Gegege no Kitarô

Coming in on the heels of Miike's "Great Yokai War" there's nothing this Yokai themed film can do but be compared to it. Unfortunately that's a tough hurdle but since Miike couldn't keep all of his adult perversity out of a kid-friendly film maybe the producers thought there was a chance for them with this one.

The art direction is fine and the whole production is decent looking. Unfortunately a few mistakes really pull this movie down. First is the casting of Pop TV star Eiji Wentz for the main role. He seems like a nice guy but brings very little inspiration to the role of Kitaro. Later in the film when he's supposed to be falling in love with the sister, we need the other Yokai to verbally inform us that this has occurred since Wentz is unable to convey the emotion at all. However it's probable that the young teen girls who are fans of his couldn't care less how blandly he acts. It falls to the other actors (and CG animation) to fill in the personality of the film. The film moves along well into the last half where is loses it's pacing and gets boring.

Hard to recommend to anyone but Eiji Wentz fans and those familiar with the Kitaro manga.