours non-stop. And through that experience, though, I learned what adrenaline meant to me. It keep me running and helped me through the fighting scene for most of the hours, and that was one of the big things I learned, from the whole action sequence. And actually, just being in physical contact with each other, fighting each other, really doing that, just gets the fighting spirit out, which heightens all the action sequences. And it was very interesting to see that during some of the parts there was some laughter in the crowd and that was amazing to see.

MC: How heavy was the sword? [the zanbato]

Aoki: I can’t hold it anymore.

[question that follow were opened to the floor, so these are from the audience]

Q: In America, there’s many terrible adaptations COUGHdragonballCOUGH [to clarify, that’s actually what the questioner said, not my emphasis]; how would you feel about directing a manga that’s world-known, like Dragon Ball? [MC rephrases question, which I thought was funny: In America, there’s many…unfortunate failures of adaptations, such as Dragon Ball; how would you feel as a director, adapting  Dragon Ball? Or! Something like that, for a world-wide audience. Especially Dragon Ball.]

Otomo: I’m a peaceful person…so I’m not going to talk about Dragon Ball.

Q: For the gentleman who played Sanosuke (Aoki), what kind of pressure did you feel, taking on a manga character and anime character that has such a large following; what kind of pressure did you feel getting towards that, and how did that affect your performance?

Aoki: I get that question a lot, actually. Actually, I didn’t feel a lot of pressure, because, I faced the fact that whatever I did, people would complain about it anyway. So, I just decided to concentrate on my role, and just to be as real as a Sanosuke in live action, as possible. And to do that, like there were some efforts that were made - for example, in the original manga, he [sano] is seen - he has his fishbone in his mouth, but that was not real; that would become, you know, like, too… caricature, too fake, so I came up with the idea to drink the raw egg, out of the blue. So that gave reality to the character. I tried to keep the core of the character as real as possible.

MC: So…in that scene, where you drank the wine, and gave it to him [the opponent], was that improvised?

Aoki: [or actually, Aoki and Otomo do a lot of back and forth talking, so really more translator:] So, at that scene, basically, there were a lot of things on the table, like, there were a lot of things to eat, drink, whatever….and Mr. Otomo would give him directions, basically saying: ‘just take whatever you want, and just play with it,’ and that was basically the result of the direction. [audience laughs and claps]; except the chicken! That was actually on the script. Everything else was improvised, and that’s how it happened.

Q: How much involvement did Watsuki-sensei have in how the film was made, and maybe, did you talk with him or speak with him? What advice did he give?

Otomo: The manga, Rurouni Kenshin, was Watsuki-sensei’s first and biggest piece, so it was very special to him, and so of course there were a lot of big concerns, for it not to be messed up like the movie we just mentioned before. So, what we did in the beginning, was I communicated to him the difference what a 2-D manga could do, and what a 3-D live action could do, to Watsuki-sensei, so we talked about all the differences, like in the manga, they had letters, and in film it’s all images and dialogue, so we started from there, and as we talked about that over and over, he started to show an understanding towards the piece, and by the end he just had the faith to just leave it in my hands. At the screening, he actually stood up in the end, and he said it was phenomenal, it was amazing, and ‘if I were to ask for better, I would have to rewrite the original story, again’ so that was his reaction.

Q: Mr. Otomo, regarding Takeru Sato, since you had said every actor had to perform their own stunts, in November[?] 2007 during the filming of Kamen Rider Den-O, Takeru Sato had a collapsed lung. Given that kind of history, was there any concern about his health during his entire performance?

Otomo: You research well! The Den-O incident, it happened…and basically, he had an incredible high physical capability as you can see, along with his great acting skills, and he  himself was a huge, huge fan of the original, and him, playing the main lead role of the manga he had been admiring for all his life was just such a great opportunity and a great chance to do this, and he had this incredible level of commitment, so he was always at his best shape, he always delivered above and beyond, and he even said, in the first press release, that if he flubbed that role, that he would quit acting, and that was his commitment. So there was no such physical concerns; he was so well prepared and so committed

Q: WILL THERE BE A SEQUEL, WITH SHISHIO? [MC: The one everyone wants to know: if you will direct the sequel, when will there be a sequel, and if Shishio will be in it?]

