MUSASHI: THE DREAM OF THE LAST SAMURAI Review
[Our thanks to regular reader Agent Wax for sending in the following review from the Singapore Animation Nation Festival.]
I'll start off by saying that I have studied martial arts for much of my adult life. I have read Miyamoto Musashi's Book of Five Rings more than once. It might perhaps be said that my understanding of the legendary man is better than the average person's. It is no surprise that I would purchase tickets to the screening of Musashi: The Dream of the Last Samurai during Animation Nation 2009. After reading two negative reviews on ScreenAnarchy, I went in to the screening theatre with some trepidation.
To my surprise, I rather enjoyed the film. It was not without its flaws, certainly, but I was nonetheless riveted for the length of its run time. My primary complaint is the same as that posted by other reviewers: the animated 'professor' and his assistant, Miss Iori. The attempts at providing slapstick comedy fails to hit the mark more often than not, and in fact leads me to question who the intended audience of this film is. Adults would almost certainly find the slapstick segments detracting and puerile, while the inherent violence of the fight scenes makes the film a questionable viewing for younger ones.
The animation quality on much of the film is top notch. Nothing less expected from Production I.G. The jarring differences in style never become much of a problem for me. In fact, they served to highlight and distinguish the narrative parts from the descriptive, providing clear bookmarks. I am also extremely fond of the soundtrack, as I fell in love with the shamisen's distinctive notes years ago. The rokyoku performances set the stage perfectly, evoking lucid images of feudal Japan.
Despite providing a mostly accurate depiction of Miyamoto Musashi's life, the film nonetheless contains some liberties and/or inaccuracies. Given the number of years since his death, conflicting historic accounts by various affected parties, and the proliferation of myths about the man, it is perhaps inevitable that the facts of his life have become inextricably interwoven with the web of fiction. For example, the outcome of Miyamoto's duel(s) with the Yoshioka clan is still often disputed: Yoshioka clan records list only one, while other accounts state that Miyamoto crippled one and killed two. Naturally this documentary is only able to take one stance and run with it. This is also the first I'd heard of Miyamoto's obsession with horses and mounted troops, though I suppose it is as valid an interpretation as any other. The narrative exposition on the differences in the mounted troops of Europe, China, and Japan appealed to the military history geek in me. The bit about how military officers from wealthy backgrounds merely put on half-hearted for-show battles in warfronts while sending the sons of the poor to their death would be extremely funny, if it wasn't as true today as it was hundreds of years ago.
In the end, I suppose that Musashi: The Dream of the Last Samurai is an acquired taste: your enjoyment of it is highly dependent on whether you hold any interest in the topics discussed and theories espoused. The trailers for this documentary are highly misleading, delivering a bait-and-switch that will disappoint and alienate straightforward fans of action anime. I walked in knowing what to expect, and my experience was completely different. Not life-changing, mind you, and I probably wouldn't splurge on a DVD release, but it is an hour and a half of informative entertainment for the open-minded enthusiast.
Review by Agent Wax
I'll start off by saying that I have studied martial arts for much of my adult life. I have read Miyamoto Musashi's Book of Five Rings more than once. It might perhaps be said that my understanding of the legendary man is better than the average person's. It is no surprise that I would purchase tickets to the screening of Musashi: The Dream of the Last Samurai during Animation Nation 2009. After reading two negative reviews on ScreenAnarchy, I went in to the screening theatre with some trepidation.
To my surprise, I rather enjoyed the film. It was not without its flaws, certainly, but I was nonetheless riveted for the length of its run time. My primary complaint is the same as that posted by other reviewers: the animated 'professor' and his assistant, Miss Iori. The attempts at providing slapstick comedy fails to hit the mark more often than not, and in fact leads me to question who the intended audience of this film is. Adults would almost certainly find the slapstick segments detracting and puerile, while the inherent violence of the fight scenes makes the film a questionable viewing for younger ones.
The animation quality on much of the film is top notch. Nothing less expected from Production I.G. The jarring differences in style never become much of a problem for me. In fact, they served to highlight and distinguish the narrative parts from the descriptive, providing clear bookmarks. I am also extremely fond of the soundtrack, as I fell in love with the shamisen's distinctive notes years ago. The rokyoku performances set the stage perfectly, evoking lucid images of feudal Japan.
Despite providing a mostly accurate depiction of Miyamoto Musashi's life, the film nonetheless contains some liberties and/or inaccuracies. Given the number of years since his death, conflicting historic accounts by various affected parties, and the proliferation of myths about the man, it is perhaps inevitable that the facts of his life have become inextricably interwoven with the web of fiction. For example, the outcome of Miyamoto's duel(s) with the Yoshioka clan is still often disputed: Yoshioka clan records list only one, while other accounts state that Miyamoto crippled one and killed two. Naturally this documentary is only able to take one stance and run with it. This is also the first I'd heard of Miyamoto's obsession with horses and mounted troops, though I suppose it is as valid an interpretation as any other. The narrative exposition on the differences in the mounted troops of Europe, China, and Japan appealed to the military history geek in me. The bit about how military officers from wealthy backgrounds merely put on half-hearted for-show battles in warfronts while sending the sons of the poor to their death would be extremely funny, if it wasn't as true today as it was hundreds of years ago.
In the end, I suppose that Musashi: The Dream of the Last Samurai is an acquired taste: your enjoyment of it is highly dependent on whether you hold any interest in the topics discussed and theories espoused. The trailers for this documentary are highly misleading, delivering a bait-and-switch that will disappoint and alienate straightforward fans of action anime. I walked in knowing what to expect, and my experience was completely different. Not life-changing, mind you, and I probably wouldn't splurge on a DVD release, but it is an hour and a half of informative entertainment for the open-minded enthusiast.
Review by Agent Wax
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