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I Don't Want to be Hokage

Episodes : Movie

: Movie Genre : Adventure, Coming of Age, Comedy

: Adventure, Coming of Age, Comedy Airing Date : August 2015

: August 2015 Producers : Studio Pierrot, TV Tokyo, Shuueisha





Boruto Naruto The Movie Preview / Plot (No Spoilers)

Years have passed since the end of the original series, and Naruto is now the seventh hokage and is married to Hinata. Together, they have a son named Boruto and a daughter named Himawari. Sasuke on the other hand has hooked up with Sakura, and has a daughter named Sarada. Boruto, Sarada, and Mitsuki are a team under the tutelage of Konohamaru, the grandson of the third hokage, and once looked up to Naruto during his youth.

Boruto doesn't get along with his father, and refers to him as a “kuso oyaji,” the Japanese term for deadbeat dad, and has no respect for his family’s legacy. Instead, he seeks Sasuke as a master in becoming a ninja in order to beat his father and pass the upcoming chuunin exam.

Who does Boruto Naruto The Movie cater to?

With Naruto being on the air in Japan for the past thirteen years, it is only natural that the fan base it has created during that time span will want to see the movie that brings it full circle, but tells a different story. For those not familiar with Naruto, it will be difficult to follow and understanding how Naruto develops to his role as hokage, and how he ends up marrying and having kids with Hinata. Fans will be interested in seeing how Naruto functions as the hokage, and how it has affects him and his family life.

What's so appealing about this piece of work.

It has action and adventure and to a good number of anime fans, that is a good foundation. Many western fans call Naruto the successor to Dragon Ball (though Japanese audiences give that distinction to One Piece). It tells a familiar story but with some new elements to keep it fresh and distinct. Maybe for some people, they have issues with living up to the legacy of their parents and they can relate to Boruto’s issues.

Boruto Naruto The Movie Trailer

Boruto Naruto The Movie Main Characters List

Uzumaki Boruto Voice Actor :Sanpei Yuuko The son of Naruto and Hinata, Boruto feels is a respected ninja not based on his abilities, but on the basis that he is Naruto’s son. Due to his father’s absence due to his work as hokage, Boruto has a very different attitude in regards to the position. While Naruto in his story was seeking the approval of his village, Boruto’s personal journey is seeking the acknowledgment of his father. Despite his complicated feelings towards his father, he loosely uses some of his famous speech patterns by ending some of his sentences is (t)te ba. In addition, he wants to defeat his father so he goes to Sasuke, Naruto’s former rival, as his master in order to achieve his goals.

Uzumaki Naruto Voice Actor :Takeuchi Junko Naruto is now the seventh hokage of konoha village and a local legend. Despite achieving his dream, Naruto’s work keeps him away from home and has negatively affected his son’s outlook on him. Despite the time he dedicates to his duties, he deeply cares about his family and when it counts, is not afraid to show tough love. In this feature film, Naruto demonstrates the qualities of what a true ninjas is and demonstrates great wisdom.

Uchiha Sasuke Voice Actor :Sugiyama Noriaki Naruto’s former rival turned most valued ally. He tends to go on reconnaissance missions for the village. He is married to Sakura and together they have a daughter, Sarada. In this movie, he decides to become Boruto’s master to partially refuel his rivalry with Naruto and defeat him in a different way.

Uchiha Sarada Voice Actor :Kikuchi Kokoro As the daughter of Sasuke and Sakura, as opposed to Boruto who doesn't want to be hokage, Sarada’s dream is to be the next one. She views Boruto as a rival and progressively as a romantic interest. Like her father, she is capable of using the sharingan, and shares a good number of her mother’s mannerisms such as her speech patterns and phrases (most emphatically shannarou).





Contains Spoilers

Boruto Naruto The Movie Review

Appropriately, the movie focuses mostly on Boruto though constantly;the movie will show that Naruto is overwhelmed working as hokage, he will have his moments to kick some ass. The story of Boruto’s personal journey is pretty straightforward even if you come to Japanese theaters without any understanding of the language. Unfortunately, the movie doesn't really flesh out its other characters in a deeper sense.

Sarada is only explored on a surface level and Mitsuki is clouded in mystery (and by the end of the movie, it gives a very excellent reason for that). The movie does a very excellent job in showing how Naruto and Boruto are both similar and different to the point that Boruto is his own distinct character, and not just a cheap rehash of Naruto.

Boruto sees his father as uncaring while he shows deep affection for his mother and sister. Boruto’s relationship with Sarada shares very similar qualities to Naruto’s relationship with both Sasuke and Sakura on a superficial level, but by the end, it does exhibit some cute development.