Otomo: So…there might be some of those ideas..? I’m considering a lot of these options, and since I’ve already made this film, the next one, if I were to make it, it has to be better than this! So, given that, I’m considering the option, but when the time comes, I will tell you what comes next.

Otomo: If the American audience wants a sequel…[crowd cheers] I’ll tell the studio.

Aoki: I want to be Sanosuke again!

——-

And, there you have it! let’s cross our fingers for that sequel, yeah? Anyways, hope this transcription isn’t too bad, and hope that it answers some questions out there. There’s probably videos on youtube; I was sitting on the ground floor, about five or six rows from the front and there were quite a few people recording videos…

credit: ineedanumbrella

photo credit: geekxgirls

[pechumori]

"Rurouni Kenshin" LA Eigafest 2012
credit: eiga news

[pechumori]

Takeru sato's interview in Junon Magazine Sept. 2014 issue
translated by Joy Kiyota
edited by Pechumori





After 7 months, Takeru appears again in Junon magazine.

How have you been LATELY?

Q1. Lately, what kind of interesting books have you been reading?

TS: A manga written by Takehiko Inoue entitled "Real". It is very interesting and also the movie "Bakuman" which will be shown by next year, where my appearance has been confirmed. I already read the original manga story. I think since the beginning of this year, I have been reading much manga.

Q2. Lately, what DVD has become your favorite?

TS: Last year, I watched a foreign drama entitled "Friends". I really like it very much. I decided to watch the whole season. Since then, I have never seen a drama that could beat it. (laughs) Recently, I already watched the whole anime of "Slam Dunk".

Q3. If ever they will give you a summer holiday, what would you like to do?

TS: I want to go to the pool because it's a summer holiday. I want to swim.(laughs)

Q4. Lately, what is your little, little ～～ happiness?

TS: When I get home, the moment I turn on the aircondition, I feel so refreshed and happy.

Q5. Lately, have you met anyone that has made an impact on you?

TS: My co-star in the drama, "Bitter Blood", actor Atsuro Watabe has a sensational star aura. He gives motivation to all the crew. The set really moves when he enters. His acting performance is very fresh to me.

Q6.( Takeru's hobby is eating yummy foods) Lately, what yummy foods have you eaten?

TS: I eat a lot of various foods, and lately I didn't encounter any new stuff. But surely, I'm very fond of rice. A nice rice. I drink wine while eating meat and rice. I don't cook so I go out and find a shop with yummy food.

Q7. Lately, what have you been doing to keep on protecting your health?

TS: Wash hands and gargle.

Q8. Where would you like people to focus their attention on the actor Takeru, today and in the future?

TS: I prefer that they watch me in the movie "Rurouni Kenshin Kyoto Inferno/The Legend Ends" where I grew up one step ahead.

photo credit: Baidu TS

[pechumori]

class="post-title"Japanese Film Festival 2014 Dates, Rurouni Kenshin Sequels Confirmed

by Sergei Lazarev on Aug 12, 2014

The Japanese Film Festival is said to be the largest outside of its homeland, drawing an audience of some 25,000 people last year in theatres across Australia. Although the full program of over 45 films is yet to be revealed, the two-part sequel to Rurouni Kenshin will be making an appearance as a full trilogy.

Set to return for the eighteenth time, JFF will kick off mid-October in Adelaide before continuing its tour in Canberra, Brisbane, Perth, Auckland and Sydney before coming to a stop in Melbourne in December.

For those of us living away from Sydney’s centre, the festival will screen in a closer city hub this time, “Last year we expanded our programming to Brisbane, Perth and Canberra. Building on these existing locations, we are excited to welcome four new cities onto our Festival map – Adelaide, Parramatta, Freemantle and…Auckland.” says Artistic Director Masafumi Konomi.

