NARUTO 3: GUARDIANS OF THE CRESCENT MOON KINGDOM
July 10th 2009 23:12
Based on the original manga by: Masashi Kishimoto
Director: Toshiyuki Tsuru
Screenplay by: Toshiyuki Tsuru
Producers: Akira Fujita & Hidemi Fukuhara
Starring: Maile Flannigan (Naruto), Kate Higgins (Sakura), David Wittenberg (Kakashi Hatake), Brian Donovan (Rock Lee), Kirk Thornton (Korega), Kari Wahlgren (Hikaru), Michael Sorich (Michiru), Wally Wingert (Ringleader), Debbi Mae West (Tsunade), Bridget Hoffman (Amayo), Christopher Smith (Ishidate), Keith Silverstein (Kongo) Cindy Robinson (Karenbana) & Terrence Stone (Shabadaba)
Produced by: Studio Pierrot, TV Tokyo, Dentsu, TOHO, Shueisha, Aniplex & Mook Animation
English Version Produced by: VIZ Media LLC
Released by: Madman Entertainment
Running Time: 95 minutes Rating: M
You know the old saying, the one that goes too much of a good thing can be a bad thing? We’ve all no doubt heard it at least once in our lives and quite possibly actually been in a situation where it has been fairly applicable, the old drinking too much soda until we puke or eating too much nacho cheese flavoured corn chips. I am sure that there are heaps of other similar situations that can be applied to this saying. Now we can add to the mix Naruto feature length anime films – I have to admit I was dying to see this particular feature so when it cropped up at a local music shop in my local shopping mall I got out some of my hard earned spenduli and paid it over to the lady behind the counter for this DVD volume. And from that moment onwards I took it home and let it sit on the shelf, biding its time, waiting whilst I found myself watching other things or reading books.
Perhaps it was some kind of subliminal message coming to me from the very ether in which the eternal emerald gaze of the Green Lantern is vigilantly cast or else it was just my subconscious saying to me that this time I might not find this particular film as much to my liking as I’d believe. Let’s face it I am a big Naruto fan, perhaps not as big as some or as hardcore as others but I do enjoy the guy’s antics and have watched numerous episodes, read copious volumes and watched several movies amongst which has been this one. This time though I have finally hit the wall, I have finally achieved my particular point of how much Naruto is too much Naruto; this is too much Naruto even for someone like me.
No doubt there are the core diehard fans out there that think I’m just a wimp, and to them I just shrug my shoulders, say whatever and get on with things. At the end of the day what real significant difference is there between this particular movie and say Naruto the Movie – Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow? Only the names and locations have been changed to protect the innocent…Seriously I felt as though the entire plot had effectively had chunks from the first film cut out and redone to fit the new cast and new locales and that there was nothing really new or original taking place in the unfolding drama. About the only ‘new’ things were some of the fight scenes, which looked reasonably spectacular, and suitably landscape altering and the actual anime style employed by the filmmakers.
If I had to say anything in this films favour it would be great for someone who has not seen any of the previous two films, Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow or the Stone of Gelel, if you’ve seen those two features then watching this one is going to be a tad bit disappointing in terms of drama and story. There is also some similarity here in the story that unfolds and that in the opening episodes of the original television series, the Land of Wave’s story arc where Naruto has his first serious encounter with a rival ninja, the decidedly villainous Momochi Zabuza, the Demon of the Hidden Mist and his young offsider Haku. Now Zabuza and Haku were a compelling and somewhat tragic duo that added a certain sense of piquancy to the Land of Waves arc, unfortunately in this feature we do not have as compelling and interesting antagonists.
In this particular tale our antagonists are Kongo (isn’t that somewhere in Africa I hear you ask), Ishidate and the diminutive Karenbana (no doubt fed on gin by her parents as she’s 22). Each of these mercenary shinobi have been hired by the chief minister of the Crescent Moon kingdom are unique in their skills and abilities but at the end of the day they are nowhere near as compelling characters as say Zabuza or even the three Snow ninja from Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow. These three are simply here to give Naruto and his comrades someone to match up against in several fights to eventually see justice prevail. Now I’m not saying that there is anything wrong with that particular sentiment, friendship, courage, fighting for what you believe in and the realisation that all that glitters is not gold and gold is not the be all and end all of life are not potent themes but they have been previously done. I was hoping that in this film the story would be a little bit more than a rehash of old ground. But then again I do preface that with my reiteration of the fact that I was seeing this film after having seen the previous works – to someone who’d only ever seen this as their first taste of a Naruto film it would certainly all be very much fresh and new.
Those who are in the same boat as I am in, frankly I’d go back to either watching old episodes of the television series or waiting for when the first Naruto Shippuden movie reaches the English speaking world. Naruto 3: Guardians of the Crescent Moon Kingdom is something of a flawed work, it is very much a saccharine sweet feature that has caused me to ponder why it received an M rating. Sure there is a bit of biffo in this feature, which is to naturally expected in a movie involving duelling shinobi but it’s nothing graphic; in fact there have been episodes of the television show that are more violent. So why such a steep classification, you have to wonder if the people who work at the Office of Film and Literature Classification actually watch any of this stuff, at least enough of the work in question to make their justification on giving it the rating that they have. Who knows how this process works, regardless Guardians of the Crescent Moon Kingdom is a so so film, not bad but I wouldn’t bust a gut trying to get a hold of it to watch. Catch the television series or get into the manga.
