This is a movie that was recommended to me by my Secret Santa. So thank you to my Secret Santa for the great recommendation, and to Reverse Thieves for organizing the Secret Santa!

Sword of the Stranger is a movie about a stranger with a sword.

I’ve been hearing about Sword of the Stranger for years, but had never gotten around to watching it. From the premise, it just doesn’t sound particularly interesting. “The scary-looking swordsman with a heart of gold protects an innocent child from the meany-faces.” I feel like I’ve seen this movie before.

And, well, I probably have. The first half of the movie was very well done, but I wouldn’t call it remarkable. It’s simple but entertaining. It does one thing very well that made it keep my interest; namely, watching the little kid trying and failing to be a tough guy in front of the swordsman twice his size. This was consistently fun to watch.

But it was the second half of the movie that I found particularly memorable.

WARNING: SPOILERS In one beautiful, protracted battle scene, all the characters developed in the first half of the movie casually die pathetic, pointless deaths one after another. It was hilarious. A memorable illustration of the futility of war. END SPOILERS

In summary, it was a good movie that I would also recommend. Thanks again to my Secret Santa for the suggestion!

• Storytelling – B – Loved the ending, the first half was decent.
• Voice – B – Memorable, but not the most unique voice.
• Characters – B – Liked the little kid, the rest were meh. Also nice doggie.
• Attention Grab – A – Kept my attention throughout
• Production – B – Looks good. Excellent fight scenes.
• Overall – B+

Recommendations – Seirei no Moribito