By Emil Favila, Reporter

Released on Thanksgiving is Road To Ninja: Naruto The Movie.  If you have never seen the series, like myself, then Road To Ninja is a good introduction.  When Naruto was a baby, his town came under attack by the Nine-Tailed Fox released by a mysterious shinobi.  His parents sacrificed themselves by sealing the beast into their newborn son, therefore saving the village.  Years later, the same shinobi returns sending Naruto and his friend Sakura over to a parallel dimension.

Road To Ninja takes a more serious tone than it’s previous films and  TV show.  It has the usual comic relief moments found in most anime, but the story itself is deep.  Naruto, who has never known a life with his parents, is sent to a dimension with parents who are alive.  Sakura, who is tired of her overbearing parents, is sent to the same place where her parents are not alive. Road To Ninja is a classic “What if…” story line.  And in the end, both characters come to appreciate the lives they lead in their current world.

Whats great about Road To Ninja: Naruto The Movie is that there is a lot of heart to the story.  Even though Naruto knows the parents in the parallel world are not his real parents, he can’t help but feel attached to them anyways.  He gets to find out what a life with them is like, which some kids can only dream about.  Sakura starts to miss her parents, as she has never known a life without them.  She learns to appreciate the value of of having parents around to care about her.  In turn, she relies on Naruto for emotional support in this other world.  Of course, his attention is directed elsewhere.  Sakura wants to go back, even though Naruto clearly wants to say.  Naruto knows he needs to return to his old life, which makes it hard for him despite knowing this other life isn’t his.

Even though I had never seen a single Naruto episode, it was never too hard to understand the series.  Enough flashbacks were given to provide the necessary information to understand the relationships of the current characters.  The story was well told and paced, considering Road To Ninja is the ninth installment in a series of Naruto films.  There is also a good amount of character development in the short time of this film.

For the Blu-ray release, Road To Ninja comes with a special art gallery that features character designs by Masashi Kishimoto, the creator of the original manga series!  That alone is worth the price of this terrific movie.  Road To Ninja is also written by Kishimoto, so clearly it has his seal of approval.

If you are a fan of martial arts, magic, or parallel universe stories such as Fringe, I would recommend checking out Road To Ninja: Naruto The Movie.  You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, and overall be intrigued by this Naruto tale, even if you’ve never seen the show or previous movies.  I now understand why the show was so popular and intend on checking out the previous movies and the series.  I’m sure Road To Ninja will have you sold on the series like it did with me.  Pick up your copy of Road To Ninja: Naruto The Movie on Amazon today!

Rating:

ComicsOnline gives Road To Ninja: Naruto The Movie 4 out of 5 ninja scrolls.

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