Hunter x Hunter: Phantom Rouge (Movie)

[monir]

Premiere Date: January 12, 2013

Website: http://www.hxh-movie.jp/index.html

Animation Production: Madhouse

Apparently, and I quote: "The premise of the movie is based off a manuscript of the Yorknew City arc written by Togashi Yoshihiro that he eventually ended up scrapping." Discuss the movie as you see fit. Using spoiler tag is entirely up to you if you are one of those lucky ones who got to attend the premiere. As for the rest of us, use discretion as to whether or not you want to be in this thread. Synopsis is in the following:

Kurapika became a Hunter to take vengeance on the Phantom Troupe, a gang of thieves who massacred his clan. The Phantom Troupe sought out the Kurta Clan for their eyes, which turn scarlet when they get agitated. An unknown party has stolen Kurapika's "scarlet eyes," but Kurapika's life is saved with the help of Gon, Killua, and Leorio. The Phantom Troupe stands before Kurapika and the others, who are about to discover the true identity of the person with the No.4 spider tattoo.

And the tease trailer as follows:

YouTube

http://youtu.be/GgIcXvZvrP4

Sorry; dynamic content not loaded. Reload?

[Guardian Enzo]

I’m very reluctant to try and do a detailed review of a movie I watched raw, so I’ll just give some highlights. Having read the prequel chapters definitely helped, and I’m able to follow enough of the language now to have a general idea – but there are certain elements I’m not sure of, even so. If you’d rather go in fresh when you see the movie, please stop reading here.

Spoiler for Major Phantom Rouge Spoilers:

Headlines:

Kurapika loses his eyes (sort of)
Gon gets a girlfriend (sort of)
Killua gets jealous of the girlfriend (sort of, but pretty obviously)
Leorio uses Nen (sort of)
Gon and Killa get their butts saved by both Nobunaga and Hisoka (not sort of at all)
Killua has a final battle with Illumi (not really)
Hisoka and Chrollo fight (not really)

Generally speaking, I thought the film was very strong. Because of the pacing – basically 4 episodes rather than Togashi’s usual 20-episode arcs – some of the details are lost, inevitably. But in general it’s exciting, energetic, dark and very much in-character. It looks great too.

The basic premise surrounds a man named Omokage (Fujiki Naohito), who’s a sort of puppet master – he has the ability to make perfect copies of anyone (including dead people, crucially) including their Nen abilities. Where it gets a bit dodgy is the timeline, since this is a story that’s not in the manga’s canon. Omokage appears to be Spider #4 – he certainly has the tattoo, and the rest certainly know him – which might place this before York Shin, at the time Hisoka takes over the #4 spot himself. But it’s very clear that Uvogin is dead (though he appears as one of Omokage’s puppets), which would place it after York Shin. I’m guessing this is probably a language issue and I would know the answer if I’d seen it subbed, but I’m honestly not sure.

There are two other major new characters. First is Pairo (Kawashima Umika), the Kurta boy from the manga prequel. His story is one of the saddest in the Hunter x Hunter annals (as you know if you read it) and he’s involved in some of the movie’s best scenes. The other new character is Retzu (Hirano Aya) who seems to be Omokage’s sister – though Gon doesn’t know this when he befriends her. The dynamic between Gon, Killua and Retzu is very interesting – it’s really the first time we’ve seen them interact with a girl their own age.

To be honest I was expecting the movie to be extremely Kurapika-centric, based on the trailer and the promo art. But while his story is certainly the catalyst, it’s very much Gon and Killua who are the main characters. In fact it’s actually Killua who has the most and longest dramatic scenes, and his psychological trauma surrounding Illumi is at least as important thematically as Kurapika’s tragic back-story. Gon and Killua’s friendship is at the center of the film, just as it is for most of the TV arcs – in a way, you could look at this as stylistically a cross between York Shin and the Hunter Exam. We also see the Phantom Troupe in a somewhat different light than we’re used to – at the very least, they fulfill a different role than they do in the anime canon. That’s most especially true of Nobunaga – it’s more clear than ever that he’s the most “sympathetic” of all the Spiders, and that he has a liking for Gon and Killua just as Hisoka does. As for Hisoka, his awesomeness really needs to be seen – I couldn’t really do it justice with mere words. He’s not a friend, he’s not an enemy – he’s a Hisoka, and there’s no one like him. And he sure isn’t someone you’d want to piss off.

As for the big announcement that was promised after the credits, we got good news – though I suspect many were hoping it would be different news. It wasn’t an announcement of the manga re-starting, but rather of a second Hunter X Hunter film. The only character who appears in the very brief scene is Netero (looking rather smug, in fact) and there are no details beyond that. Is Togashi writing it? Is it based on another “lost” manga story? At this point your guess is as good as mine. Meanwhile we wait for Togashi-sensei to restart the manga – which I hope he does soon, as the anime will be at risk of catching up otherwise. But I guess anything less than a year doesn’t really count as a hiatus when it’s Togashi-sensei.

[Kazu-kun]

So the movie isn't canon, right? I mean, it doesn't seem to fit in the timeline at all.

[zeniselv]

its good to have an idea of the movie now, but im probably 6 moths away to be able to comment cbout it.

[Guardian Enzo]

Originally Posted by Kazu-kun

So the movie isn't canon, right? I mean, it doesn't seem to fit in the timeline at all.

If it does, I can't figure out exactly how based on the raw. The characters act as if it were (that's the difference in having the actual mangaka do the writing) but it does seem to exist in an alternate timeline.

