I used to watch the Rurouni Kenshin anime, which is based on the manga series by Nobuhiro Watsuki, on Cartoon Network’s Toonami block when I was a teenager. Not only have I always been a sucker for anything that involves samurai and swords, but I had a huge crush on Kenshin himself too. I collected posters, pins, and keychains of him. I dedicated a notebook cover to him. I suspect that he jumpstarted my love for long-haired and redheaded anime guys too.
Before the coronavirus quarantine started, I stumbled across listings for the first three live action Kenshin movies in my local library’s database. I had been dying to see them since they’d been released. It took a while to hunt down the movies from their respective locations—they weren’t eligible for home delivery at the time—but I eventually got them all. Man, I was totally blown away! What amazing adaptations!
One problem, however, kept me from immediately writing reviews of the movies: Watsuki’s child pornography charges. I didn’t want to seem like I was downplaying or condoning his disgusting behavior. I debated with myself about it for a long time. Ultimately, I decided that the old anime series and these movies will be rare cases where I’m going to separate the art from the artist.
That said, I’m going to discuss the first live action movie, Rurouni Kenshin Part I: Origins, now. Here’s a snippet of the summary from the DVD case:
In the wake of a brutal civil war, a shattered assassin turns his back on bloodshed once and for all. Kenshin Himura, once a legendary and feared killer, abandons his instrument of death and vows to carry a reverse-blade sword for the rest of his days. But Kenshin soon finds that the world around him is rapidly changing. A sadistic drug lord, Kanryu, oppresses the people, poisoning them with opium and stealing what little they have left. When this greed-driven monster threatens the beautiful kendo instructor Kaoru, Kenshin can no longer contain his fury…
WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!!!
The War Flashback
As the summary mentions, Japan was warring with itself. In a nutshell: some people wanted Japan to accept foreign trade, while others wanted the borders to stay closed; some people wanted the emperor to become more than a figurehead, while others wanted the Tokugawa shogunate to continue running the show. Hence the war.
The movie begins with a flashback to the Boshin War in 1868, during the Battle of Toba-Fushimi. It’s the samurai Kenshin Himura’s (Takeru Satô) last day on the job. Five years prior, at only 14 years old, Kenshin was recruited as an assassin (called a “killsword” here). He eventually earned the nickname “Hitokiri Battousai” because of the crazy amount of people he’s killed.
And it doesn’t take long to see why—Kenshin cuts down the opposing army’s soldiers like they’re nothing. Just as he’s looking for his next opponent, news rings out that the war is over. His side has won. He’s officially done with the assassin life.
Kenshin isn’t the only important character on the battlefield that day. First, there’s Saito Hajime (Yôsuke Eguchi), a captain of the Shinsengumi, a group that supports the Tokugawa shogunate. Saito has heard of the notorious Battousai and wants to take a run at him. He fights his way through the chaos, eyes locked on Kenshin. When the two finally come face-to-face, however, the announcement rings out.
As Kenshin prepares to leave the battlefield, Saito angrily says, “Don’t think this is the end. Though the world may change, we live by the sword and we die by the sword. There is no other way for us.” To him, Kenshin can’t just start a new life and pretend like his hands aren’t covered in blood. Kenshin disagrees. Exhausted, he sticks his bloody sword into the ground and walks off without another word.
Then there’s the samurai Jin’e (Kôji Kikkawa). Jin’e was struck down during the battle but he didn’t die. He digs himself out of the snow after everyone has left the battlefield. As he’s stumbling around, he accidentally grabs the hilt of Kenshin’s abandoned sword to steady himself. The second he makes contact, he’s flooded with what I assume are the screams of Kenshin’s past victims. His eyes turn black and blue. Thus, his Nikaidou (“Way of the Mind”) Tactic is born, which he later explains as a technique that uses the fear of opponents with weak minds to immobilize them.
Jin’e takes Kenshin’s sword as his own. In fact, he appears to use the same sword throughout the movie. Having seen what Kenshin could do with it, maybe he thinks the sword will imbue him with the same abilities, much like it gave him the Nikaidou Tactic. Like Saito, his ultimate goal is to test his skills against Kenshin one day.