Director: Toshiyuki Tsuru
Screenplay by: Toshiyuki Tsuru
Producers: Akira Fujita & Hidemi Fukuhara
Starring: Maile Flannigan (Naruto), Kate Higgins (Sakura), David Wittenberg (Kakashi Hatake), Brian Donovan (Rock Lee), Kirk Thornton (Korega), Kari Wahlgren (Hikaru), Michael Sorich (Michiru), Wally Wingert (Ringleader), Debbi Mae West (Tsunade), Bridget Hoffman (Amayo), Christopher Smith (Ishidate), Keith Silverstein (Kongo) Cindy Robinson (Karenbana) & Terrence Stone (Shabadaba)
Produced by: Studio Pierrot, TV Tokyo, Dentsu, TOHO, Shueisha, Aniplex & Mook Animation
Released by: Madman Entertainment
Running Time: 95 minutes Rating: M
You know the old saying, the one that goes too much of a good thing can be a bad thing? We’ve all no doubt heard it at least once in our lives and quite possibly actually been in a situation where it has been fairly applicable, the old drinking too much soda until we puke or eating too much nacho cheese flavoured corn chips. I am sure that there are heaps of other similar situations that can be applied to this saying. Now we can add to the mix Naruto feature length anime films – I have to admit I was dying to see this particular feature so when it cropped up at a local music shop in my local shopping mall I got out some of my hard earned spenduli and paid it over to the lady behind the counter for this DVD volume. And from that moment onwards I took it home and let it sit on the shelf, biding its time, waiting whilst I found myself watching other things or reading books.
Perhaps it was some kind of subliminal message coming to me from the very ether in which the eternal emerald gaze of the Green Lantern is vigilantly cast or else it was just my subconscious saying to me that this time I might not find this particular film as much to my liking as I’d believe. Let’s face it I am a big Naruto fan, perhaps not as big as some or as hardcore as others but I do enjoy the guy’s antics and have watched numerous episodes, read copious volumes and watched several movies amongst which has been this one. This time though I have finally hit the wall, I have finally achieved my particular point of how much Naruto is too much Naruto; this is too much Naruto even for someone like me.
If I had to say anything in this films favour it would be great for someone who has not seen any of the previous two films, Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow or the Stone of Gelel, if you’ve seen those two features then watching this one is going to be a tad bit disappointing in terms of drama and story. There is also some similarity here in the story that unfolds and that in the opening episodes of the original television series, the Land of Wave’s story arc where Naruto has his first serious encounter with a rival ninja, the decidedly villainous Momochi Zabuza, the Demon of the Hidden Mist and his young offsider Haku. Now Zabuza and Haku were a compelling and somewhat tragic duo that added a certain sense of piquancy to the Land of Waves arc, unfortunately in this feature we do not have as compelling and interesting antagonists.
In this particular tale our antagonists are Kongo (isn’t that somewhere in Africa I hear you ask), Ishidate and the diminutive Karenbana (no doubt fed on gin by her parents as she’s 22). Each of these mercenary shinobi have been hired by the chief minister of the Crescent Moon kingdom are unique in their skills and abilities but at the end of the day they are nowhere near as compelling characters as say Zabuza or even the three Snow ninja from Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow. These three are simply here to give Naruto and his comrades someone to match up against in several fights to eventually see justice prevail. Now I’m not saying that there is anything wrong with that particular sentiment, friendship, courage, fighting for what you believe in and the realisation that all that glitters is not gold and gold is not the be all and end all of life are not potent themes but they have been previously done. I was hoping that in this film the story would be a little bit more than a rehash of old ground. But then again I do preface that with my reiteration of the fact that I was seeing this film after having seen the previous works – to someone who’d only ever seen this as their first taste of a Naruto film it would certainly all be very much fresh and new.
Those who are in the same boat as I am in, frankly I’d go back to either watching old episodes of the television series or waiting for when the first Naruto Shippuden movie reaches the English speaking world. Naruto 3: Guardians of the Crescent Moon Kingdom is something of a flawed work, it is very much a saccharine sweet feature that has caused me to ponder why it received an M rating. Sure there is a bit of biffo in this feature, which is to naturally expected in a movie involving duelling shinobi but it’s nothing graphic; in fact there have been episodes of the television show that are more violent. So why such a steep classification, you have to wonder if the people who work at the Office of Film and Literature Classification actually watch any of this stuff, at least enough of the work in question to make their justification on giving it the rating that they have. Who knows how this process works, regardless Guardians of the Crescent Moon Kingdom is a so so film, not bad but I wouldn’t bust a gut trying to get a hold of it to watch. Catch the television series or get into the manga.
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