So I managed to catch this on the plane today, and I really have very mixed feelings about it all. I have been a fan of RuroKen since I was 7 or 8 (that's more than half my life!
) and I still recall vividly how riveted to the screen I would be every day when the anime was screening in Singapore. I've re-read the manga at least 4-5 times, and had pretty high hopes for the movie, especially with the rather impressive trailer.
Did it match my expectations? Yes and no. I figured I'd break it all down systematically, after bouncing some thoughts off my brother and a friend, both of whom are also long-time fans of the series.
Plot
I felt that the creators tried too hard to stuff too much into the 2 hours, leaving very little time to go into the details or even introduce characters properly. Up to the very end, I had no idea who the two villains Kenshin and Sano were fighting in the Takeda mansion!
I thought Kenshin was fighting a modified version of Hannya but it turns out it was actually Gein. I never expected Gein and Inui Banjin from the Jinchuu arc to make an appearance in this movie (and was too busy to keep up with the news where it had been announced that they would be in the movie, but then again one shouldn't need to read the press reports to know who a character is!), which was more like a mish-mash of the Tokyo arc.
The Himura brothers, the first antagonists, were done away with, and Jin'e makes an earlier appearance and takes over the "role" of pretending to be Battousai. The Oniwabanshuu do not make an appearance at all, which makes me wonder if they will appear at all in the sequel, but more on that later. Takeda Kanryuu and the whole deal with saving Megumi formed the center of the entire plot, which was okay, though I hope non-fans don't go away thinking that this is all to this marvelous series. After all, even with the anime/manga, it was only after the Tokyo arc that the series really proved it's weight in gold, in my opinion.
I didn't like how Sano went from being an enemy to a friend without any explanation, nor how he appeared carrying Tsubame from Akabeko into the Kamiya Dojo. Though fans would know that Sano was a regular at the Akabeko and "friends" with the staff, it just seems totally random otherwise. Another thing I found very strange was how suddenly everyone in town was bringing their sick people to the Kamiya Dojo, for no apparent reason! No-one knew that Megumi was there, much less that she was a doctor...
Characters
I was disappointed that Saitou was given as much screentime as he did
but without explaining his significance or much of his history with Kenshin. The brilliant Saitou-vs-Kenshin battle in the Kamiya Dojo, which is one of my favorite animanga fights ever, was much watered down, too. Another disappointment also was that the actor cast for Saitou looked nothing like him, and it took me a while to realize it was Saitou at all.
Tomoe was referenced to, as well, but never actually mentioned, but then I guess that's to be saved for the Jinchuu arc. As a fan, I was pleasantly surprised by the appearances of recognizable characters like Chief Uramura, though his name was never even mentioned. He was just there, running around with the other police. And fans would definitely pick up on his presence
And yes, I did have to google his name
I also liked that the Akabeko was used, just as in the original series, and there was Tae and Tsubame, though again, neither were introduced or given much of a role.
Another big peeve of mine would probably be the female characters. Kaoru, in particular, was not the Kaoru I remembered
The Kaoru from the original series had a strong character, was tomboyish, yet with a girly side to her, and more importantly, could stand her ground and at least defeat the not-so-strong hoodlums (though of course later she proves her salt in the Kyoto Arc against the Juppongatana). In the movie, she was much less tomboyish, and worse, she was so weak! She was trampled over by all the bad guys, even the weakest ones
Megumi was slightly better, but I felt that the actress was unable to portray the foxy vixen of a woman Megumi was in the original series. Yahiko had a pretty small role, and he was... smaller than I expected, haha. He was still enjoyable as a character, though, and I hope he gets more screentime in the sequels.
What I
was pleased by would definitely be Satou and Aoki's portrayals of Kenshin and Sano. When the two stormed the Takeda mansion, it really had a feel that was similar to the original series. Satou was able to capture Kenshin's walk, even, which I was impressed by. Aoki made a perfect Sano in his mannerisms and way of speaking.
Overall
Overall, I enjoyed the movie a lot and would still recommend it to any RuroKen fan. I am really looking forward to the sequels, though I'm not sure how they are going to stuff as much info as there is into one movie. My friend commented that the Kyoto arc might take 10 movies to cover, and I agree.
One fear I have is that since Aoshi and the Oniwabanshuu were omitted from this movie, they might be omitted altogether, including Misao and her grandfather. Which might also mean that Kaoru and Yahiko's roles will stay small as they may not get screentime fighting the Juppongatana that attacked the Aoi-ya. Hiko Seijuurou may get cut, too, to squeeze that whole arc into 2 hours.
As for the Jinchuu arc, a wee bit was covered in terms of how Kenshin got his scar, though not in detail, so I hope that is delved into more. Enishi definitely deserves some screen time. And well, Gein and Inui Banjin have already made their appearance, though they were changed a lot for the movie, such as swapping big ol' Iwanbou for a pair of guns! There is the possibility that they will return later, for revenge, lending some continuity to the whole story.
Rurouni Kenshin Live Action Film
Ah wells, I'd love to hear your thoughts on the movie if you've watched it, or anything about it or the sequels that are to come at all, really 
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