Modern Day Kenshin
The next time we see Kenshin, it’s 1878 and he’s riding into Tokyo on a boat. Once he’s in town, he buys himself a treat from a food vendor. Then a Wanted flyer on a bulletin board catches his eye: the police are looking for a man identified as the Battousai, who has murdered a bunch of people. Kenshin certainly hasn’t been killing anyone, so he’s wondering who’s using his former identity to commit these crimes.
The next thing Kenshin knows, he’s dodging the wooden sword of Kaoru Kamiya (Emi Takei), the current owner of the Kamiya dojo and the daughter of the man who created the non-lethal Kamiya Life-Avowing Style of sword fighting. The same murderer who jacked Kenshin’s old nickname is claiming to use the Kamiya Life-Avowing Style. Since Kenshin is the only one around (illegally) wearing a sword, Kaoru assumes that he’s the Battousai. Oh, the irony!
Kaoru comes at him with her wooden practice sword, knocking him to the ground as he dodges her swings. Once Kenshin shows her that his sword’s sharp side is along its back edge, she finally believes that he’s not the killer. She apologizes, lends him her handkerchief to clean the dirt from his clothes, and fills him in on the situation. When they part, Kenshin realizes that he forgot to return her handkerchief.
It’s love at first sight for them both. Kenshin seems to be amused by Kaoru’s unique mix of spunk and naiveté. What the hell is she thinking, coming at a possible serial killer with a wooden sword? Only someone really brave would be stupid enough to think they’ll come out of that scenario alive. As a former samurai, that kind of spirit would probably be a big selling point for him.
For Kaoru, she’s curious about Kenshin. He, too, is a bundle of contrasts. On one hand, he’s got this adorable bumbling act going on, with his “Oro” catchphrase and occasional clumsiness. On the other hand, he has scars on his cheek, uses an unusual sword, and ducks her every move in a way that no normal guy should be able to. He’s definitely more than the innocent rurouni that he appears to be. Doesn’t hurt that he’s gorgeous either.
Megumi Flees
Kanryu Takeda (Teruyuki Kagawa) is the movie’s primary villain. He calls himself an “exporter,” but that’s a front for his opium business. A huge coward, Kanryu rarely gets his own hands dirty. He has three white-suit-wearing sycophants who do his verbal bullying, a small group of elite samurai who do special “tasks,” and a large gang of former samurai who protect his compound and physically intimidate people.
Megumi Takani (Yû Aoi) works as Kanryu’s head “pharmacist.” He took her in after all of the males in her family died fighting in the war. Knowing that Megumi descends from famous doctors, Kanryu forces her to use her medical knowledge and work with a team to create the most addictive opium formula ever. They dub it “Spider Web.”
Once the team delivers the final formula, Kanryu announces that only one person needs to know it. The samurai gang slaughters four of the workers in the hallway as they exit his office. Then Kanryu plays a cruel game of eeny-meeny-miny-moe to decide whether Megumi or the remaining worker will live. Megumi wins (naturally). The worker jumps out the window to escape, but even if he survived the fall, he’s still toast because Kanryu says, “We’ll leave him to the Battousai.” Sorry, guy.
Freaked out by the gruesome violence, Megumi runs straight to the police station. She asks for protection, but she hits a brick wall when she realizes that she can’t tell the cops why she needs help without exposing her own role in the operation. Bummer.
Kanryu and his flunkies analyze Megumi’s situation and come to the same conclusion. Still, Kanryu doesn’t trust that Megumi won’t snitch on him. Jin’e, who now works as one of his personal samurai, volunteers to fetch her. Jin’e goes to the police station and casually massacres every cop in the place as Megumi frantically hides and runs again.
Kaoru Confronts Jin’e
The next time Kenshin comes across Kaoru, she’s being brave and stupid again. She’s walking home when a fatally wounded cop falls off the overhead bridge in front of her. Soon after, Jin’e strolls along, fresh off his killing spree and still searching for Megumi.