If any of you reading are Kakashi fans, unfortunately, his role is nothing more than a non-speaking cameo. I felt his abilities and wisdom could have been utilized in this movie. If anybody could have helped solve some of the problems in this movie, it was most certainly Kakashi. Most other cast members are a mix of non-speaking cameos to semi-active roles.

The weak point of this movie is the villain, Momoshiki. Despite how powerful the movie portrays him, he has little to no personality and his goals are rather cliché. Momoshiki has some scary abilities, but what he does and why he does it has all been done before.

The character design is very consistent with what the series has presented since 2002. As anyone can see, Boruto looks like his father and this will be consistently brought up in the movie. Sarada is a good mix between Sakura and Sasuke. Naruto looks appropriately like the adult he should be and is naturally much taller. The same can be said about Sasuke, Sakura, and the rest of the original cast. Though they are much older, they are still recognizable.

The fights still have their creative charm, which is a huge contributor to the success of the franchise. In addition to its creativity, the tactical aspect of the fights is still present and still exhibits the same depth. The final fight is pretty exciting and the way Boruto defeats Momoshiki is something that Naruto would probably do since Naruto always comes up with crazy and yet effective ways in winning his battles.

The music is continues to be pretty excellent with its carefully selective use of heavy electric guitar chords mixed with traditional acoustics. The ending song is wonderfully emotional and hits the heart. Nothing is unchanged from the original series so the music is a very excellent quality to this movie and to the franchise as a whole.

Sanpei Yuuko, the voice of Boruto (and who you may also known as Selim in Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood and Renton from Eureka Seven), does a very great job of capturing Takeuchi Junko’s performance Naruto to the point you would think it was her playing the character. She has the rhythm and pitch down to a t.

Kikuchi Kokoro, the voice of Sarada (also the voice of Agito from Air Gear and Sparrowmon from Digimon), effectively channels Sasuke’s cool and Sakura’s anger. Takeuchi Junko as Naruto further deepens her voice to further convey the character’s age and maturity and some of the performances of the remaining returning characters exhibit this as well.

1. Chuunin Exam

Just like in the original series, Boruto, Sarada and Mitsuki must take the chuunin exam. However, some of the conditions are changed but still serve a similar purpose. The first test is once again answering questions and it's not about being right or wrong, but how a person composes oneself in a difficult certain situation.

The second phase is a capture the flag game in a section of the village that resembles Detroit. And once again, the last part of the exam is a fighting tournament.

2. Ninjitsu Technology

In order to make ninjutsu techniques much easier, a group of scientists invent a device called a kote for anyone not capable of using chakra to be able to use such abilities. The way the device works is that ninjutsu techniques are in tiny scrolls that are like data disks, put them in the kote, and the wearer can perform that technique (including the rasengan).

Due to moral reasons and wanting ninjas to be able to have achievements based on one’s own hard work, Naruto strongly objects to the usage of such devices. But with Boruto’s inferiority complex and the inventor’s pressuring him like a drug dealer, he gives in and briefly decides uses it only to earn the wrath of his father.

3. Mitsuki (post credits scene)

Mitsuki is the mysterious and mostly useless member of Team 4. For the most part, he does nothing but admire the legacies of Boruto and Sarada. The two do ask him about his background, but before he can answer, they have another matter to address. In the post credits scene, the question is finally answered. It is a big shock to the point that you have to see it to believe it. It's a spoiler beyond spoilers.

When I saw it in theaters, everyone was in shock about the revelation of Mitsuki and perfectly justifies his uselessness throughout the movie. For those burned out on Naruto, this particular scene will probably revitalize your interest.

Conclusion:

The movie ends being open to a potential sequel and even Boruto’s seiyuu asked Kishimoto-sensei, the manga author, if there will be more. His response to that question was that he wanted to rest for a while and finally went on his honeymoon (despite getting married more than 10 years ago and his son is now Boruto’s age). Since he worked on the series for fifteen years, he does deserve a rest.

Thankfully, his answer was not officially a no so maybe he will provide more Naruto material in the future. The movie does throwback to the charms of its beginnings, and that is why it is such a great movie and ends in a manner that makes the viewer want more.

Writer Author: Justin "ParaParaJMo" Moriarty Hello, I am originally from the states and have lived in Japan since 2009. Though I watched Robotech and Voltron as a child, I officially became an anime fan in 1994 through Dragon Ball Z during a trip to the Philippines. In addition to anime, I also love tokusatsu, video games, music, and martial arts. よろしくお願いします Previous Articles Top 5 Anime by Justin "ParaParaJMo" Moriarty