• Adelaide, 10-12 & 17-19 October – Mercury Cinema
• Canberra, 15-19 October – Capitol Cinema Manuka
• Brisbane, 22-26 October – Event Cinemas, Brisbane City Myer Centre
• Perth, 29 Oct-2 November – Hoyts Carousal & Hoyts Millenium
• Auckland, 6-12 November – Rialto Cinemas, Newmarket
• Sydney, 13-23 November – Event Cinemas George Street & Parramatta, Art Gallery of NSW
• Melbourne, 27 November-7 December – Hoyts Central & Australian Centre for the Moving Image

Run by The Japan Foundation, Sydney, JIFF began in 1997 and has since seen great success in Australia and, soon, New Zealand. For more details and additional info head over to the official website.

credit:  capsulecomputers

[pechumori]

class="contentheading"‘Rurouni Kenshin’: The triumph of story over history

27 Aug 2014

Written by Tito Genova Valiente

THE film Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno begins with a blistering action scene worthy of the hyper-kinetic speed that the Hollywood action genre is noted for. But behind the fast pace is a story of betrayals as the origin of true assassins, of shadow and true swords, of wandering fighters seeking solace in the ordinary life, and leading men whose virility is questioned and embraced.

I was not a believer of this notion of bishounen, or the beautiful man, as universal—until this film about Kenshin. The anomalous gender and the alluring tricks that the physical manifestations of that sexuality play on the audiences all over the world are as much the secret of the film as they are a power of a document of this hero—unique, swaggering with a swagger all his own, and more superior than all the laboriously beefy superheroes of Hollywood. As he appears in illustrations, the soft face of Kenshin—the scar across the cheek an attractive accessory rather than a remembrance of slight defeat—is the face of a sensitive man. On the big screen, that tremblingly vulnerable sense is captured by Takeru Satoh who defies the prettiness of his face that, while heeding the canon of manga and anime by creating a strength that is mysterious, is closer to a real person of any jidai or period, or any genre or form.

The stage is set when Kenshin has already settled in the village. The closest he gets to his past is in being a transient near a kendo dojo, a martial-arts school; otherwise, he is a long-haired attractive man whose provenance no one is interested to know. Kenshin has also become a legend. This is a wonderful conceit that follows the myth of a wandering ronin. After the dark opening of annihilations and mutilations, we are ushered to a Japan on the verge of modernity. In a Kabuki theater, Kenshin is joined by his four friends, which include the street fighter. As they watch the play unfold, everyone is surprised by the appearance of a hero who makes his grand entrance by way of the hanamichi. This is the ramp that cuts across the middle of the stage and passes over the audience. But our hero, Kenshin, disguised as an ordinary man, is in for a surprise. He is a legend all right, but his hero on the Kabuki stage is not even a heel, for that would be a bit flattering, but a fool. He falls onstage, drops his sword, and gets dizzy when his enemies run around him in a circle. Kenshin, part of the audience, can only a muster a cute “Eh,” upon realizing what has become of him: a mythical hero.

In Rurouni Kenshin, the film, Japanese cinema as an influence and tradition asserts itself. With the film based on the popular manga, several elements are at once pointed out and articulated. First, the viewers will realize how this cinematic tradition has all this time relied on the memory of the classics the country has produced. Second, Japanese cinema, because of this compelling creativity, has—more than any other country—moved on and, in an art-defying move, deconstructed its well-know narrative. Third, the subversion of traditions is nowhere stronger and more trenchant than in Japanese cinema, this film on Kenshin a great part of this metaphorical journey.

The Kabuki scene at the beginning reminds me of another master deconstruction: the film Ashurajoh no hitomi (Eyes of Ashura Castle), which is about a master swordsman who hides his identity by being a Kabuki actor. In the film, a real Kabuki actor, Somegoroh Ichikawa, plays the swordsman/actor. The film is directed by Yohji Takita, who won the Oscar for  Best Foreign Language Film in 2012 for his magnificent work Departures (Okuribito).

