Urotsukidoji 1

Animation - 6.5

Sound - 4.5

Story - 5.0

Character - 5.3

Value - 5.3

Enjoyment - 5.8

Average - 5.4

Reviewed 8 times Statistic

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User Review

Budding

2008-10-17 08:56:59

Average	5.2
Animation	8
Sound	5
Story	5
Character	3
Value	5
Enjoyment	5

Urotsukidoji: Legend of the Overfiend has been released in the western world as one 110 minute long movie aimed at mature audiences. The movie was originally released in parts as separate episodes starting 1987, and caused controversies due to its brutal scenes of rape, horror, and violence, during its release outside Japan in 1992.

The graphics and animation of Legend of the Overfiend was good when it was first released two decades ago. Today, although the designs and details appear dated, they fit in well with the movie and are decent to watch. The movie does not compromise in both its explicit and gruesome scenes. This might at times have the potential to damage the credibility of the storyline and characters, it maintains the exciting nature of the anime.

There are no theme songs in Legend of the Overfiend, and I am unable to comment on the original Japanese release since it was not included in the English version I obtained. The English dubbing is performed to an acceptable degree, but there are moments where the voice acting sounds distant and at times cliched. Some of the background music in the movie sound out of place, although this is a minor nuisance which is unnoticeable most of the time. Legend of the Overfiend is therefore not a bad anime in terms of sound, although the original Japanese version would have most likely sounded better than the English release.

There are some who categorise Legend of the Overfiend, and every other anime and movie released under the Urotsukidoji name, as Hentai. If Legend of the Overfiend were indeed a Hentai, then it would the Hentai with arguably the best storyline ever. As an action horror anime aimed at mature audiences, Legend of the Overfiend has a storyline which introduced a number of ground breaking elements back in its time, but is overall rather simplistic with a twist near the end that is rather predictable. There are a number of good moments of horror and action, although the composition of the entire movie and the pacing feels inconsistent.

There is barely any character development in Legend of the Overfiend, and the characters themselves have oversimplified personalities. The cast is not large by any means, and therefore the lack of development is disappointing at times. The English voice acting does not improve the situation much, which overall results in a less than satisfactory cast of characters in Legend of the Overfiend.

Groundbreaking at its release in the late 1980s, the Urotsukidoji series have caused many controversies outside Japan. Today, this movie can only be seen as a classic, since it does not excel in any area. This movie should be watched by mature viewers who are looking for material that contributed to modern-day anime, as well as people who are after an action horror anime that does not compromise in its graphics and animation.

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jerikstorebo

2004-11-23 15:29:54

Average	4.3
Animation	5
Sound	4
Story	5
Character	4
Value	3
Enjoyment	5

I managed to watch this without much trouble, although I had some with the rape scenes. That's one of the reasons why I'm having some problems with the characters. First you're raped, then you're fine after a few words? Actually, it's rather the dialogue that is lousy, and it is! Although I really enjoyed the main character, the dialogue is unexcusable, none of the other characters are good, and the bullied bad guy was pretty lousy too. But I managed to hang on. The fighting was of variable quality. Sometimes too slow or strange, all in all mediocre.