Snake Ladies and Samurai Swords (Ninja Scroll Review)

If you know anything about Japanese animation, you have definitely seen a film by the legendary Studio Ghibli. The work of Hayao Miyazaki is so prolific and consistently excellent that many have referred to him as the "Walt Disney of Japan." While the work of Studio Ghibli is undeniably influential, its quality is a double edged Samurai sword, on the sharp side it introduces viewers to the world of Anime, on the dull side it might prevent viewers from branching out beyond itself. Digging a little deeper into the world of Anime films viewers might discover the diverse wealth of quality. Not to say that the works of Studio Ghibli are in any way inferior to these other films, but too much of one thing can perhaps stunt the viewer’s knowledge. From the surreal dream-like films of Satoshi Kon, to the pure adrenaline rush of movies such as Redline there is always something new to discover. Today I want to talk about the film Ninja Scroll.

I have known about Ninja Scroll for some time, but I have not had access to it until recently, when I began purchasing films online. Upon doing some research you will almost always find Ninja Scroll on lists of high-quality Japanese animated films.

To start off I have to say that "Ninja Scroll" is an excellent title for a film, but not this one. Sure there are plenty of Ninja in the film but no Scrolls. I carefully watched every frame, but I have yet to find the titular scroll. This title is in fact a creation of the English language translation, as the Japanese title is Juubee Ninpuuchou. This would not have been a problem if not for the fact that it was distracting. Perhaps a better title for the film would have been "Ninja Gold," because there is some gold in this movie. But this is all beside the point. Ninja Scroll is awesome!

Ninja Scroll follows a wandering swordsmen-for-hire named Jubei Kibagami.

During his travels he is poisoned by a government agent and is blackmailed into fighting against a group of Ninja called the Devils of Kimon. With the help of the female warrior Kagero, Jubei must take down all eight of these Demonic assassins before his time runs out.

Kagero is pretty awesome.

This whole setup adds tension in the form of a countdown to Jubei’s demise.

The film is very much a product of its time. Because it came out in the early 90's, it definitely feels different from what most average Anime viewers are used to. Other than the films of Studio Ghibli and of OLM (the studio that produced Pokemon), there were not a ton of films in Japan at the time intended for kids.

Lots of films from that decade opted to use beautiful landscape paintings for their backgrounds. Lots of films still do this, but they tend to look cleaner now. Character designs tended to be more realistic, and even the shadows were handled differently.

The style might be characterized as messier or grittier than more modern animation. This older style grew out of the popular Shonen (boys) action shows of the 80's, and it continued to persist roughly until the early 2000's. For examples of both trends, I would suggest watching the films Laputa: Castle in the Sky (1986) and Spirited Away (2001) back to back. You will easily be able to pick out the differences in these films, based on when they were made.

As for the animation quality of Ninja Scroll, the movement is as smooth as butter, and the fight scenes are done spectacularly.

This comes as no surprise, considering the animation was done by Studio Madhouse. Madhouse productions have an excellent track record when it comes to the amazing animation they produce. This studio is responsible for such hits as Death Parade, One Punch Man, Trigun, and Ore Monogatari!!, not to mention that it produced the animation for all the films of Satoshi Kon, and Mamoru Hosoda.

Ore Monogatari!!

Ninja Scroll is an anime B-movie through and through, but it wears this like a badge of pride. It knows that you have come for the fight scenes over the story, and the story is only there to supplement the fights. From the premise of the film you would assume these fights to be outrageous and over the top. Jubei and Kagero fight enemies like an eight-foot-tall rock man, and a naked snake lady, but Ninja Scroll brilliantly juxtaposes this with with quick realistic fight scenes.

In these scenes there is a few seconds of tense action before the first and final blow is struck, leaving the victor in a shower of blood. The film’s over-the-top villains are often introduced just moments before they are killed, almost anticlimactically. But the film uses this sense of realism similar to that of fights from old black and white Samurai films to ground itself. I will admit that this was not what I was expecting from the film, but if you going in knowing this you will enjoy it.

The voice acting is top notch in Japanese. Kouichi Yamadera provides the voice of Jubei, and he does an excellent job. He has notably played Spike Spiegal in Cowboy Bebop, and Ryouji Kaji in Neon Genesis Evangelion. He brings a gruff-but-noble feeling to the character. Emi Shinohara plays Kagero, and she might be familiar to you as Makoto Kino (Sailor Jupiter), in Sailor Moon and as Eri Ochiai in Perfect Blue. She does an excellent job here as well. She makes Kagero a tough woman, who can still have a bit of a soft side. 

The English dub, on the other hand, is horrendous, but this could actually be good in your opinion if you plan on watching it in the context of a Samurai B-movie. The best voice-acting in English is provided by Wendee Lee, who later went on to play Haruhi in The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya.

The plot of Ninja Scroll can drag a little here or there, (many scenes feel like filler until the next fight scene), but for the most part I do not have any complaints there. Probably the most interesting part of the plot for me was what happens to the character of Kagero. The film establishes early on that she is a poison taster (similar to Westley in The Princess Bride), meaning she is immune to them. Because she has consumed poison for years, her body has stored poison in her system with the result that anyone who has sex with her will die. This whole setup would normally be ludicrous, but you have to remember this is Ninja Scroll. We can see how Kagero can use this to her advantage, but it also means that she cannot make love to anyone with whom she has fallen in love. So problems begin to arise when she develops feelings toward Jubei. The characters catch a lucky break when they learn that the only way to cure Jubei of his poison would be for them to have sex. Because poison cures poison, I guess. At this point Kagero is still wrestling with her feelings for Jubei, but it is in her best interest to keep him alive. So Kagero offers herself up to Jubei so that he can stay alive. Getting over the fact that this entire scenario is completely and utterly ridiculous, what happens next is interesting. Jubei, being the honorable Samurai that he is, doesn't take the offer. He would pefer a slow, painful death than use Kagero as an object. This was a unique and refreshing way to deal with sexuality in a film, and it even left it open for the characters to grow to have a relationship.

The characterization in the film tends to be subtle. We do not get much about Jubei's past, but we know that he is an excellent swordsman, who killed the main villain five years before the start of the film. He is a wanderer with no home, and he takes jobs even if the pay isn't good because he needs something to eat. I imagine that upon completing his task he severs any ties he made and continues his lonely journey. As the film ended, having watched him fight all these monsters, it was surprising to see him continue on as if nothing had happened, almost like this were a normal day in his life.

Jubei is definitely not the best-written character, but his story was interesting enough to keep me engaged until the end. He also becomes more interesting once you do a little research. Turns out he is based on the real life Samurai Yagyu Jubei Mitsuyoshi, who lived from 1607 to around 1650 A.D. He is one the most famous and romanticized Samurai from the feudal era, and is believed to be the best swordsman of the Yagyu clan. A legend exists in which he lost an eye, and in some accounts he used a sword guard as an eyepatch.

Mitsuyoshi has been a character featured in many different stories in all forms of Japanese media, similar to Don Juan in western literature. So you can imagine a Japanese viewer coming to Jubei with tons of context, when a western viewer might not.

While Ninja Scroll might not be the deepest or most thought-provoking film, its excellent action, beautiful visuals, and over-the-top characters make it one of the most stylish anime films around. I wouldn't recommend it to everyone, but if you are looking to branch out beyond Studio Ghibli, this film might be one place to start.

Have fun!