By Guest Reviewer: Ariel Aquino
I have been a fan of the animé Samurai X when it was shown here in the Philippines 14 years ago, so I was one of the fortunate ones not only to witness the Asian premiere of Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno held at SM Megamall, but also to catch the movie two weeks before its official release before everyone else and to see the actors and the director behind the movie in the flesh—I just could not believe that I was breathing the same air as them. But time flies when you are having fun, or, at least in my case, starstruck, and suddenly I was back from my self-created quagmire to write my two cents on Kyoto Inferno.
Two years after the live action film Rurouni Kenshin, Keishi Ōtomo gives us the second installment, Kyoto Inferno. The story starts with Kenshin Himura, played by Takeru Satoh, being commissioned by Home Minister Okubo (Kazufumi Miyazawa) to help the government arrest Shishio Makato (Tatsuya Fujiwara), who is Kenshin's successor in the new government to depose the Shogun but was subsequently betrayed by the new government. The new government burned Shishio to death but, apparently, failed to do so. After Shishio's defiance with death, he puts up Juppongatana (or Ten Swords), a group of elite warriors, to fight against the Meiji government. With his new team, he is brewing something to destroy the government by burning down Kyoto. No one can stop Shishio but Kenshin, who pledged not kill again, but in order to do this, he has to be "Battosai the Killer" once more.
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Let me start with the movie's weak points. The first thing I notice in a movie is the script. For me, the script is the soul of the movie. Kyoto Inferno's English translation of the script falls short. There's always a hint of awkwardness in the dialogs because the prose is lacking. Another weak point is that I find the characters are lacking natural thespian talents.There are times I feel the characters are acting just for the sake of doing it. While the script, which still keeps me haunted as I write this, and the histrionics, or lack thereof, which still bothers me until this day, are just minor disappointments, they do not affect the visuals of the movie.
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Two weeks after I watched the movie, I realized that I had fun watching it. One of the movie's strongest points is the setting, which I find with so much semblance as in the animated version. This is a good strategy—to stick with what the fans have come to love about the manga or the animation. I didn't know movie adaptations can be 100% faithful. Another good point is the fighting scenes which are, to describe it in the only Japanese adjective word I know, sugoi! Beautifully done and with fluid movements, watching the fighting scenes will make one on the edge of his seat.
Armed with impressive setting and jaw-dropping fighting scenes, Kyoto Inferno is one hell of a movie. It also does not fail to remind us to fight for what we believe in. Rife with different themes such as friendship, family and love, this movie has just the right amount of everything to keep you satisfied. But satisfaction is out of the question with that cliffhanger of an ending. Luckily, the wait wouldn't be that long.
Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno opens in Philippine cinemas Aug. 20, 2014;
Rurouni Kenshin: The Legend Ends opens on Sept. 24, 2014
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