Kaoru sees him and jumps to the correct conclusions this time. First, this guy obviously killed the cop since he’s cleaning blood off his sword. Second, he must be the Battousai. Like she did with Kenshin, she throws the accusations in Jin’e’s face before charging at him with her stick. Jin’e meets her fake wooden sword with his very real steel one.
Jin’e has zero qualms about killing Kaoru. He says to her, “To stand against me with a wooden sword, and being a woman at that…” That’s a double offense in Jin’e’s mind. Plus, she’s a loose end who knows too much about him. Strike three! Honestly, though, he probably would have killed her for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Just as it dawns on Kaoru that she’s in way over her head, Kenshin soars off the bridge, grabs her in his arms, and rolls them both away from Jin’e. In true Kenshin fashion, he then pretends to be returning her forgotten handkerchief. Silly man.
Jin’e, of course, immediately recognizes Kenshin. One doesn’t forget a samurai like Kenshin, especially when one has been obsessed with said samurai for the past decade. While Kenshin figures out that Jin’e is the Battousai imposter, he doesn’t seem to remember Jin’e from the battlefield. Was Jin’e one of the many soldiers that Kenshin fought that day? Could that be another reason why Jin’e wants to fight Kenshin so badly, to redeem himself?
An interesting moment is when Jin’e’s tries to use the Nikaidou Tactic on Kenshin and it fails. Kenshin senses the attack, but it doesn’t affect him. I wouldn’t expect it to. There’s nothing weak about Kenshin’s mind and he fears very little at this point. However, is it possible that the attack doesn’t affect Kenshin because it was created from his victims? Like, the echoes of their fear are ineffective because he caused it and experienced it firsthand.
In any case, the police show up before Jin’e can get a proper fight going. Kenshin and Kaoru use the distraction to run away.
Locked Up
At the dojo, Kenshin and Kaoru discuss the Battousai situation again. Kaoru explains how people have stopped signing up as students because her family’s technique is associated with murder now, which implies that she’s hurting financially.
Kenshin is more concerned about Kaoru’s safety. She’s being reckless. He warns her—since her sliced up arm didn’t get the message across—that Jin’e will kill her. He says, “The honor of a style of swordsmanship is not so weighty a thing that it is worth risking your life to safeguard it.” Kaoru merely accuses Kenshin of not understanding that the reputation of her dojo is that important.
Kenshin agrees to disagree. She ain’t listening to him anyway. As an olive branch, he offers to watch over the dojo that night. And it’s a good thing he does—Kanryu sends his samurai gang to seize the place. They break a bunch of stuff and terrorize Kaoru and Yahiko (Taketo Tanaka), a young orphaned boy who does chores for Kaoru in exchange for lessons and food, before Kenshin makes his dramatic entrance.
Kenshin proceeds to take out the gang with his bare hands, random practice swords, and his reverse-blade sword. The ruckus alarms Kaoru’s neighbors, who call the police. Kenshin takes the fall for the rumble, though it’s his illegal sword that actually sinks him. Before he’s carted off, Kaoru asks for his name and he gives it. She slowly repeats the syllables, like she’s working out the fact that he fittingly writes his name with the kanji for “sword” and “heart.”
Kenshin calmly sits in his dingy, spider web-covered cell until he’s summoned by Army Minister Yamagata (Eiji Okuda), the same guy who originally hired him as an assassin. And guess who Kenshin’s escort is? Saito! Now known as the police detective Goro Fujita, Saito is investigating Kanryu’s opium business and the Battousai murders. Saito could not be happier to see Kenshin. He’s still itching for that showdown.
Yamagata has been unsuccessfully searching for Kenshin since the war ended, having only heard “rumors of a skilled rurouni who helped people.” That explains what Kenshin has been doing the past ten years. Yamagata then asks Kenshin to become an assassin again to help end the opium epidemic. He argues that if Saito, who fought for the other side in the war, can use his skills to help the government, then Kenshin should do the same. Kenshin declines before Yamagata can even finish his pitch. He holds firm that he’s done with that life.
