Product Details

• Actors: Mabuki Andou
• Directors: Kenji Kamiyama
• Format: Animated, Color, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled
• Language: Cantonese
• Subtitles: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Rated: Unrated
• Studio: ANIME WORKS
• DVD Release Date: November 4, 2008
• Run Time: 175 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B001F0TT5Q
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #132,496 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

MORIBITO:GUARDIAN OF THE SPIRIT (COLL - DVD Movie

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Art box version, January 1, 2009

By 

M. Randall "Deadpool" (Allen Park, MI) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Moribito: Guardian of The Spirit (Collector's Edition) (DVD)

Volumes 1 and 2 of this anime were released in several different versions. Both volumes were released seperately, together in a 2 pack and also together in this version, with an art box to hold all future volumes. I'd say this version is your best bet seeing how it will hold all the DVDs for the series... as oddly shaped as they are. Then again, we all know upon the completion of the series animeworks will release a different boxset containing all volumes. I recommend this version.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars See This Anime`, July 11, 2009

By 

Christopher Dechello "Tiriban" (West Haven, CT USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Moribito: Guardian of The Spirit (Collector's Edition) (DVD)

Really, there's not much to say. This is a quality anime with good action and a solid plot. The characters are likable, and there's not even too much gore, for those who are sensitive to such things. The world seems well thought-out, and I enjoy the pacing of the story. This was actually well worth the purchase price.

It's not the typical hyper-chibbi-tentacle stuff. So, if you're bored and hyper and looking to just watch a bunch of explosions, this isn't for you. But if you are looking for a good story, with some intrigue, and characters who aren't bouncing around like a Saturday Morning Cartoon, you owe it to yourself to watch this!

There are no tentacles. No Japanese school-girl uniforms. Just a good story using high-quality animation; with characters with their own motivations. Characters you'll find yourself rooting for! Not too many GOOD anime come up, these days. So, this was a nice surprise. Check it out, you wont be disappointed.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Top-Notch, September 7, 2009

By 

Joel Sanet (Miami, FL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Moribito: Guardian of The Spirit (Collector's Edition) (DVD)

The Emperor's younger son has been possessed by a water demon. Social norms demand that the Emperor kill his son, but in order to prevent the public from learning of the disgrace to the honor of the ruling family, he has assassins arrange for a fatal accident. The anime begins when a wandering female bodyguard named Balsa foils yet another "accident". The Prince's mother knows what is going on and hires Balsa to protect her son.

The culture is similar to Japan's Heian Era (before the rise of the samurai as a distinct social class) but the two moons in the sky belies that. I have to say in all honesty that this is one of the best anime series that I have ever seen. For me it's as close to perfection as I am ever likely to experience. In fact I was so taken by it that I saw all 26 episodes in only 4 days. I don't think I've ever done that before. (Well, maybe the first time I saw Record of Lodoss War. It was so long ago, I'm not sure.) In terms of character, voice acting (Japanese---as a rule, I don't like dubs), story, action, animation, and BGM it is top-notch. Whether it is the sweep of natural vistas or the pomp and splendor of life at court, the visuals are stunning. It takes the time to develop the characters so that they feel like real people. Chagum, for example, grows from a pampered prince into a young man. One of the things I really like is that the story has no true villains. Even the assassins who are sent out to murder Balsa and her ward are behaving as their society dictates by being loyal to the Emperor. Even the "bad guys" have nobility of character. If Hayao Miyazaki were still making TV series, this is what they would be like. It has much in common with Miyazaki's Princess Mononoke. As much as I liked that movie, Moribito is better. It is directed by a young guy named Kamiyama Kenji, who also directed GITS-SAC I & II and GITS-SAC: Solid State Society. He's a protégé of Oshii Mamoru and a director to be watched.