Fist of the North Star: The Legend of Kenshiro

2008 1h 23m JA

👍

6.7

SOLID

★6.7TMDB · 43

AnimationActionDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

The film's story is a prequel to the Fist of the North Star depicting the one year interval between Kenshiro's defeat at the hands of Shin and their later battle. Unlike the others in the series this film has a completely original storyline in which Kenshiro, near death after his battle with Shin and having used his remaining energy to kill a pack of wolves, was captured by slavers. Due to his strength, Kenshiro could escape whenever he wanted, but chose to stay and protect the other slaves.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Hiroshi Abe
Kenshirô (voice)
Yuriko Ishida
Yuria (voice)
Romi Park
Danne (voice)
Takeshi Aono
Fugen (voice)
Keiichi Nanba
Yaman (voice)
Mina Tominaga
Saya (voice)
Hiromi Konno
Amo (voice)
Shozo Iizuka
Siska (voice)

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Kobun Shizuno
Writers: Nobuhiko Horie, Toshiki Hirano
Languages: Japanese
Countries: Japan

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

83 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 18 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Part of the "Fist of the North Star: The Legends of the True Savior Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Kobun Shizuno, shot by Masato Sato. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Yuki Kajiura. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Jun Taguma shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Hiroshi Abe and Yuriko Ishida and Romi Park carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0456978 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Kobun Shizuno directs. Masato Sato behind the camera. Yuki Kajiura scores. Jun Taguma cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Japan. Dialogue in Japanese.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

183 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
2Released 18 years ago.
3Part of the "Fist of the North Star: The Legends of the True Savior Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4Directed by Kobun Shizuno, shot by Masato Sato. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Yuki Kajiura. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Jun Taguma shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Hiroshi Abe and Yuriko Ishida and Romi Park carry the top of the cast.
8IMDB entry: tt0456978 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 43 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Masato Sato
Original score: Yuki Kajiura
Editing: Jun Taguma
Runtime: 83 min · 1h 23m
Status: Released
Original language: JA
Certification (US): MA 15+
IMDB: Fist of the North Star: The Legend of Kenshiro (2008)

Part of

Fist of the North Star: The Legends of the True Savior Collection

Fist of the North Star: The Legends of the True Savior is a Japanese animated film series produced by TMS Entertainment and North Stars Pictures based on the manga Fist of the North Star written by Buronson and illustrated by Tetsuo Hara. The films are an updated re-imagining of the original story narrated in the manga, including additional detail expanding of the story, modern artwork and animation, new characters, as well as minor alterations to some events. The series spans three theatrical films and two OVAs each focusing on a different set of chapters and main characters from the original story. These were released in Japan during a three year span between 2006 to 2008, culminating with the 25th anniversary of the original manga. The first film, as well as both OVAs, were distributed by Toho. A portion of the project's budget came from a trust fund established by SMBC Friend Securities, which was raised over 23 billion yen.