Saito, the jerk, uses the opportunity to force Kenshin into a match under the guise of wanting to see the reverse-blade sword in action. He probably just wants to see if Kenshin still has it. But Kenshin refuses to fight. He does the bare minimum to defend himself. Even when Saito forces the sharp side of the reverse-blade into Kenshin’s shoulder—to literally drive home his point that Kenshin’s new pacifist lifestyle will get him killed one day—Kenshin will not fight him.
Saito doesn’t let up until Yamagata calls him off. I think Yamagata wanted to see if Kenshin still has it too. Perhaps he instructed or allowed Saito to start the fight in the first place. Clearly disappointed by Kenshin’s lack of spirit, Yamagata apologizes and releases him from jail.
Homecoming
To Kenshin’s surprise, Kaoru is waiting for him outside the jail in the rain. He doesn’t know how to feel. Yamagata and Saito just humiliated him. Now he has to deal with the fallout from Kaoru learning his true identity. I mean, she was mad enough when she thought he was the fake Battousai. How will she react to knowing that he’s the real one? He’s afraid that he’ll lose her friendship and trust over this technicality, a lie by omission.
Kenshin braces himself for Kaoru’s condemnation, but she greets him with a smile, an umbrella, and an invitation to return to the dojo. She says, “The man I met is a rurouni named Kenshin. We’ve all got a thing or two in our past that we don’t want to talk about.” Her words confirm that although she has sussed out his identity, she’s not going to hold it against him or inquire further about it. Kenshin grabs hold of that lifeline (and the extra umbrella) and they go home.
Back at the dojo, Kaoru gives Kenshin clothes from her late father’s wardrobe to replace his wet, bloody, and muddy ones. Even though Kaoru warns him that the clothes will be too big on him due to her father’s large size, Kenshin gladly accepts them. This is how he acquires his signature pink top and white pants.
These clothes hold multiple layers of possible significance. Is Kenshin symbolically stepping into Kaoru’s father’s place as the man and protector in her life as he literally dons his clothes? Are the clothes being too big a metaphor for Kenshin needing extra room to live his new life while carrying the baggage of his former one? Even the brighter color palette is an important change, as his old clothes were a drab brown and gray and his assassin clothes were all black.
The scene ends with Kenshin lifting his face to the sky with his eyes closed as the wind blows around him. Maybe that’s Kaoru’s father (or some higher power) giving his approval.
Making New Friends
Megumi, who has continued to creep through town, ends up outside the dojo. She literally runs into Yahiko, who has been waiting for Kaoru and Kenshin. Since it’s raining and she’s hysterical, Yahiko invites her inside.
As Kaoru is officially introducing Kenshin and Yahiko, Megumi sashays into the yard, freshly bathed and wearing a thin robe (Kaoru’s?). She immediately starts flirting with Kenshin. Though Kenshin is his usual polite self, he still telegraphs his discomfort with her attention and state of undress. Kaoru is uncomfortable too. Very. She smacks Yahiko’s arm for letting a stranger into the dojo while not-so-quietly asking him who Megumi is.
Now it’s Kaoru’s turn to be afraid of Kenshin’s reaction. She’s scared to death that Kenshin will like Megumi more than her. On paper, Megumi is a better match for him. Megumi is classically beautiful, whereas Kaoru is pretty in a girl-next-door way. Megumi, who is in her mid-20s, is closer to Kenshin’s age (~30) than Kaoru, who is 18-19. Plus, Megumi’s a damsel in distress, which guys often find irresistible. How can Kaoru compete with a worldly woman like that?
And side note: where does this flirty side of the previously timid Megumi come from? Does being in the safety of Kaoru’s dojo allow her true personality to emerge? Or does she use her flirty persona to hide her true emotions in the same way that Kenshin uses his bumbling rurouni persona to hide his true identity (another similarity they share)?
Another possibility is that her flirting is a trick, like the character Abby Flynn from 30 Rock. In the episode “TGS Hates Women” (Season 5, Episode 16), Abby is a new female writer on staff who uses an overly sexual persona to draw men to her in hopes that they will protect her from her mentally ill ex-husband who’s trying to kill her. Does Megumi meet Kenshin, note the sword, figure out he’s a samurai, and decide to seduce him so he’ll protect her from Jin’e and Kanryu?