Bromance is a contemporary term that audiences will understand, but applied to the samurai or a ronin, it simplifies relationships that are complex, complicated and manifold. I am tempted to use the manga-based yaoi as a fulcrum of such relationship, where two men are into each other but with the male kinship never consummated sexually. Here in this film by Keishi Ohtomo, Kenshin finds kinship with a streetfighter, Sanosuke Sagara, played by Munetaka Aoki. The “chemistry” and conflict are present in this male bonding with our hero steeped in discipline, and yet vested with a charm that is feminine by non-Japanese standard and the streetfighter rough and invested with muscles that are totally male, from a Western viewpoint. All throughout, Sagara is overprotective of Kenshin to the point of the streetfighter making a fool of himself. No scene underscores this relationship better than in the one where Sagara is so furious because Kenshin takes off to Kyoto without him. Catching up with Kenshin later, Sagara slaps him and berates him. Kenshin thanks the streetfighter for the concern and two look at each other for a long time. Distance is kept and no kiss is even allowed in that scene.

Recall that scene in Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai, where the youngest of the samurai could not express his admiration of the best of them. All the young samurai could do is follow the older one, look at him longingly from behind the tall tree.

No kiss takes place between Kenshin and Kaoru, the owner of the martial-arts school. When Kenshin bids good-bye, the camera tracks the two as Kenshin’s head comes close to rest by the cheek of Kaoru. The angle turns around to focus on Kenshin’s face as he thanks the young woman and bids good-bye at the same time. Behind them flows the stream so lovely because it shall flow forever and never rest there. Things are beautiful and they are beautiful because they never last.

So the woman follows Kenshi to Kyoto and irritates our young warrior and at the same time makes him feel relieved. This is the Hollywood part of the film, that the hero cares a bit for the woman. In the perfect world of men, women are imperfect, impure and unnecessary. But the film makes us care for the woman because our young man, Kenshin, has shown that he cares for the woman.

A third installment of Rurouni Kenshin—Rurouni Kenshin: The Legend Ends—has been announced. Already, we have been introduced to villains that are more denizens of Cosplay and anime than historical characters from the Meiji period. The fans do not care: this is the Japan that they care to know and this is the samurai they would like to imagine.

Historians, heed this: stories are like ronin, wandering samurai who do not need masters to create their destiny. More than the official narrative of historical accounts, tales spun to comment on the mainstream cultural narration of Japan are unto themselves, strong, independent.

It is a story that threatens always to break free from the confine of histories and into the freeing world of creative writing.

credit: businessmirror

[Maja]

Pics from Rurouni Kenshin Legend Ends )

source : http://eiga.com/news/20140908/5/2/

[Maja]

Rurouni Kenshin Legend Ends long trailer ) )

cr るろうに剣心映画

[Maja]

Rurouni Kenshin BTS - Kenshin with his master ) )

http://youtu.be/Q61WxfqFdWU

cr 福山雅治 ちょっとだけチャンネル

[pechumori]

Takeru Sato break dance rehearsal and training while doing the split
This is the reason why he can do his own stunts







Rehearsing for Rurouni Kenshin



Doing the scene with costume







credit: Baidu Takeru Sato

[pechumori]

Takeru Sato and choreographer Mr. Kenji Tanigaki present the rehearsal for one of the stunts in the movie "Rurouni Kenshin" in this TV program which was shown last Sept. 6, 2014.
Credit to the owner and Baidu Takeru Sato

[pechumori]

Takeru Sato and choreographer Mr. Kenji Tanigaki explain some of the stunts in the movie "Rurouni Kenshin" in this TV program which was shown last Sept. 6, 2014.
Credit to the owner and Baidu Takeru Sato

[Maja]

Interview and BTS with Takeru Satoh, Keishi Otomo and Kenji Tanigaki ) )

http://youtu.be/X55lHp2VBdE

cr miho boo

[ChibiLy]

@maja and @pechumori. Thank you so much for all these updates.
I always wondered how Takeru Satoh did the stunts. Seeing the behind the scenes made me realize how much more amazing he is!He is indeed like Kenshin!
I look forward to seeing more

[Maja]

af2571f2814547eb6b82d07a9f108578

[LoveSG]

@maja and @pechumori. Thank you so much for all these updates.

I always wondered how Takeru Satoh did the stunts. Seeing the behind the scenes made me realize how much more amazing he is!

He is indeed like Kenshin!

I look forward to seeing more

I thank @maja and @pechumori too!!!

I love Kyoto Inferno very much I have watched it four times since its premiere in Singapore XD

Really have hoped the RuroKen cast cld have come to Singapore ^^