Usagi Yojimbo DojoBoard

I just finished watching the copy of Great Yokai War (2005, Dir: Takashi Miike) that I got from Netflix. It's not a great movie, and it occasionally drags a little bit, but I enjoyed it for the most part. It's a pretty oddball movie; instead of being a straightforward fantasy film like the 60s Yokai movies, it's a mix of sci-fi and fantasy elements. The costume designer on this film must have really been busy, since probably every single type of Yokai from Japanese folklore probably shows up at some point in this film, including some that that have appeared in Usagi Yojimbo.

Some people have called it a "live-action Miyazaki film," but I don't think that the comparison really holds up that well or that the film is really comparable to Miyazaki's best work (Don't Miyazaki's fantasy films mainly include creatures he invented himself rather than the Yokai from Japanese folklore?)

Overall, I'd give it a mild recommendation to anyone who's a fan of Japanese fantasy.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Yokai_War

A.O. Scott was a little bit more enthusiastic about the film than I was:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/30/movie ... ref=slogin

I won't give it a rave review, but it was amusing, especially seeing all those goofy obakemono and Chiaki Kuriyama (Gogo from Kill Bill).

A yokai movie I enjoyed a lot more is Sakuya Yokaiden, about a girl monster hunter and her kappa adopted brother.