Whatever her original reasons were, Megumi soon realizes that Kenshin is the kind of guy who will protect her without expecting anything in return. She shifts gears. She’s not romantically interested in Kenshin, and anyway, he and Kaoru clearly have a thing. So, the flirting becomes more of a means to tease the two. Kenshin plays along with her game, but Kaoru takes the flirting seriously. It doesn’t help that she’s got Yahiko in her ear, telling her stuff like, “You’re going to lose him!”
Kanryu’s Job Offer
Kaoru treats Kenshin to dinner at a local restaurant to thank him for his assistance. Megumi and Yahiko tag along too, though Kaoru makes it clear that she didn’t invite the former. Megumi whispers to Kenshin, “I get the feeling that this girl doesn’t want me around.” The game continues.
Lo and behold, Kanryu and his flunkies show up looking for Kenshin (Megumi beats feet to the bathroom before they spot her.) Kanryu is polite enough at first. He introduces himself to Kenshin and offers him a business card. Then he slams down a bag full of money and asks Kenshin to be his bodyguard. After all, what’s the point of having a whole samurai gang if Kenshin can single-handedly defeat them?
Kenshin declines the offer and continues eating. Kanryu’s politeness instantly dissolves. He does not like hearing no. He rains cash down on Kenshin’s head like he’s at a strip club while lecturing him about learning to enjoy the good life. Kenshin declines again and returns the money. Kanryu angrily steps on Kenshin’s dishes.
Just as things are about to get ugly, fighter-for-hire Sanosuke Sagara (Munetaka Aoki) enters the restaurant. Kenshin doesn’t know that Sano was in an adjacent cell when he was in jail. He also doesn’t know that Sano overheard Kenshin’s conversation with Saito and knows that he’s the real Battousai (the details of which he later recites to Kenshin for our benefit).
Sano recognizes a good opportunity here. He’s no Battousai, but he thinks he’s skilled enough to be Kanryu’s bodyguard. So, he and Kanryu strike a deal: if Sano beats Kenshin in a fight, Kanryu will hire him. Kenshin reluctantly agrees to the fight, if only to end the spectacle and minimize damage to the restaurant.
Sano doesn’t stand a chance. He fights with an old-fashioned sword called a Zanba, which was once used to kill horses. He can barely wield it—it’s almost as long as he is tall and weighs a ton. Plus, Kenshin’s so fast that he’s already dodged the Zanba by the time Sano gets it going in his direction. At one point, Kenshin does a backflip off the tip of the thing. It’s an impressive show…and a total waste of everyone’s time.
Eventually, Kenshin convinces Sano to concede the fight. He reminds Sano that they have no real beef and tells him that he’s too good to work for a dude like Kanryu. Sano sees the light. He apologizes to the crowd and goes on his way.
Kanryu, of course, is pissed that he’s out two potential bodyguards. On the upside, Kanryu is so freaked out by Kenshin’s performance that he vows to leave him alone.
Bad Memories
Meanwhile, Jin’e continues to kill as the Battousai. This time, he slaughters more cops and the members of Kanryu’s samurai gang that Kenshin fought.
Kenshin walks by the scene and sees a young woman crying over her slain lover’s body. The combination of the carnage and the weeping woman triggers a flashback of his first day as the Battousai when he killed a group of enemy samurai. One guy keeps saying that he can’t die because he’s getting married soon and refuses to go down no matter how many times Kenshin cuts him. Before he dies, the man slices Kenshin’s cheek, giving him one half of his trademark X scar. The next day, Kenshin sees the man’s fiancée crying over his body.
The flashback also reveals that Kenshin became an assassin because he wanted to make the world a better place. He says, “If beyond the lives that are sacrificed all will be able to live knowing that they are safe…If such a new era is certain to come, then…” That’s one of the reasons why he refuses to kill now. He learned that there’s always someone to kill. If all you have is a hammer, all of your problems start looking like nails.
