The second-rate ninja drama anime Ninja Resurrection, set in the early 1600s, features the legendary swordsman Yagyu Jubei, who was also the subject of the popular Ninja Scroll (though there is otherwise no connection between the two stories). In the first of two episodes, Jubei leads an attack on members of an outlawed Christian sect, killing their miracle-working leader Shiro. The evil, scheming Mori has a plan to resurrect Shiro as Satan, and that plot comes to fruition in the second episode, as several famous dead warriors return as unstoppable monsters. Since the planned final two episodes were never filmed, the story is left hanging at the end. Previously released in the U.S. on DVD in 1999, the main differences in this new release in ADV's hype-fully named "Essential Anime Collection" are a lower price and the remixing of the English language track (though not the Japanese one) into 5.1 channel sound. Unfortunately, both the animation and the video quality are inconsistent, with the Japanese voices badly mismatched to the mouth movements. Accurately rated 17-up for oodles of startlingly gory violence and a disturbing sex scene, Ninja Resurrection is far from essential. Not recommended. Aud: P. (S. Raiteri)
Ninja Resurrection
(2004) 80 min. DVD: $19.99. ADV Films (avail. from most distributors). Color cover. ISBN: 1-57813-815-9. Volume 19, Issue 4
Ninja Resurrection
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