Bleach: Memories of Nobody Review

Posted by Jeffrey Harris on 06.15.2008

I wish I knew how to do a Ban Kai.

Bleach: Memories of Nobody



Directed By: Noriyuki Abe
Written By: Masashi Sogo; Based on the Shonen Jump manga and characters created by Tite Kubo
Runtime: 87 min.

English Voice Cast:

Ichigo Kurosaki - Johnny Yong Bosch
Ruki Kuchiki - Michelle Ruff
Senna - G.K. Bowes
Ganryu - Troy Baker
Kon - Quinton Flynn
Renji Abarai - Wally Wingert
Kisuke Urahara - Michael Lindsay
Orihime Inoue - Stephanie Sheh
Isshin Kurosaki - Patrick Seitz
Karin Kurosaki - Kate Higgins
Yuzu Kurosaki - Janice Kawaye
Ikkaku Madarame - Vic Mignogna

Who says the theatrical experience is dead?

Anime as an art form has taken off in a way that’s unbelievable compared to the days of the 1980’s when folks were watching domesticated versions of Macross and Gatchaman when they were called things like Robotech or Battle of The Planets. While its not hard to turn on a TV and watch some anime like it used to be, its still rare to see quality anime at your regular multiplex. National Cinemedia/Fathom Events is one of the few companies that brings anime to your local megaplex theatre as they did last year with the Anime Bento Film Festival showing movies such as Robotech: Shadow Chronicles, Fullmetal Alchemist: The Conqueror of Shambala, and Lupin on more screens than they normally would as part of the Anime Bento Film Festival.

This week, they gave another anime a shot, that of VIZ and Studio Pierrot’s Bleach: Memories of Nobody. In case you didn’t know, Bleach is the anime based on mega-popular Shonen Jump manga of the same name created by Tite Kubo. Bleach: Memories of Nobody is the first movie based on the long running series that currently airs on Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim block. Normally when a Shonen Jump anime series like Bleach, Naruto, or Dragon Ball Z gets a theatrical movie it’s mostly a short, “filler” storyline. Filler meaning it’s not canon to the original author’s source material, and it really has nothing to do with the main storyline. The events of these types of movies or storylines usually have no affect on the status quo of the original series. So for a Shonen Jump property turned into a movie is usually done to give the characters a quick, crowd-pleasing fight, and the crowds go home happy.

The main attraction of getting to see Bleach: Memories of Nobody in theatres is how there’s no pre-show BS. There are no dumb car commercials. No Coca-Cola student films you’ve seen a million times. The show began in appropriate fashion, with legendary manga-ka, Tite Kubo, drawing the mug of Bleach’s hero – Ichigo Kurosaki (Bosch). This was part of a 20 minute pre-movie featurette where US distributor of Bleach VIZ profiles the adaptation process of translating the popular manga as well as the English dub version of the movie, directed by Wendee Lee. You might remember her as the voice of the bombshell femme fatale, Faye Valentine, from Cowboy Bebop the single greatest anime of all time.

If you don’t know anything about Bleach, here’s the plot as simply (or maybe not so simply) as possible. Next to our world is a place known as Soul Society. Soul Society is a type of underworld or Heaven perhaps where the dearly departed go. However the souls of human beings if they are not dispatched and are still connected to the world by sins, anger, or hate become monsters known as Hollows. Hollows consume innocent souls or even human beings with abnormally high “spiritual” power or “riatsu”. Hollows and souls are policed by beings from the Soul Society called Shinigami or Soul Slayers who defeat Hollows and help innocent souls pass to the other side. And that’s where our hero, Ichigo, comes in. Ichigo’s a slightly delinquent teenager with bright orange hair. He’s a good student, but he gets into fights . . . a lot. He’s somewhat abrasive and follows a strict moral code of honor and nobility. And one other thing – He sees dead people. Those souls that stay in the living world mentioned earlier, Ichigo sees them. And eventually he starts seeing Hollows as well. After a run-in where a Hollow attacks Ichigo and his family, Ichigo encounters his city’s local Soul Slayer, Rukia Kuchiki (Ruff). In a bizarre twist, Rukia has to pass on her Soul Slayer powers to Ichigo, making Ichigo a substitute Soul Slayer who must now protect his hometown from Hollows and other spiritual menaces while still having to deal with his wacky friends at school, potential rivals, and Rukia who situates herself into his life. The series constantly hints there might be more to the relationship of Ichigo and tsundere Rukia than being simple comrades.