Saito’s on the scene in his official capacity. Of course, he doesn’t miss the chance to try to convince Kenshin of the exact opposite. He directly blames the deaths on Kenshin because Kenshin won’t become an assassin again. The blow lands, making Kenshin question if he is doing the right thing.
Kanryu’s Revenge
Kanryu strikes again too. He wants all of the property around the dojo now so he can build a dock for ships that will carry his opium shipments all over the world. Since no one will sell him their land, he sends Gein (Go Ayano), a samurai from his inner circle who wears a kabuki mask, a long black wig, and heavy black robes, to pour rat poison into Kaoru’s well. The poison then taints the whole community’s water. Kanryu also disappears the local doctors for good measure.
Gein comes across Megumi before he leaves the scene and tries to convince her to return to Kanryu. He doesn’t mention what he’s done, but based on Megumi’s reaction when one of Kaoru’s neighbors runs into the dojo with their poisoned child, she quickly puts two and two together. She jumps into doctor mode, identifying the poison and giving everyone orders. She’s able to save most of the people.
During a break in the action, Kenshin and Megumi converse by the docks. Kenshin nudges her to share her backstory. Megumi counters his request by telling him to share his first. Kenshin starts to say that he and Megumi are the same, but Megumi shuts that down. Kenshin made the conscious decision to become an assassin; she made opium because she didn’t have a choice. He did what he did to save others; she did what she did to save herself. Ergo, they are not the same.
Notably, Megumi says, “I became [Kanryu’s] woman.” She describes their relationship as a quid pro quo deal. Was (or is) their relationship sexual? Kanryu wouldn’t keep a beautiful young woman around without expecting more than an opium formula from her. And…there’s the answer to why she thought she had to seduce Kenshin for his protection.
That night, Kenshin reviews everything that’s happened as he keeps watch over the dojo from the porch. He decides that it’s time to take action against Kanryu. Sano, who has come to the same conclusion, shows up with intel he’s gathered about Kanryu’s compound.
Before they leave, Kaoru runs in with a note from Megumi. Megumi’s gone. She knows that Gein has told Kanryu where she is, which means that Jin’e will likely come for her soon. It’s safer for everyone if she voluntarily returns to the compound. That gives Kenshin and Sano two goals now: take out Kanryu and save Megumi.
Megumi Versus Kanryu
A contrite Megumi enters Kanryu’s compound and is led to his office. Kanryu expects her to get right back to work, but she flips the script. She tells him that she’s not there to make opium. The next thing you know, she’s got him bent over the conference table with a knife to his throat.
Megumi has planned a murder/suicide-by-samurai scenario. She says, “My destiny lies with you and yours with me. I’ll die for you as soon as I’m done with you!” She’s hoping that one of the samurai will kill her, which will eliminate the horrible opium formula too. She calls this her “atonement.”
Kanryu flails around, screaming for help. Oddly, none of the samurai try to stop Megumi. They just stand there. Do they not care if she kills their boss? Or are they so shocked that the “timid” Megumi is wilding out that they’re waiting to see how things play out?
Gein pulls Megumi off and throws her to ground. She jumps right back up to fight, but Kanryu slaps her down and starts viciously kicking her. Nobody stops this either. It’s upsetting to watch. Has Kanryu been physically abusing Megumi too? That little man certainly has a bad enough temper for it.
Storming the Castle
Kenshin and Sano enter Kanryu’s compound and go to work on the samurai gang. The action is reminiscent of the movie’s opening battle, with Kenshin taking people out almost faster than the eye can follow, except that Kenshin doesn’t kill anyone. When Kanryu sees how badly his men are losing, he starts throwing cash out the window to pump them up. This is the second time he’s literally tried to throw money at a problem. When that fails, he tells his suit-wearing flunkies to “get that thing ready.” “That thing” is a huge machine gun.
