The live action adaptation of Bleach has come to Netflix, and fans finally get a good adaptation of an anime.  Here are my thoughts on the Netflix Original Movie Bleach. 

Bleach was one of the first anime series that I binged watched.  I loved the action packed story, unique and endearing characters, and rad music.  Ichigo’s transformation and the transformation of his friends was a fun journey to go on.  I loved the anime, and that means that I am going to have a much more critical eye than someone who is going into this movie blind.  But I also did try my best to go into this without any expectations or preconceptions.  With that being said, let’s move onto my thoughts on the movie.

Verdict: Did I like this adaptation being a fan of the anime?  Yes, I did.  Was it perfect?  No, but it did a decently good job covering the story and developing the characters.  I was pleasantly surprised by this movie.  And there were stand out scenes that really resonated with me.  I thought the actors did a spectacular job bringing to life their anime counterparts.  I would definitely recommend this movie for Bleach fans and newcomers alike.

Spoilers Ahead

Now before I get into more detail review on this adaptation, I just want to note that this is an adaptation.  And as in any adaptation there will be changes.  A good adaptation of any source material is making sure there is a good synergy between staying true to the source material (including the spirit and tone of the source material) and making some new and fresh.  It has to be something new and exciting for old fans and something that will bring in newcomers as well. It will not be a scene by scene rehash of the anime.  So do not go in expecting that.

Characters:

The key to any good adaptation, especially of a well loved series, is how well the beloved characters are developed and portrayed in the adaptation.  An anime/manga to live action adaptation gets even more scrutiny put on it as oftentimes anime characters like Luffy D. Monkey (One Piece) or Goku (Dragonball) can easily go into the cheesy realm if not handled correctly.  Another issue that often crops up in adaptations is the unfortunate deletion of favorite side characters or the combination of characters to make one character in the adaptation.

Luckily, all of our favorite characters in Bleach are in this adaptation: Chad, Orihime, Uryu, Urahara, Karin, Yuzu, Isshin, Renji, Byakuya, and even lesser side characters like Tatsuki and Keigo.  And what’s better is that there is some development for them especially for Chad, Orihime and Uryu.  I particularly liked a scene where Orihime (Erina Mano) and Chad (Yu Koyanagi) are watching Ichigo spar with Rukia near the river.  They wonder why he is sparring so hard.  Urahara comes up on them and mentions that Ichigo is fighting for something much bigger than they think and that he will need friends to help him.  I thought this was a very nice set up for Chad and Orihime becoming stronger and develop their own powers in order to help Ichigo.  Later, we see a bit of Chad’s superhuman strength when he saves those around him from a heavy bit of rubble.

Orihime played by Erina Mano.

As for Orihime and Chad’s back stories, they are not in this adaptation.  This makes sense as they wanted the movie to focus on the development of Rukia and Ichigo’s relationship and the final battle between him and  Grand Fisher.  I think if they had too many story lines going in one movie, it would have detracted from the story.

I also liked how well Uryu was protrayed by actor Ryo Yoshizawa.  He did a splendid job showing his calm and precise demeanor of Uryu.  They show his hatred of Soul Reapers and give a little information about the Quincys.  They did not go into a whole lot of detail on it, but that is okay.  Uryu’s bow was really cool.  Overall, I liked how they handled the side characters.

As for the main characters, I really feel as if the actor who played Ichigo Kurosaki (Sota Fukushi) and actress who played Rukia Kuchiki (Hana Sugisaki) did a wonderful job capturing the essence of their characters.  I loved the banter between the two characters and their interactions, several of which was not in the anime or manga, but fit their characters.  I think Sota really captured Ichigo’s hot temper and ruffian attitude very well.  And I really loved how they portrayed Rukia in this.  I liked that we get to see Rukia fight more in this than I really ever saw her do in the first part of the anime.  I liked how well Hana Sugisaki handled her character.

Rukia played by Hana Sugisaki

As for Byakuya (Miyavi) and Renji (Taichi Saotome), I think the actors did a good job capturing the essence of their characters.  Renji is as hot tempered in this as he is in the anime, and Byakuya is as cold as ice in this. The actor for Byakuya (Miyavi) definitely encapsulated his cold demeanor very well, and did a very good job with expressing his emotions with only the slightest of facial expressions.

Byakuya Kuchiki played by Miyavi

Renji played by Taichi Saotome

Overall though, I was impressed with the acting in this movie.

Plot:

Now, like I mentioned earlier, they do not go into the Orihime, Chad or Uryu subplots.  The characters are brought in enough that newcomers can differentiate between them, but the primary focus in the film is Rukia and Ichigo.  I think this was a wise decision.  I think the movie would have had too much going on if those subplots were added in.  And it would have been too confusing for newcomers to follow if there were too many subplots going at once.  Focusing on the bond between Rukia and Ichigo was a smart choice.

Now Byakuya and Renji have a more active role in this part.  They make an appearance a little bit before the half way mark in this movie. What’s interesting in this adaptation is how Byakuya gives Rukia several chances to escape her fate and get her power back which is definitely different than in the anime.  I also liked how they hinted at his sad back story with his mentioning how, at no time, should a human and a Soul Reaper have a relationship.  Fans of the anime will know exactly why he is as cold as he is.  And boy when he steps into the fight, near the end, did I get chills because I know just how strong Byakuya is.  Miyavi did an excellent job showcasing that silent strength.

I liked how they focused on the Grand Fisher arc.  I thought this arc had a lot of emotional impact on Ichigo in the anime and the same in the movie. So this was the perfect arc to focus on and to introduce the world of Bleach with.

I also thought there was some really touching moments and I liked how it ended.  It ended in a way that if there is no sequel, the movie can stand on its own.  Now if there is to be a sequel (and I hope that there is), they left it open for that as well.

Music:

They killed it with this soundtrack.  Yutaka Yamada’s score for the movie was moving and action packed.  It captured the rock and roll nature of Bleach and the tone of the show.  It also had strong, emotional tracks for the more dramatic moments.  I think the music really did an excellent job in accentuating what was seen on screen.  The Milk song, though some of the lyrics in this were a bit silly, really fit into Bleach’s aesthetic.

Overall, I give this movie a thumbs up.  Is it a perfect adaptation? No, but I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and found new things I liked in it every new time I watched it.  I really hope they do make a sequel to this movie!