This is Samurai X: Trust and Betrayal, a movie by Nobuhiro Watsuki. While it is fiction, it is also historical, educating the viewers on the Meiji Revolution of the 1860's in Japan, which is also known as the Bakumatsu. Even detailed elements such as the Shinsengumi and some of the characters-such as Hajime Saitou and Souji Okita-added in this piece are historically accurate to the point of being almost eerie.
I believe that this movie is art in more ways than one. To start out, the animation and design is stunning, with some points being so realistically detailed that I wonder if actual video footage had been slipped in. The scenes of action-while a bit bloody-are well-animated. The symbolism throughout the work is well-placed, and it seems that nothing in the piece goes unused. The characters are also well-developed, making it easy for the viewer to sympathize with their own individual positions.
As for the storyline itself, most of the history it follows is-again-extremely accurate. It follows the life of a teenage assassin for the Inshin Shishi-the revolutionaries of the Bakumatsu-named Kenshin Himura, and how the bloodshed and his own profession takes a toll on his mind and tears his life asunder. It is a dramatic and psychological work, reflecting the horrors of war and its psychological effects. At the same time, it also has a romantic side of forbidden love. In short, this is definitely a movie that I would recommend-otaku or not.
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