Ninja Scroll
Short description
Set in feudal Japan during the Tokugawa shogunate, Ninja Scroll follows Jubei Kibagami, a masterless ninja who wanders the land selling his sword to those who can pay or to causes he considers just. A plague has emptied the province of Yamashiro, and a band of Koga ninja sent to investigate is wiped out by beings of inhuman strength; only the female fighter Kagero survives, saved by Jubei. He has killed one of the Eight Devils of Kimon, a group of warriors serving a plot to bring down the government, and the remaining seven now want him dead. Drawn into the conspiracy, Jubei finds himself facing an old enemy who commands the devils.
The film is directed and written by Yoshiaki Kawajiri, its seventh feature in a run that began with Lensman in 1984 and continued through Wicked City, Demon City Shinjuku, Neo Tokyo, Goku: Midnight Eye and Cyber City Oedo 808 before reaching this 1993 release, and which later includes Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust and The Animatrix. Koichi Yamadera voices Jubei, with Emi Shinohara as Kagero, Takeshi Aono as the government agent Dakuan, and Daisuke Gori as Genma Himuro. It was produced by Toho, Madhouse, movic and JVC on a budget of 60 million USD, and runs 94 minutes.
On IMDb it holds 7.8/10 from 44,000 votes, on TMDB 7.8/10 from 781 votes, while film critics rate it 7.3/10 across 21 reviews.
What's left behind the scenes
- Yagyu Jubei is a hero of numerous legends and a number of films and series. He is usually depicted as being somewhat older than the main character of "Ninja Scroll," and with an eye patch. However, the film's director, Yoshiaki Kawajiri, was interested not so much in the historical Jubei, but in a generalized image of a young warrior "without a past or future." Therefore, he deliberately disregarded both portrait similarity and practically all known legends about Jubei.
- The international title "Ninja Scroll" (as well as its Russian translation, "Manuscript of the Ninja") is incorrect. In this case, the kanji "chou" does not mean "scroll" or "manuscript," but rather "tale," "story," or "novella." A literal translation of the title is "Jubei: The Tale of the Ninja Who Commanded the Wind."
- The prototype for the film's main character is Yagyu Jubei Mitsuyoshi, a historical figure, a famous master of kenjutsu (the art of swordsmanship) and ninjutsu (the art of the ninja), the creator of the O-metsuke secret service, and the personal fencing teacher of Shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu.
- The English translation of the title “Ninja Scroll” (as well as its Russian equivalent, “Manuscript of the Ninja”) is inaccurate. The hieroglyph “chou” in this case does not mean “scroll, manuscript,” but rather “tale, story, narrative.” A literal translation of the title is “Jubei – a tale of a ninja who commanded the wind” (referencing Jubei’s ability to create a narrow stream of air with a sharp swing of his sword, cleaving the bodies of his opponents).
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
