When it comes to adapting a famous literary piece or a classic film or TV series, the products of such efforts can only be divided into three: those who are faithful, those who are awful, and, in rare cases, those who create a different movie altogether that merely borrows names, settings, and perhaps some events from the original.
But are in-betweens allowed? Sure, and this live action adaptation of Rurouni Kenshin is, but unfortunately, such way of standing in between "awful" and "different" made the movie more terrible that it should be.
But one should note that as an adaptation of a long series, in fact long enough to generate a number of fans that would certainly have high expectations once any live-action movie of their favorite is out, can be seen in two different perspectives.
One can see the movie as a hardcore fan of the Rurouni Kenshin manga and anime, looking for the different details from start to finish, from the largest to the smallest detail, and seeing if it really is a near-perfect copy of what you have watched for more than a season or two (in this case, the live action movie covered the first 15 or so episodes of the anime. Apparently, this movie failed to do so, transforming Kenshin the man of many words and principles into a non-killing killing machine (yep) with foils coming out of nowhere, without any regard to the history that shaped them. While Kaoru and Megumi would be the closest to the anime version, Sano and Yahiko were empty personalities that seemed to be there for comic reasons, and Saito became nothing more than a police officer that has got all means to be cruel and relentless without that grit found in the anime.
Moreover, the antagonists of the film (which could perhaps been made by drawing lots or putting Kenshin's first villains in a blender) were the major disappointments, actually causing confusion about the storylines and plot elements that were derived from the manga & anime. Fine, it is clear that Kanryu the merchant is the villain of the movie, but in place of Aoshi's awesome gang, we have Jinei/Kurosaga, the former Shinsengumi, who impersonates the Battousai (which, of course, such event happens in the first episode of the series). And with Jinei, there are random henchmen, with one of those looking like Aoshi's gun-toting rip off of some sorts. Much of Saito's issues on Kenshin were reduced to nothing save for a swordfight in the rain, and we didn't really get to see much of what he can do (but wait, isn't Saito supposed to be not there in the first place yet?)
If anything at all, the live action movie's adaptation fails, and if taken as an original story loosely derived from the series, it wouldn't be that good at all. Characters have popped out of nowhere and lacked development, save for everything concerned with the Kanryu arc (in fact, just Megumi and Kanryu). The plot was messy and there were a few scenes that distorted the continuity of everything (the flashbacks didn't help). And in fact, without the association with the movie, everything is just like a bad kung-fu Hong Kong movie (no disrespect meant to martial arts greats Bruce Lee, (the early) Jackie Chan, and the great Chow Yun-Fat) that only featured a scarred samurai with a random adventure.
There are bright points, though, and the most important of all of them is the pure fulfillment of the fantasy of Rurouni Kenshin in live action, something that has become a reality in the most recent films and series that we have not just in the West but also in the East (think Great Teacher Onizuka or Hana Yori Dango). The fight scenes from the War to Kenshin and Kurosaga's confrontation are fantastic, and one can just be amazed by seeing how the Hitern Mitsurugi style works in the flesh (actually, I can go so far to say that what made this film are the very fight scenes themselves and not anything else). A bit of the comedy is preserved, with Munetaka Aoki's character Sanosuke taking much of the load. If there's something that has been kept by this live action movie that had moviegoers screaming for more (I heard that it will have a sequel which will feature all the other story arcs of the anime), those were these two very bright spots in a not-so-fantastic adaptation.
But then, I'd rather have Beat Takeshi's Zatoichi or Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai if I want good Samurai movies. I am not saying, however, that I'm eager to see whatever improvement they will have for Rurouni Kenshin 2.
Grade: C-
