Title: Kingdom IV Daishogun no kikan / キングダム IV 大将軍の帰還
Rating: 8.5 / 10
Recommended for:
For those who have watched the first three movies and/or are fans of Ouki / Oosawa Takao
* Potential spoilers ahead!
* Disclaimer: I have not read the original manga.
* Currently available on Netflix (subject to geographical location)
Liked:
- If you are a fan of Ouki / Oosawa Takao, this movie feels like it's a tribute dedicated to him and way long overdue because he didn't get much airtime in Parts 1 and 2. The sub title also reflects the emphasis on this character i.e. Ouki's return to the battlefield despite being "retired" for a while and his subsequent "return" to the capital city after the fierce battle at Bayo. Not only did Oosawa get to display his physical prowess and fighting skills of Ouki in this installment (apparently, the battle scenes of Ouki vs. Houken took 5 to 6 days to film according to Oosawa himself in an interview), the softer parts in this character such as the strength of his firm beliefs, his astute judgement as to who was a worthy king to serve, wittiness and humour right till the end and his tenderness reserved for one woman only all made Ouki such a legendary and charismatic character. No wonder Oosawa won the best supporting actor award for his performance in this movie at the Nippon Academy Awards this year!
On one hand, although I am sad to see the demise of Ouki, I actually am happy at the same time. Since the PR slogan of this movie claims that it's the finale in the series (although the story is far from finished), that means Oosawa doesn't have to put on weight and lose weight again in a short period of time for this role again. As to how much longer the Kingdom series will last or when the next sequel is coming, it probably won't affect Oosawa since Ouki will only appear in flashbacks. I cannot imagine how tough it must have been for him to do this 4 times during the past few years when he filmed this movie and acted in other productions at the same time such as "Chinmoku no kantai".
- In order to accentuate Ouki's greatness, I think Kikkawa Koji's Houken provided a great contrast in terms of the nerve-wrecking fighting scenes between both generals, screen presence and the subtle emotions they showed. While Houken had the physical wounds to show for his defeat at Ouki's hands 9 years ago, the emotional damage that Houken dealt to Ouki by killing Kyou may have been unseen but was equally, if not deeper. Although there was no "outburst" so as to speak, the simmering emotions underneath their facades were very evident and compelling.
- As compared to Oosawa who dominated much of this installment, Yamazaki Kento "suffered" a lot more because he was so badly beaten up by Houken and didn't have much room to show off his fighting skills this time. However, Shin's growth in terms of his character and maturity as a leader was unmistakable as he learnt a lot from observing a great general like Ouki and practical experience on the battlefield. In this regard, I thought Yamazaki made up for the lack of action and supplemented it with the emotional growth of Shin.
- Although I was concerned that this movie might end at a middle-of-nowhere juncture before the next installment comes along (if there is one), I think it was good that the story stopped at a good point where those who survived reinforced their resolutions and beliefs to realise their dreams and those who supposedly won step back to prepare for the next battles while mindful that this is not the end. Otherwise, it would have been terrible to have a cliffhanger ending that hardly matched the PR slogan of this being the end (tentative) of the movie series.
Disliked:
- While Araki Yuuko's Kyou may be the key female character in this part, the tough side of her character didn't resonate so much with me unlike the first three parts where the ladies showed a fine balance of toughness and tenderness and were very attractive (not just looks but the aura they displayed). However, Kyou's softer feminine side especially while in front of Ouki and when she revealed how she was the one who "proposed" to him were really endearing and cute to watch. I have no idea if Araki was a match for the character's image in the original manga or what was the exact age difference between Kyou and Ouki (online research tells me a variety of answers between 10+ and 20+) so it kind of bothered me a bit to see Araki put together with Oosawa. As such, it might have been good to have Ouki's perspective on why he liked Kyou enough to take her proposal seriously because I doubt he would have been a man who would be casual on who he would pick as worthy enough to be his wife.
- Same grouse as in Part 3 - some characters were still under-utilized and very much flash-and-go. Oguri Shun's character looks like he's here to stay for a while but where did Yamada Yuuki go? And will there be someone to rival Houken in time to come because I cannot imagine Shin matching up to him in terms of strength as yet. And Hashimoto Kanna's Ten...is anything going to happen anytime soon? Or else I have the feeling that she's hanging around but nothing really ever happens with her character. And Tamaki Hiroshi is supposed to be some brilliant military advisor so his moment to shine is yet to come. The somehow-looking-evil chancellor played by Sato Koichi also needs some airtime to prove his worth. Welcome back, Nagasawa Masami but two scenes is hardly enough.
- Come to think of it, why do the ladies in the military or who did fighting scenes dress like Western gladiators with quite a lot of skin exposure (not concerned about getting injured on your limbs?) while the guys seem to be covered all up in their armours (well, except for Ouki who showed off arms and allow glimpses of his pumped up chest)? And don't get me started on the feathers around Oguri's neck...so distracting! Is it also a common trait for the commanders to stand out with colours, long hair or even permed hair in that era?