Funnily enough, Kanryu doesn’t understand why Kenshin is attacking him. He thinks that Kenshin has no reason to be bothering him because he hasn’t bothered Kenshin since the restaurant incident. Kanryu doesn’t see how the opium, the well poisoning, or Megumi’s “kidnapping” affect Kenshin personally. Therefore, Kenshin is a nosy busybody.
From there, Kenshin and Sano have individual battles with Kanryu’s inner circle flunkies. Kenshin fights Gein, who’s mad at Kenshin for helping to end the samurai era. He sheds his costume to reveal Edward Scissorhands’ leather bodysuit, bleached blond hair, and a half-scarred face. Gein strings Kenshin up from the chandelier and shoots at him with a gun in each hand. When Kenshin eventually frees himself, Gein meets Kenshin’s sword with dual knives. Ultimately, Kenshin disables Gein with a few hard blows to his arm and leg.
Meanwhile Sano fights Inui Banjin (Genki Sudô), an actual monk. The two beat the crap outta each other in the kitchen. There’s a hilarious moment where Sano calls a time-out to refuel with some chicken (Inui declines) and wine (Inui accepts). Then they jump back into it. Sano triumphs with a German Suplex wrestling move that renders Inui unconscious.
With their respective foes defeated, Kenshin and Sano venture deeper into the house. Kanryu greets them with gunfire when they reach his office. Dude has completely lost his marbles. He’s smoking a cigar and laughing maniacally as he sprays the area with bullets. They’re forced to take cover wherever they can.
Surprisingly, Saito shows up to help (Yahiko snitched). While Saito frames his assistance as his job—and it is—I see it more as Saito meeting Kenshin halfway. He still disagrees with Kenshin’s beliefs, but he secretly respects Kenshin’s dedication to helping people on his own terms. Moreover, Kenshin can get at Kanryu in ways that Saito, as a cop, legally can’t.
The trio formulates a plan. Kenshin and Sano “surrender” to get into the room safely. Then they run in opposite directions to confuse Kanryu (he can’t shoot in both directions at once). When he’s preoccupied with them, Saito cuts down the chandelier to further disorient Kanryu. By the time Kanryu recovers, Kenshin is standing on top of the machine gun with his sword at the other man’s neck. Game over!
The Final Showdown
With Saito handling Kanryu, Kenshin and Sano run off to find Megumi. She’s bound and gagged in the attic. Kanryu is mad at her, but he still needs her. Once freed, Megumi warns them that Jin’e is headed for Kaoru. He slipped out of the compound when Kenshin first arrived, knowing that the vulnerable Kaoru will make the perfect bait to force Kenshin to fight him.
Kenshin rushes to the isolated forest area where Jin’e is holding Kaoru. They have some small talk before jumping right into things. Despite what’s at stake, however, Kenshin’s heart simply isn’t in it. Like his fights with Saito and Sano, Kenshin mostly reacts defensively. It costs him several wounds.
Kenshin’s disappointing performance irritates Jin’e. He knows that Kenshin is capable of far more than he’s giving. So Jin’e uses his Nikaidou Tactic to cut off Kaoru’s air. Kenshin now has two minutes to kill Jin’e before she suffocates.
This development has the intended effect of pushing Kenshin over the edge. His entire demeanor changes. His beautiful face twists into an evil sneer. His extremely polite speech slides into gutter gangster patterns (he even curses!) and his voice deepens into a feral growl. This is the real Battousai, folks! This is the demon that Kenshin has kept locked away for a decade.
Jin’e is elated. He finally gets to see how he measures up. Long story short, Jin’e holds his own, but Himura Battousai is not screwing around. Kenshin uses a special move on Jin’e and casually informs him, “I’ve shattered your elbow and ruptured the tendons. Your life as a swordsman is now over.”
Kaoru, who is still slowly dying on the ground, is not cool with any of this. The last thing she wants is for Kenshin to lose himself to save her. Her stubbornness and bravery give her the strength to break Jin’e’s spell. With her first gasping breaths, she begs Kenshin to stop. And it’s just in the nick of time because Kenshin is about to bring the sharp side of his sword down on Jin’e’s head.
