The Jujutsu Kaisen prequel movie has it all: an intro for newbies, satisfying action for fans

The Jujutsu Kaisen prequel movie has it all: an intro for newbies, satisfying action for fans

This review of Jujutsu Kaisen 0 originally aired as part of the film’s theatrical debut in Japan. It has been updated and re-released to coincide with its wide release in US theaters.
When Jujutsu Kaisen 0 opened in Japan in December 2022, it has sold over 1 million tickets and earned over 1 billion yen. Over the opening weekend, the prequel to the popular anime series Jujutsu Kaisen, based on the manga by Gege Akutami, nearly tripled its box office take, setting the record demon slayer film a race for his money. It wasn’t a Christmas miracle. Jujutsu Kaisen 0 earns its success by doing something many prequels fail: it tells a satisfying stand-alone story that connects to the main series and enhances its story, while welcoming newcomers to the franchise.
Set in a world where humans emanate cursed energy that can create strange creatures known as curses or cursed spirits, the Jujutsu Kaisen The anime centers on Yuji Itadori, a high school student who becomes a vessel for Ryomen Sukuna, one of the most powerful curses in existence. Following this, a group of Jujutsu wizards—people who can control their cursed energy to fight off evil spirits—enroll Yuji in Tokyo Prefectural Jujutsu High School to help him control his power while keeping an eye on him. This basic synopsis of the 2020 series is also the synopsis of Jujutsu Kaisen 0who guides another high school student through the same initiation process.
Protagonist Yuta Okkotsu is very different from Yuji – the former starts out as a shy, brooding, and intimidated child, while the latter is a hyper-energetic extrovert with the kind of strength and stamina that would make Batman jealous. Yet the similarities between the setups of the TV series and Jujutsu Kaisen 0 cannot be overlooked. It’s almost as if the film is both a prequel and a remake. A premake? What? Whatever you want to call it, this 105-minute movie picks up many of the same notes as the series by using an outside living weapon character to introduce audiences to the world of Jujutsu wizardry and cursed spirits and the like.

Image: MAPPA/Toho Ltd.
There’s plenty here for longtime fans. For one thing, Yuta Okkotsu isn’t a new character – he’s been mentioned several times in the series, but this is his first screen appearance. It has a beautifully tragic history, as it turns out that the powerful curse that clung to Yuta is his childhood sweetheart, Rika. After dying in a traffic accident, the sweet and caring girl transformed into a snake-haired, fang-faced monstrosity that might not have the most disturbing design, but makes up for it with the way she acts. When the cursed Rika talks to Yuta in a child’s voice how much she loves him or kills people who bully him without seemingly feeling bad about it, the juxtaposition of his horrifying appearance with his sweet but sometimes also temperamental childish behavior results in one of the most memorable Jujutsu Kaisen cursed spirits ever.
The film also gives more screen time to its villain, Suguru Geto, who has been a constant presence on Jujutsu Kaisen, although mostly on the back of resident Big Bad Mahito. In Jujutsu Kaisen 0, however, Geto takes center stage, which he enthusiastically continues to eat. Geto is a hugely fun antagonist with a larger-than-life personality that is finally on full display in the film. It’s obvious that Curses and other wizards would gravitate towards him, and how his reckless attitude while trying to commit atrocities would infuriate the film’s main characters.
This results in a big fight between him and Yuta. With camera movement trying to replicate the feel of a full-sized character moving at lightning speed against Geto’s gigantic curses – including a blob kaiju made up of big baby demons – the battle is further enhanced by Yuta’s sudden rage, adding an extra layer. to the experience. But that’s to be expected from the fight scenes overseen by director Sunghoo Park, memorable from the high school god animated series and its spectacular battles. It’s more than enough to keep Jujutsu-satisfied heads during the 105 minutes of the film.