Bleach: Memories of Nobody takes place much later in the course of the main storyline, more than likely after the Soul Society and Bound arcs in the anime. At the start of the movie, Ichigo and still tag-teaming as Soul Slayers together in Ichigo’s hometown hunting Hollows. But a new mystery appears when hundreds of empty souls called Blanks start to gather. In Soul Society a big hole opens up that looks like a window to the world of the living. And then there’s also the appearance of a hyper-active girl named Senna (Bowes), who has Soul Slayer powers and can vanquish the Blanks. After Ichigo confers with his quirky ex-Soul Slayer mentor, Urahara, it’s revealed that these Blanks are drawn by a powerful object called the Shinenju. The Shinenju contains all of the memories of the Blanks that they desire to have back. The problem is the force of the Shinenju and the Blanks merging with it is causing Soul Society and the world of the Living to merge, which pretty much is bad news for everyone if that happens.

The key relationship in the movie is played between Ichigo and the attention span-challenged Senna. Ichigo is charged with keeping an eye on the eccentric Senna. But there are other forces that have an interest in Senna as well. A banished clan that bears the armor of Soul Society exiles and led by the sinister Ganryu (Baker) are after Senna as well meaning there’s more than likely a connection between Senna, the appearance of the Blanks, and the Shinenju.

The movie is what it is. It’s a filler storyline that’s not really important in regards to the anime or manga. The villain is more or less Aizen-lite (Aizen is the main villain of the actual Bleach storyline). In fact most of the characters in Ganryu’s group are fairly boring and have little in the way of actual personalities and characters. They have only just enough to be animated and get into certain fights with the good guy Soul Slayers in the third act climax. None of the main characters we are familiar with are really different by the end of the story. Nonetheless it’s still a fun ride, and the main relationship between Ichigo and Senna comes off as quite poignant.

It’s impressive to see the animation and designs of Bleach on a big screen, theatrical canvas. Action scenes don’t lose any of their kinetic fluidity. The colors seem more magnified and dynamic compared to the series. Crowd scenes and background characters remain very static though, as well as certain others. So the budget Studio Pierrot was working with might not have been all that high, but they make due.

The movie shown in theatres features the English dub, directed by Wendee Lee, with the regular cast from the series all reprising their roles. The series has a strong cast of English voice actors. And the dub does a good job of integrating Japanese terms and language into the characters and attacks, much more so than Naruto which usually goes for a more direct translation when characters are fighting.

What the movie does capture is that bittersweet tone and theme of life from the anime and manga. Bleach as a story is something that deals with life, death, the afterlife, friendship, and camaraderie. Ichigo as a hero never breaks from his nobility and his fight for justice. And that’s why we like Ichigo. He’s not vanilla in any way, but always follows his own personal code of honor even though he’s a loud-mouthed and a rather argumentative punk. Ichigo’s got enough moxie that could topple any great evil.

The 411: Filler? Yes. Still fun? Yes. This definitely isn't the best anime to be shown on the big screen on the stateside, but when that's such a rare occurence in the first place, got to take what you can get, and Bleach: Memories of Nobody is a fine experience in doing so. Even if its a short, filler storyline, the movie still a refreshing change of pace from the usual Hollywood excrement you might find at your local multiplex. BAN KAI!

Final Score:  7.5   [ Good ]