[badlander86]

Warning. Spoilers.


I finally found the time to watch the movie.

Ladies and Gentlemen, it was EXCELLENT.

For fans of RK this was a well written, casted and directed feature film. Purists might lament how chopped up the first 3 or 4 arcs were in order to role it into this one film but I think it was done pretty damn well.

Ok, lets get the elephant in the room out of the way first. Here are the things the movie cut out or changed.

- Hiruma Gohei...no real loss there

- Sano and Yahiko's ENTIRE BACKSTORIES were completely left out. No Sekihoutei is mentioned, no Yahiko as a pickpocket is seen. Nadda.

- The Oniwabanshu. Though in all seriousness I doubt the movie would've allowed for enough time to allow for the Oniwabanshu to be featured properly. A character clearly homaging Hanyaa is featured in the movie as well as a thug who is clearly wearing a coat resembling Aoshi's. Such a tease. This is understandable because the very presence of a named Aoshi character in the movie would have diminished Jin'e as the main antagonist.

- Saito is brought in....WAY TO EARLY!!!


Here are thing the movie featured that surprised me:
- Tae. Seriously of all the characters in RK I would have figured they'd skip out on her going so far as to name her in the movie.

- An elderly medicine man who was casted to clearly resemble Dr.Gensai though he was not named in the film.

- An elderly Policeman with glasses is often seen. This is an homage to a Police officer in the manga/anime that was friendly to the Kenshin-gumi...though his name escapes me.

- The Kiyosato death and first scar flashback. This was the scene that made the movie for me. Though the character is not named in the movie, his lines and actions are clear-cut Kiyosato, even as he chokes on his on blood reaching for white flower petals as he thinks about the wife he leaves behind. This was the scene I was not expecting to see in this movie which leads to.....

- Tomoe. In the same flashback we see a woman wearing a distinctive white Kimono and a very familiar hairstyle weeping over the death of her husband. Though she is not name and her face is never clearly seen in that one scene, hardcore fans of RK know it to be Tomoe Yukishiro without a doubt.

- Kenshin explaining how he got the scars to Megumi. This was unexpected as hell as he actually explained vaguely who gave him each scar. This hopefully sets the stage for a prequel/sequel somewhere down the road.


Now believe me, I am a pretty hardcore RK fanboy and while some of the stuff that was changed or cut out did irk me a little, it does not for a single minute make this a terrible movie. If anything the movie is made easily accessible for new viewers and has enough homages in it to appease even the most hostile of older RK purists.

I highly recommend it to fans of RK and fans of the action Samurai genre in general. Great costumes, casting and choreography as well as an excellent soundtrack to boot.