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Jubei Ninpucho

Ninja Scroll
Berlinale Classics 2026
©1993 Yoshiaki Kawajiri / Madhouse / FlyingDog / TOHO CO., LTD. / MOVIC INC.
Young Jubei roams the land as a vagabond ninja. When plague erupts in a village, he meets Kagero, a food taster for poison, who has been captured and imprisoned by the iron giant Tessai. Jubei manages to free her and kill Tessai. His own life comes under threat when he encounters the snake lady Benisato, but a government ninja disguised as a monk saves him from the femme fatale. Jubei learns from him that his two opponents are part of the “eight devils of Kimon” who possess various demonic superpowers. Together with Kagero and the ninja monk, Jubei takes up the fight against the remaining six …
In a fast-paced series of scenes, Ninja Scroll is an action-packed “hero’s journey” that employs elements from videogames. This fusion of media styles garnered the film notable success. Particularly in the Western hemisphere, the sometimes blood-spattered animated film met with an enthusiastic reception from audiences. The 4K restoration work faced challenges specific to the laborious process of cel animation. The director was directly involved with the restoration, in particular with the colour correction.

Trailer/Film Excerpt

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by Yoshiaki Kawajiri (Director, Screenplay)
with Kôichi Yamadera, Emi Shinohara, Takeshi Aono, Osamu Saka, Daisuke Gôri, Ichirô Nagai, Ryûzaburô Ôtomo, Akimasa Ohmori, Gara Takashima Japan 1993 Japanese 92' Colour World premiere of the digitally restored version | Animation Rating R 16

With

  • Kôichi Yamadera
  • Emi Shinohara
  • Takeshi Aono
  • Osamu Saka
  • Daisuke Gôri
  • Ichirô Nagai
  • Ryûzaburô Ôtomo
  • Akimasa Ohmori
  • Gara Takashima

Crew

Director Yoshiaki Kawajiri
Screenplay Yoshiaki Kawajiri
Cinematography Hitoshi Yamaguchi
Editing Harutoshi Ogata
Music Kaoru Wada
Sound Design Yasunori Honda
Producers Shigeaki Komatsu, Haruo Sai, Masaaki Sawanobori
Executive Producer Makoto Hasegawa

Additional information

DCP: Toho Global Inc., Tokyo

Photos