Shuranosuke Sakaki is a masterless swordsman with unparalleled skill. When the
Princess Mayu of the Nakura clan is kidnapped by the Seki Ninja, Shuranosuke
is hired to rescue her. But the Seki Ninja wants the Nakura clan's antique
Ginryu sword as a ransom -- and they have threatened to rape and kill the
princess if their demands are not met. Shuranosuke must accomplish his mission
before it's too late...
Sword for Truth Anime Review
I had a hard time watching and trying to follow Sword for Truth. Things seem
to happen in an isolated and disconnected fashion, thus there's a general lack
of coherence throughout the entire film.
The story starts out with a huge white tiger that mauls almost everybody to
death, until Shuranosuke slays it. A short time later, they discover that the
tiger was a decoy to keep them all busy while the princess is abducted. Cut!
Next sequence... Shuranosuke is walking through the busy streets of Edo, and a
female pickpocket tries to rob him.
Of course, she doesn't succeed because Shuranosuke is no ordinary guy. When
Shuranosuke gets home (at least I think it's home), the pickpocket is
waiting for him. She strips and they have sex. Afterwards, they get attacked.
Shuranosuke is then hired to rescue the princess and we never see or hear from
the pickpocket woman again. Suddenly, there's a lesbian love scene between the
princess and one of the female Seki Ninja clan members. Opium's wafting
through the room, and the Seki girl is brainwashing the princess in between
throes of passion. "You will give us the sword", she says.
The princess agrees like a good little girl and they continue their little
tryst. This scene doesn't really have any effect on the movie because when
Shuranosuke does get to the princess, she never makes any attempt to get the
sword or betray anybody in the slightest.
All these things take place in the midst of very violent encounters.
Shuranosuke would run into some thugs, and they'd fight to the death... fight,
fight, fight. It's a bloodbath -- you'll see a lot of limbs flying and
decapitated heads bouncing around.
Yet Shuranosuke never, ever gets hit by any of his foes. He predictably cuts
through all of them effortlessly, and it's not exactly the most exciting thing
to watch. Just what this mish-mash of sex and violence is all about I'll never
know.
You never get to fully understand the story even when you reach the ending.
There are just way too many plot holes and unanswered questions.
Visually speaking, Sword for Truth is okay at best. Some characters look a bit better than
average, but the animation lacks smoothness and polish. The ending theme song
sounds quite nice though. Quite obviously a "Ninja Scroll" wannabe, Sword for Truth is no more than a crackpot effort at a samurai / ninja anime feature.
Miscellanies: Sword for Truth
If you want superior samurai or ninja stuff, go for "Ninja Scroll" or
"Rurouni Kenshin" instead. Hell, even "Ninja Cadets" is better
than Sword for Truth!
Sword for Truth (Shuranosuke Zanmaken: Shikamamon no Otoko) | |
| Genre | Action, Supernatural, Suspense |
|---|---|
| Episodes | 1 |
| Status | Finished Airing |
| Aired | Dec 28, 1990 |
| Producers | Toei Video |
| Studio | Magic Bus |
| Rating | R+ |
| Themes | Historical |
0 comments
Post a Comment