Sword of the Stranger || A Review on an Epic Hidden Gem from 2007

After a really tiring week, I decided to watch an anime movie, and for this week I decided to follow my to-watch list. However, the movie that I'm looking for wasn't available on BiliBili, so I end up wandering and watching the first few seconds of any anime movie I encountered. I spent almost an hour looking for something that might interest me, but still I didn't find anything that's really interesting. I was about to give up and call it a night when I stumbled on a certain watchlist, and that's where I found it. The title really caught my interest, and the moment I fast-forward some of its scenes, I finally found what I'm looking for. So be with me as I share with you a peek on the perilous journey of the nameless samurai in Sword of the Stranger.

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About the Anime

Sword of the Stranger (Stranger: Mukou Hadan) is an action anime movie that aired on September 29, 2007. This movie was animated by Bones, and its genres are action and adventure. Since it's set in the Japanese feudal era, its main theme is obviously historical. Like the previous anime I've reviewed, this movie is also not suitable for all viewers. The explicit portrayal of violence may be disturbing—especially for those who aren't into gore, so viewer discretion is advised.

Running away from the burning temple, Kotaro was forced to embark on a journey with only his dog, Tobimaru. To survive, they together steal food and water from the villagers nearby. One afternoon, after successfully stealing goods from a villager's house, they found out that someone is in the ruined temple where they're staying. It's a man, and he asked them if he could stay with them. Kotaro immediately dismissed that suggestion, but later on he decided to just get along with the man because Tobimaru became fond of him. They were in the middle of eating their stolen goods when a group of samurai and a Chinese assassin attacked them. The man fought them skillfully, yet it was apparent that he was outnumbered.

He was almost caught off guard when Tobimaru saved him. The fight ended with him defeating all of them, but Tobimaru got poisoned when he took the blade meant for the man. Although the dog is in the helpless state, the man felt no obligation to help them further. Desperate to save Tobimaru, Kotaro offered him a gem that is said to have a worth of ten gold coins in exchange for his service as a guard and guide, which he then later reluctantly accepted. The three of them set out to the nearest town to get Tobimaru treated, and that's where their dangerous journey started.

With the assassins, samurai, and even bandits on their trail, they'll face a lot of tough times—and only the brave souls can survive those—a soul that doesn't waver at the sight of death.

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Coincidentally, its plot is quite similar with the previous anime movie I've shared with you—a wandering samurai with no master (technically—ronin!) who then helps someone, which becomes the turning point of their once tranquil life—but this one doesn't have any ninjutsu, just pure amazing swordfights. The storyline is pretty intriguing at first—but to be honest, it became bland at some moments. Also, there are some side stories that were included, which I don't find that relevant to the main plot—I mean, even if they didn't include those, it won't affect the plot even in the slightest. Maybe they just added those for drama, which I somehow appreciate. The whole plot is pretty straightforward, which matches the pace of its action scenes.

Speaking of action scenes, this one is really the reason why I decided to watch this movie. The moment I saw how the dismembered limb flew midair and how they fluidly executed those intense swordfights—I know I'll definitely enjoy it. The camera composition, direction, and angle were really well utilized, for they really enhanced the intensity of those scenes. While watching the limb dismembering part, I noticed and remembered something. It reminded me of Supercrooks (which is just natural since it is also animated by Bones), which also has nice action scenes—but the swordfights here just hit different! Its art style really captured the feudal Japan vibes—from how settings were drawn to the usage of a dry and ominous color palette, it really hit the nail. If you're into gore, you'll not be disappointed because Bones do love exaggerated blood fountains, and you'll really see a lot of them.

The soundtrack of the whole movie was fine, tho for me, it was quite overdramatic at some points, but yeah—those were dramatic scenes (what do you expect, gette?). Maybe I'm looking for background music that will really bring out the high emotions that are prevalent in that scene; for example, there are times that the music sounds so gallant, but the scene somehow appeals melancholic to me. As for the voices behind the characters, they were really good, but something kinda tipped it off. I know that some characters there are Chinese, but since it's an anime—of 'course I'll anticipate that they'll just speak Japanese (and I, as a viewer, just assume they're speaking Chinese).

However, there are random times they also speak Chinese, and then in the later scenes they'll switch back to Japanese again. It's quite distracting for me because they're portrayed as foreign people there, so supposedly if they're speaking in Chinese, then why not make them speak Chinese in all of their dialogues? Also, I heard some weird Chinese dialogues that sound unnatural because I'm quite familiar with their accent, so I know the accent is quite off. Nevertheless, I liked how they used heart-thumping war drum and melancholic flute music in their soundtrack. Those music really fit well with the feudal Japan vibes it wanted to emulate.

Overall, my personal rating for this anime is 8/10. Despite its flaws, what really stood out were the gripping and entertaining action scenes that never really bored me. The plot may not be that unique, but certainly there are strong points in it that makes it worth watching. So if you're looking for anime with entertaining and enthralling swordfights, then you definitely need to watch the Sword of the Stranger.

Before I end this review, I gladly share with you its trailer, so—

Have you seen this movie before? Or is this your first time encountering it? Feel free to leave a comment if you're interested. That's all for now, minna-san! I hoped you enjoyed reading my review.