Product Details

• Actors: Somegorô Ichikawa, Rie Miyazawa, Kanako Higuchi, Atsurô Watabe, Fumiyo Kohinata
• Directors: Yôjirô Takita
• Writers: Kazuki Nakashima, Masashi Todayama, Sei Kawaguchi
• Producers: Shuji Miyajima
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: Japanese
• Subtitles: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Rated: Unrated
• Studio: Animeigo
• DVD Release Date: June 12, 2007
• Run Time: 119 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000O76PVM
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #102,970 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Ashura" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Demons hunger to walk the streets of Edo, and all that stands in their way are the fearsome warriors known as Demon Wardens. But when Izumo, their greatest swords- man, accidentally slays an innocent child, he vows never to spill blood again.

Years pass, and Izumo has made a new life for himself as a Kabuki theatre matinee idol. A chance encounter with Tsubaki, a beautiful thief with a mysterious past, brings romance back into his life — and deadly danger!

For signs and portents herald the rebirth of Ashura, Queen of the Demons. When she manifests, all Edo shall burn, and the demons shall have dominion over the Earth. And Izumo’s old rival from his Demon Warden days, Jaku, is for some reason helping them! Izumo is about to learn that Love can be Hell — Literally!

Directed by the Japan Academy Prize-winning filmmaker Yojiro Takita (When the Last Sword Is Drawn, Onmyoji) and based on the hit play of the same title, Ashura is an eye-popping, CG-seasoned blend of old-fashioned swashbuckling action, fantasy, and romance.

DVD Features:
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Presented in Anamorphic Widescreen
Dubbed in English

Bonus Material Includes:
Making of Ashura
Video Effects of Ashura
Interactive Program Notes
Original Theatrical Trailers

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic Japanese theatre backdrop and love story, March 26, 2008

By 

Crysta (Washington D.C.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ashura (DVD)

I love this film, and i love Kabuki theatre as well. Its an old japanese tell about love and the end of the world. The cool thing is this story was originally made as a play and the main character in this movie is a traditional Kabuki theatre actor. He even plays the same character in the theatre. This guy brings a warm element of Kabuki in this movie and i cannot stress it enough.

You will love this movie. The graphics arent too cheesy and the beauty of some of backdrops will stick in your mind. Even the music adds to the film and gives it a soul.

You will not be disappointed. It may be graphic for the young ones as it has sex and violence. id give it more than 5 stars as if i could but i cant!

you wont be disappointed a must have for Japanese culture, play\theatre, and mythology enthusiasts .

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A world of demons and fire and love, January 12, 2009

By 

Zack Davisson "japanreviewed" (Seattle, WA, USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (2008 HOLIDAY TEAM)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ashura (DVD)

Kabuki has always been the secret heart of Japanese film. When the first motion picture cameras arrived in Japan, they immediately started filming Kabuki performances for posterity, and have never really stopped since. Kabuki's visual and storytelling style flavors all most all Japanese films, from big productions like Cutie Honey to kabuki-trained actress Inou Rie and her particular movements as Sadako in Ring.

It is rare, however, for modern Kabuki plays to be adapted directly into film. Nakashima Kazuki's "Ashurajo no Hitomi (1987)" ("The Eye of Castle Ashura") was a big enough hit that in 2005 director Takita Yojiro (Onmyoji) used it as the basis for his martial-arts fantasy film of the same name. As the lead he even cast Ichikawa Somegoro, who had made the role famous in the Kabuki theater. It was a bold and ambitious experiment.

The story is huge in scope. In a magical time of old Japan, a time when demons walk the earth, Wakuraba Izumo (Ichikawa) is a powerful Demon Warden, who is charged with seeking out and killing demons where he can find them. His faith in himself is shaken one day when he accidentally kills a young girl. Abandoning his host, he loses himself as an actor in the kabuki theater, a place where you past makes no difference. Into this world comes Bizan (Higuchi Kanako from Ronin Gai), a queen of demons who wants to awaken the reincarnated Ashura and bring Hell to Earth. Bizan is aided by Jaku, a demon warder gone rogue, and thousands of green-blooded demons. Izumo finds a companion and love interest in the beautiful thief Tsubaki (Miyazawa Rie from The Twilight Samurai), who might just be the person Bizan is searching for.

"Ashura" is a fantastic film, but not 100% successful. Japan has never really got a handle on the martial arts fantasy film, although there have been improvements over the years. There are some great strides here in special effects, and getting Ichikawa for the role was a true coup. Only someone with kabuki experience could have pulled off the role, especially the scenes of Izumo as a kabuki actor. The story is epic, with flaming skies and demon armies and a scale that has never been attempted in Japanese film before. It is an awesome spectacle.

That is its problem at the same time, however. One of the thrills of kabuki is the special effects, those moments of stage-craft that blow you mind when they are performed live in front of you. Something that produces wonderment in real life, like the burning city of Tokyo and a floating castle, just doesn't have the same impact when summoned up by computer skills.

As an adapted kabuki play, the action and story are pure melodrama, which is something I love. Anyone expecting a "straight" film needs to do some research on kabuki before they check this out, to give them a better idea of what to expect. Animeigo has helped you out by producing a beautiful DVD to go along with the ground-breaking film, including and extra disk with features on the original play and its adaptation. As always, Animeigo continues to create the best subtitles in the business that include pop-up cultural notes along with the regular dialog, creating a whole package that can be used to study this bit of Japanese culture while watching a great flick.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great movie, dubbed in English, January 24, 2012

By 

leo - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Ashura (DVD)

I enjoyed the movie when first saw it on Hulu or some other online place, DVD was fine, enjoyed the movie again with surround sound.