Image: MAPPA/Toho Ltd.
But newcomers will get the most out of Jujutsu Kaisen 0. The prequel is basically the essence of Jujutsu Kaisen stripped down to its most accessible elements, which isn’t surprising considering the movie is based on a manga that actually predates the Jujutsu Kaisen comic. First published as Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical School in the 2017 issue of Jump GIGA, this short standalone series about Jujutsu curses and wizards was supposed to conclude after just four chapters. But it quickly gained enough popularity for Gege Akutami to expand its premise and the world it only hinted at in the original comic, ultimately resulting in the creation of Yuji Itadori and the story that took hold. attack the world.
Jujutsu Kaisen 0 is very straightforward, mainly focusing on Yuta, his teacher Satoru Gojo, Suguru Geto, and the second-year students of Tokyo Jujutsu High School that fans know from the TV series: Maki Zenin, Toge Inumaki, and Panda. Most of them get a sufficient explanation that allows newbies to follow the story, and that can convince them to dive into the deep waters of anime later. For the less familiar, Jujutsu Kaisen is concerned that Yuji is trying to give people a “proper death”. To first determine what a proper death is, however, the anime spends a lot of time figuring out what a good death is. life means. Through the characters of Kento Nanami, the series explores the value of helping others over money, while Maki’s arc is a story of going against the grain and the comfort of being part of. a group or a family and do their own thing. Even the cursed wombs of the TV series’ latest episode explore the “right” way to live, as the characters are actually touching examples of the importance of family.
There are traces of this theme in the film; Yuta’s arc is arguably a lesson in letting go and moving forward. Its choices around Rika are poignant, but longtime fans will likely find a great deal of satisfaction in the way the film sticks to a compact and efficient version of the ideas of the franchise, where the animated series goes much deeper into his philosophical messages. And by keeping it simple, the movie keeps fans wanting more., and gently leads them to the TV show. It’s the rare kind of movie that actually has something (awesome) for everyone.
Jujutsu Kaisen 0 hits US and Canadian theaters on March 18.

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#Jujutsu #Kaisen #prequel #movie #intro #newbies #satisfying #action #fans

The Jujutsu Kaisen prequel movie has it all: an intro for newbies, satisfying action for fans

This review of Jujutsu Kaisen 0 originally aired as part of the film’s theatrical debut in Japan. It has been updated and re-released to coincide with its wide release in US theaters.
When Jujutsu Kaisen 0 opened in Japan in December 2022, it has sold over 1 million tickets and earned over 1 billion yen. Over the opening weekend, the prequel to the popular anime series Jujutsu Kaisen, based on the manga by Gege Akutami, nearly tripled its box office take, setting the record demon slayer film a race for his money. It wasn’t a Christmas miracle. Jujutsu Kaisen 0 earns its success by doing something many prequels fail: it tells a satisfying stand-alone story that connects to the main series and enhances its story, while welcoming newcomers to the franchise.
Set in a world where humans emanate cursed energy that can create strange creatures known as curses or cursed spirits, the Jujutsu Kaisen The anime centers on Yuji Itadori, a high school student who becomes a vessel for Ryomen Sukuna, one of the most powerful curses in existence. Following this, a group of Jujutsu wizards—people who can control their cursed energy to fight off evil spirits—enroll Yuji in Tokyo Prefectural Jujutsu High School to help him control his power while keeping an eye on him. This basic synopsis of the 2020 series is also the synopsis of Jujutsu Kaisen 0who guides another high school student through the same initiation process.
Protagonist Yuta Okkotsu is very different from Yuji – the former starts out as a shy, brooding, and intimidated child, while the latter is a hyper-energetic extrovert with the kind of strength and stamina that would make Batman jealous. Yet the similarities between the setups of the TV series and Jujutsu Kaisen 0 cannot be overlooked. It’s almost as if the film is both a prequel and a remake. A premake? What? Whatever you want to call it, this 105-minute movie picks up many of the same notes as the series by using an outside living weapon character to introduce audiences to the world of Jujutsu wizardry and cursed spirits and the like.