[zeniselv]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

If it does, I can't figure out exactly how based on the raw. The characters act as if it were (that's the difference in having the actual mangaka do the writing) but it does seem to exist in an alternate timeline.

thats the magic fix for these kinds of fallacies in any kind of fiction.

[Guardian Enzo]

All screenings in Shibuya sold out again today...

[Dagger]

Just got back! I loved it.

Spoiler for timeline clarification etc.:

It's actually much less of an AU story than I had expected. In fact, it comes surprisingly close to being able to fit into the main storyline--there are just a few details that throw things off here and there.

To clear up a few of the points mentioned previously--it does take place after York Shin. The Spiders know about Hisoka's betrayal, and they spare Kurapika at the end because they're aware that they need to resolve Chrollo's situation before they do anything to him. Hisoka entered the group by killing Omokage, but the Omokage he killed was actually a puppet (and Hisoka was aware of this, but he didn't care--he thought it would be more interesting to let the real Omokage live longer, anyway).

Omokage was willing to drop out of the group at that point because he had gotten close enough to the Spiders to create puppets of his favorite members, which was his only reason for joining in the first place. So although he didn't conspire with Hisoka to fake his death or anything, appearing to die at Hisoka's hands ended up working out well for both of them.

[Guardian Enzo]

Originally Posted by Dagger

Just got back! I loved it.

Spoiler for timeline clarification etc.:

It's actually much less of an AU story than I had expected. In fact, it comes surprisingly close to being able to fit into the main storyline--there are just a few details that throw things off here and there.

To clear up a few of the points mentioned previously--it does take place after York Shin. The Spiders know about Hisoka's betrayal, and they spare Kurapika at the end because they're aware that they need to resolve Chrollo's situation before they do anything to him. Hisoka entered the group by killing Omokage, but the Omokage he killed was actually a puppet (and Hisoka was aware of this, but he didn't care--he thought it would be more interesting to let the real Omokage live longer, anyway).

Omokage was willing to drop out of the group at that point because he had gotten close enough to the Spiders to create puppets of his favorite members, which was his only reason for joining in the first place. So although he didn't conspire with Hisoka to fake his death or anything, appearing to die at Hisoka's hands ended up working out well for both of them.

Thanks for the clarification. One question:

Spoiler for Spoilery question:

What about Retzu? Was she a puppet as well, or did she really die?

I'm never the one who says "this show should get a sub-forum", but given that H x H already has four threads (actually five, that I know of) scattered around three different boards...

[Dagger]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

Thanks for the clarification. One question:

Spoiler for Spoilery question:

What about Retzu? Was she a puppet as well, or did she really die?

Spoiler:

Omokage did have a little sister originally, but he killed her to use her eyes for a doll/puppet (the Retsu that Gon and Killua meet).

[zeniselv]

wow, the movie seems darker than i thougth, and thats great.

[Guardian Enzo]

Great debut for H x H:

[1 (-) Hunter X Hunter: The Phantom Rouge (Toho) ¥427 million ($4.97 million), 0, NEW!
2 (2) Les Miserables (Toho-Towa) ¥272 million (3.17 million), -5%, Week 4
3 (1) One Piece Film Z (Toei) ¥255 million ($2.97 million), -21%, Week 5
4 (-) Taken 2 (20th Century Fox) ¥151 million ($1.77 million), 0, NEW!
5 (-) Looper (Gaga) ¥136 million ($1.59 million), 0, NEW!
6 (3) The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Warner Bros.) ¥60 million ($699,000), -39%, Week 5
7 (4) 007: Skyfall (Sony) ¥55 million ($646,000), -40%, Week 7
8 (6) Today, I Started Loving You (Toho) ¥48 million ($564,000), -33%, Week 6
9 (9) Blue Exorcist: The Movie (Toho) ¥41 million ($482,000), -17%, Week 3
10 (5) Humanoid Monster, Bem (Toho) ¥34 million ($393,000), -54%, Week 5



Excellent debut for the first Hunter X Hunter film. The opening is only behind the holy trinity of Pokemon, Doraemon, and Detective Conan when comparing annual TV anime films, and best franchises like Bleach or Naruto quite easily. ¥2 billion ($25 million) is the goal here.

[waterdragon1793]

How long after YorkShin? So Uvogin and Pakunoda are both dead? But I think I saw them in the trailer. . .

[Gundamx]

In other word it's "what if story" manga story that got scrap by manga author, right?

[Goty]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

The opening is only behind the holy trinity of Pokemon, Doraemon, and Detective Conan when comparing annual TV anime films

You forgot One Piece there..Z made three times more on its opening weekend. Or maybe you thought comparing to One Piece wasn't even fair..

Still, for a Madhouse movie based on a tv series, pretty impressive and probably a record.

[Guardian Enzo]

Originally Posted by Goty

You forgot One Piece there..Z made three times more on its opening weekend. Or maybe you thought comparing to One Piece wasn't even fair..

Still, for a Madhouse movie based on a tv series, pretty impressive and probably a record.

That was a a quote from a Japanese box office website actually, not mine.

[zeniselv]

like call of duty in videogames, its such a given that nothing come close it, that its just poinless to use it as a reference for others.

[leokiko]

Except One Piece is good and COD is not.

[zeniselv]

nonetheless its a huge feat what the movie achieved, hunter x hunter is a series that has a lot less exposition due to the sporadic release of the manga.