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The Great Yokai War

Play trailer Poster for The Great Yokai War PG-13 2005 2h 3m Fantasy Adventure Play Trailer Watchlist
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74% Tomatometer 19 Reviews 67% Popcornmeter 2,500+ Ratings
A young boy called Tadashi Ino (Ryunosuke Kamiki) is chosen to be a "Kirin Rider" -- one who protects virtuous things from evil spirits. He's immediately put to the test by Lord Kato Yasunori (Etsushi Toyokawa), a malevolent force who sows chaos and destruction in the countryside. As young children go missing and evil mechanical monsters attack, Tadashi must retrieve a mythical sword from the Great Goblin to save the populace. Standing in his way are mountain-dwelling ghouls.

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The Great Yokai War

Critics Reviews

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Brian Tallerico RogerEbert.com 08/24/2021
Miike can do anything, and he displays that range here in a film that's fun, creative, and unpredictable. Go to Full Review
Bill Stamets Chicago Sun-Times 08/13/2006
2/4
This noisy, effects-crazed PG-13 adventure might work for 10 year-olds who are beyond Nickelodeon piffle and ready for Japanese splatter. Go to Full Review
J. R. Jones Chicago Reader 08/12/2006
With its scenes of mass destruction in Tokyo and its climactic mushroom cloud, the movie owes a psychic debt to the atomic-monster movies of the 50s and 60s, but its overriding tone is one of endless, giddy invention. Go to Full Review
Jennie Kermode Eye for Film 10/07/2021
4/5
his isn't a big showdown in the style of recent superhero movies, but something far more organic and joyously deranged. Go to Full Review
Tim Brayton Antagony & Ecstasy 11/07/2014
7/10
A fanciful dramatisation of children's scary fantasies in impressive puppetry. Go to Full Review
Steve Biodrowski ESplatter 07/14/2008
F
The Yokai War, when it finally comes, is pretty near an unmitigated disaster, filled with silly special effects and sillier action. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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10/23/2021 If someone is going to make a new Yokai movie, it really should be Takeshi Miike, who draws inspiration from Aramata Hiroshi's Teito Monogatari, the Spook Warfare movie and Mizuki Shigeru's GeGeGe no Kitaro manga. All three — and this movie — are just different takes on the legend of Momotaro driving the demons away from Kikaigashima. Where this adaption changes the game is that it's not about Japan against outside forces, but really about the old ways versus the modern world, as the enemy demons are all mechanical robotic beasts that feel like they'd be right at home in the Luigi Cozzi movie. It tells the tale of Tadashi Ino, a young boy who moves to a small town after his parents' divorce. At the festival of his village, he is picked as that year's Kirin Rider, but beyond that being just a ceremonial title, he ends up really being the protector of all things good and must defend the town against Yasunori Kato, who demands revenge for how modern Japan has disrespected the yokai. To gain that vengeance, he transforms them in a magical forge into kikai that takes a page out of Dr. Robotnik and transforms friendly yokai into enemies. Sadly, for all the adventures in this film, when you grow up, you lose the ability to see yokai. Despite the move toward CGI in this, its still a charming film. Of course, it's also a Miike movie, so it can have cute and cuddly creature in one scene and a fetal demon being born in blood the next, so prepare yourself. See more 12/04/2013 Occasionally fun, occasionally grating, and way, way too long. But always fascinatingly illogical, as Miike films always are (and despite his trademark jerky, muddy CGI being completely wrong for the style of the narrative). Also some surprisingly good performances, especially from Toyokawa (the main bad guy), who is frighteningly stoic, almost melancholy, and the kid who plays Tadashi who somehow manages to not be annoying, an amazing feat considering the role he's playing. See more 12/05/2012 Why didn't they make kiddie movies like this when I was a kid? See more 10/27/2012 (*** 1/2): [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/user/icons/icon14.gif[/img] A strange, fun, and entertaining film. This is another very good film from Takashi Miike. See more 08/26/2012 Miike makes a children fantasy movie! Awesome! See more 12/19/2011 Maybe the best film for kids 9-100 in decades. Funny, crazy, well made (though the SFX could have been given a bigger budget to work with). Really imaginative, doesn't shy away from maturity despite it's fantastic setting. It's Miyazaki meets Gilliam, and it's a must see. See more Read all reviews
The Great Yokai War

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Movie Info

Synopsis A young boy called Tadashi Ino (Ryunosuke Kamiki) is chosen to be a "Kirin Rider" -- one who protects virtuous things from evil spirits. He's immediately put to the test by Lord Kato Yasunori (Etsushi Toyokawa), a malevolent force who sows chaos and destruction in the countryside. As young children go missing and evil mechanical monsters attack, Tadashi must retrieve a mythical sword from the Great Goblin to save the populace. Standing in his way are mountain-dwelling ghouls.
Director
Takashi Miike
Producer
Fumio Inoue
Production Co
Nippon Television Network
Rating
PG-13 (Fantasy Violence|Scary Images)
Genre
Fantasy, Adventure
Original Language
Japanese
Release Date (DVD)
Sep 12, 2006
Runtime
2h 3m
Sound Mix
Dolby Digital Surround EX
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