Image: MAPPA/Toho Ltd.
There’s plenty here for longtime fans. For one thing, Yuta Okkotsu isn’t a new character – he’s been mentioned several times in the series, but this is his first screen appearance. It has a beautifully tragic history, as it turns out that the powerful curse that clung to Yuta is his childhood sweetheart, Rika. After dying in a traffic accident, the sweet and caring girl transformed into a snake-haired, fang-faced monstrosity that might not have the most disturbing design, but makes up for it with the way she acts. When the cursed Rika talks to Yuta in a child’s voice how much she loves him or kills people who bully him without seemingly feeling bad about it, the juxtaposition of his horrifying appearance with his sweet but sometimes also temperamental childish behavior results in one of the most memorable Jujutsu Kaisen cursed spirits ever.
The film also gives more screen time to its villain, Suguru Geto, who has been a constant presence on Jujutsu Kaisen, although mostly on the back of resident Big Bad Mahito. In Jujutsu Kaisen 0, however, Geto takes center stage, which he enthusiastically continues to eat. Geto is a hugely fun antagonist with a larger-than-life personality that is finally on full display in the film. It’s obvious that Curses and other wizards would gravitate towards him, and how his reckless attitude while trying to commit atrocities would infuriate the film’s main characters.
This results in a big fight between him and Yuta. With camera movement trying to replicate the feel of a full-sized character moving at lightning speed against Geto’s gigantic curses – including a blob kaiju made up of big baby demons – the battle is further enhanced by Yuta’s sudden rage, adding an extra layer. to the experience. But that’s to be expected from the fight scenes overseen by director Sunghoo Park, memorable from the high school god animated series and its spectacular battles. It’s more than enough to keep Jujutsu-satisfied heads during the 105 minutes of the film.

Image: MAPPA/Toho Ltd.
But newcomers will get the most out of Jujutsu Kaisen 0. The prequel is basically the essence of Jujutsu Kaisen stripped down to its most accessible elements, which isn’t surprising considering the movie is based on a manga that actually predates the Jujutsu Kaisen comic. First published as Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical School in the 2017 issue of Jump GIGA, this short standalone series about Jujutsu curses and wizards was supposed to conclude after just four chapters. But it quickly gained enough popularity for Gege Akutami to expand its premise and the world it only hinted at in the original comic, ultimately resulting in the creation of Yuji Itadori and the story that took hold. attack the world.
Jujutsu Kaisen 0 is very straightforward, mainly focusing on Yuta, his teacher Satoru Gojo, Suguru Geto, and the second-year students of Tokyo Jujutsu High School that fans know from the TV series: Maki Zenin, Toge Inumaki, and Panda. Most of them get a sufficient explanation that allows newbies to follow the story, and that can convince them to dive into the deep waters of anime later. For the less familiar, Jujutsu Kaisen is concerned that Yuji is trying to give people a “proper death”. To first determine what a proper death is, however, the anime spends a lot of time figuring out what a good death is. life means. Through the characters of Kento Nanami, the series explores the value of helping others over money, while Maki’s arc is a story of going against the grain and the comfort of being part of. a group or a family and do their own thing. Even the cursed wombs of the TV series’ latest episode explore the “right” way to live, as the characters are actually touching examples of the importance of family.
There are traces of this theme in the film; Yuta’s arc is arguably a lesson in letting go and moving forward. Its choices around Rika are poignant, but longtime fans will likely find a great deal of satisfaction in the way the film sticks to a compact and efficient version of the ideas of the franchise, where the animated series goes much deeper into his philosophical messages. And by keeping it simple, the movie keeps fans wanting more., and gently leads them to the TV show. It’s the rare kind of movie that actually has something (awesome) for everyone.
Jujutsu Kaisen 0 hits US and Canadian theaters on March 18.

Register to receive the newsletter
Patch NotesA weekly roundup of Polygon’s best stuff

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Please check your email to find a confirmation email and follow the steps to confirm your humanity.

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#Jujutsu #Kaisen #prequel #movie #intro #newbies #satisfying #action #fans