Ranked #3944

Onigamiden

Going back in time is always a surprising turn of events. As if that wasn't enough, you also find out that you're the special hero that has to stop a conflict between two opposing factions!

That's pretty much what the main character goes through, and what the premise for Onigamiden is. Unfortunately, that's as interesting as the story gets. Jun Tendou, a middle school boy, is thrown back in time to the ancient Japan in the Heian period and finds out that he is the Savior- the only one who can control the legendary Orochi and turn the tides in a war between the Oni tribe and the humans.

With this set-up, a somewhat interesting yet predictable plot twist is revealed (for the sake of avoiding spoilers, I won't outright state it), and the theme of "man versus nature" comes about. The question of who the hero should fight for is raised. The problem with this, however, isn't that a similar theme is found in Princess Mononoke. Rather, it's because of its execution that makes the issue largely one-sided. Due to the how the story presents itself, the main dilemma that Jun goes through is hardly given any thought and the decision that he's supposed to make becomes obvious (in other words, there are really no "gray areas" presented). Thus, it makes the majority of the plot all too predictable.

Art and animation is obviously the focus of this movie. The scenery and traditional temples all look nice, and help depict the setting of an older Japan. Character designs might feel a bit different for some, but nothing bad. I personally got a Sky Crawlers feel from them, which isn't much of a surprise, as it's the work of the same character designer. Where the art and animation really shines, though, are the designs for the fantasy elements. The Oni tribe looks particularly demonic, and the CG effect that they have actually helps to create an evil aura for them. The spiritual beings, including the Orochi, all have fascinating designs which really bring out the setting of the movie. The action scenes are nicely animated and are another plus.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the sound, which suffers from inconsistency problems. Sometimes the soundtrack is good- it is fitting and gives the appropriate atmosphere to the movie's traditional setting. At other times, however, modern pop/rock is playing and basically feels anachronistic. This is mostly noticeable through the action scenes. At the very least, the voice roles are appropriate and not out of place. The one thing that's noteworthy about the sound is the ED, "Starlight." It's a rather catchy song that creates a rather emotional feel.

Characters, for the most part, feel very static. None of their personalities particularly stand out. They exist and fulfill their respective roles. There might be some interesting developments shown for some of the characters, such as their past or motivations, but no one really changes by the movie's end, save for maybe Jun. He is pretty much the typical male lead who first lives an average life, until something extraordinary happens. Of course, he's confused about all this at first and questions the morality of the situation, eventually making the (obvious) decision to do what the hero is supposed to do.

Despite all its problems, Onigamiden was a somewhat entertaining watch. The action scenes were nice, as were the depictions of the various mythology beings in this movie. The premise, setting, and themes had a fair amount of potential, brought down by its lackluster story and characters. The pacing was fine, as no particular scene dragged on for too long. As a movie that targets a general or "normal" (for the lack of a better word) audience, it does accomplish its job.

If you're looking for a title that has fantasy elements with some great action scenes here and there, then this is a movie that you might be interested in. Otherwise, this title is easily passable. Princess Mononoke does everything better than Onigamiden, except maybe in the visuals department. read more

While the art on this movie is superb, the animation behind it did a great job bringing it to life, it is then that it is unfortunate the soundtrack could not accompany this epic movie, the music was wrongly chosen, whereas more traditional songs should have been played, modern music is what we are presented with, music that would find its place on a modern setting or a disney movie, which this movie isnt. A movie featuring traditional Japanese mythology should have traditional, more classical Japanese songs...
Another place where it faults is perhaps the week characters and average character design which looks clearly inferior to the remaining setting...
The plot is also less than ideal, it focus to much on Human weakness and how Man is easily overwhelmed when it obtains power beyond what it should wield and how it uses that power to shape the World to His image destroying all that stands in the way...

But faults aside, this is an enjoyable movie with an interesting setting, and perhaps a fantastic world to watch... read more