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| Image from Nightfall.com |
Ninja Scroll is a violent, erotic, and beautifully done movie. Ninja Scroll is a historical fiction anime. Jubei was a real samurai in Japan’s era called the Warring States. The legend that surrounds him is not all that different from England’s Robin Hood. Jubei’s name is well known to every Japanese citizen, and his resistance to the Tokugawa Shogunate. Ninja Scroll illustrates well the discard between Jubei and the Japanese citizens, and the Tokugawa Shogunate. The Tokugawa Shogunate wanted to centralize government, while diminishing the rights of all the citizens. The film is showing the importance of rebelling against a corrupt government that has no interest in the well-being of its people. Jubei is a beacon of resistance and hope for the oppressed citizens. Even today, Jubei is looked upon with admiration and gratitude. In Ninja Scroll, Jubei, Kagero, and Dakuan must face the eight demons of Kimon. Jubei is able to defeat five of the eight demons with a humble attitude and great sword skill. Kagero killed two demons with the poison her body naturally produces. The demons had power, but they were not humble in their ways, which lead to their downfall. I think this shows, very accurately, how having power is not everything someone needs to be strong. In this case, having power and arrogance leads straight to death. I do not think Yurimaru was as arrogant as the other demons, (this could be because he was my favorite, and I am blinded to his flaws) so his death was not due to overconfidence. His death was due to the jealousy of one of his fellow demons, Zakuro. Her jealousy of Yurimaru and Gemma’s love drove her to kill the man she claimed to love. The mentally of, “if I can’t have him, no one will!” Ninja Scroll uses the natural world to tie in the elements of Shintoism, and it uses the demons to bring in Buddhism. The combination of Shintoism and Buddhism serves as a reminder that live and death walk hand in hand.
Hey Lovie, First of all, I'd like to say, "FIRST." I love that you included the historical importance of Jubei. My favorite part of reading your post was the part about Jubie and Kagero being able to defeat their foes even though they were outnumbered. If the demons do indeed represent the corrupt government that has overt power, the anime shows the importance of good dynamics within ruling powers. The demons had numbers and strength, but they never fought as a unit. As you pointed out, Zakuro even killed her lover. The corruption and greed within the demons kept them from being able to actually look out for one another and helping one another. If at any point two demons had taken on Jubei at the same time, he probably would have died. I suppose this could also be considered arrogance as well. Even a corrupt government needs a good system and good dynamics, else any lone samurai and his sexy lady can take them down. Your post really got me thinking. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you completely when you say Ninja Scroll is a violent, erotic, and beautifully done movie. I don’t really know much of the story of Robin Hood, but from what I do know, it does seem to reflect the movie in a sense. I like how you pointed out that you do not need to power to be strong. It is very interesting how in the movie, the power of the demons was what basically led to the demise of each of them. Knowing that you loved Yurimaru makes me smile. Right from the beginning when we saw the character, I knew that you were going to be fond of him. There seemed to be so much hetero action in the movie, but I know you wanted some yaoi action in the movie. I am sorry you did not get the chance to see what you wanted. But, I am sure we can agree that it was a good movie still.
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