It’s worth noting that even now, Kenshin doesn’t want to kill Jin’e. He says to himself, “This once, I go back to being a killsword.” He’s trying to convince himself that this single kill will not change anything. He sounds like a recovering addict telling himself that having one more drink or drag will be fine, knowing that it’s a lie.
Thankfully, Kaoru’s desperate pleas snap Kenshin out of Battousai mode. Jin’e makes one last move towards Kenshin, only to pivot and stab himself in the gut. He lost. Not being able to hold a sword on top of that defeat is a fate worse than death for Jin’e, whose entire existence is built around being a samurai. He would rather die for real.
Jin’e takes satisfaction in knowing that his suicide will cause Kenshin more pain than if he’d killed Jin’e himself, precisely because Kenshin tried not to kill him. Jin’e’s final words to Kenshin are even more of a mindfuck: “Once a killsword, always a killsword. We’ll see how long you manage to keep spouting that rurouni crap.”
Then Saito shows up with the police and starts in on Kenshin about the same stuff. He seems disappointed that Kenshin didn’t stay in Battousai mode. In response, Kenshin repeats what he’s been saying all along about killing only leading to more killing and carries the unconscious Kaoru home.
I think Saito’s hard on Kenshin because he genuinely believes that Kenshin is squandering his talent. To him, the ends justifies the means, the lives of the many outweigh the needs of the one, etc. But Saito wasn’t out there murdering people as a teenager (as far I know). He doesn’t know how that impacted Kenshin. Maybe Saito prides himself on his ability to handle the never-ending gore, but there’s no shame in Kenshin tapping out to protect his mental health.
I admire Kenshin’s conviction. It would be so easy to fall back into old habits, especially when so many people are constantly poking and prodding him to do so. Look at John Wick. But Kenshin has proved to himself that he’s strong enough (with help from his friends) to pull himself back from the abyss. He’s truly not that guy anymore.
Home Again, Home Again
Kaoru awakens in her bed at the dojo. Megumi and Yahiko, who are preparing for dinner, express their relief that she’s up and okay, but all Kaoru can think about is Kenshin. Where is he? Is he mad that he had to become the Battousai for her sake? Is he embarrassed that she saw him like that? Did he leave to protect her from his other enemies? A million scenarios must be running through her mind.
None of the scenarios are true. Kenshin went to the market to pick up groceries for dinner. The girl is on the verge of tears when he comes through the dojo’s gates. She smiles and says, “Welcome back, Kenshin.” Kenshin smiles back and answers, “I have returned home.”
The exchange is full of subtext. On the surface, they exchange versions of the traditional phrases (“Okaerinasai” and “Tadaima”) that Japanese people say to each other upon coming home. Beneath those words, Kaoru is telling Kenshin that he belongs with her (and the others) at the dojo and Kenshin is accepting the offer because the dojo has become his home. It’s such a heartwarming way to end the movie.
Conclusion
Part I: Origins is amazing! I don’t remember the anime well, but this adaptation does a fantastic job of capturing the spirit of the series. The fight scenes are intricate and the background scenery is beautiful. It’s so rare for a live action movie to get everything so right.
The casting in particular is top notch. Everyone looks and acts exactly like their anime/manga counterparts. Takeru Satô has Kenshin down pat! That is not an easy character to portray. Regular Kenshin and Himura Battousai are basically two different people. Then there are the physical challenges. Kenshin canonically has a slim build and a pretty face, but he also has to be strong enough to pull off those complicated samurai moves. Satô strikes the perfect balance between the extremes. He made me fall in love with Kenshin all over again.
The other live action Kenshin movies are great too. The action really kicks up as we meet important characters like the villain Shishio, the ninja Aoshi, and Kenshin’s master Hiko. I might write about those installments too one day.
*Rurouni Kenshin Part I: Origins DVD cover and summary © Nobuhiro Watsuki, Warner Bros, Funimation*
References:
- “The Meiji Restoration” (Britannica.com)
- Inventing Japan: 1853-1964 (Ian Buruma)
- “Japan.” (Kenneth B. Pyle, Michael Robinson, and Jay Rubin; The World Book Encyclopedia)