Mihai Cososatu I am a very experienced anime watcher and i must say that this one takes the gold by far. It simply engulfs every little aspect needed to become a cult classic and (why not?) a cinematographic masterpiece.From the beginning to the very end you are entrapped in the life of Battousai the Manslayer because it offers the viewer a very profound view of his start, his training, rising and eventual end as a professional killer. The very story is made so that it captures you and it doesn't let you go until the very end, even the music is absolutely perfect. The characters are very well done and you gradually feel them evolving around the plot line, you can't help falling in love with them.I recommend the Japanese original version because it is flawless and the subs are very good, but still Samurai X: Trust and Betrayal is a must see even if you are not a anime fan, the story will grip you so hard that even after it is over you will be staring right trough the credits still thinking about the extraordinary experience you have just been through.

bloodredx This is the best anime I have ever seen, and I will not hear any arguments otherwise. The style is different than the main series, and Kenshin's personality is also different, but this takes nothing away, since he is amazing in both.This movie pretty much takes the story told in volumes 19-21 in the manga, adds more details, changes a few details and the result of this is a fantastic movie that I feel is unrivaled.As the prologue of the Rurouni Kenshin series, naturally this is the story of Kenshin's days as the Hitokiri Battosai, before the founding of the Meiji era. This tells the story of Kenshin and his first wife, Tomoe, who was also the person who saved him from himself. (by the way, in the dubbed version they call her Tomo, but you are supposed to pronounce a long e at the end. Darn people who don't know anything about Japanese names. Makes me want to cry...)There are some points where you think the animation has paused some how, since they stay on the same shot for a long time, but this is just the story going slowly. The creators managed to balance these slow scenes with the action perfectly. It slowly eases you from the violence in the streets of Kyoto, to the slow action that takes place in other settings.But a word to the wise: This series is practically covered in blood!!!! Kenshin is a very vicious assassin, who is not afraid of how much blood falls when he kills someone, and we see many images of him brutally murdering people. The +17 rating on this is not an understatement.So, now that I have to wrap this up, I will close with the soundtrack, which is fantastic. Many of the songs make you want to cry they are so beautiful and sad, especially the song they play in the credits (called "The Sound of Falling Snow"), which is made even sadder since we just saw Kenshin mourning Tomoe.An anime that is missing nothing. A beautiful story, beautiful people, beautiful animation and beautiful music. These things make up for all of the blood, which is a part of the story, so it couldn't be removed.

animekewl I watched this movie a couple years ago and it completely blew my mind away. I was not a big fan of anime thinking it was all fun and games but this movie showed me otherwise. From the beginning it pulls you right into the story. Shinta is an orphan boy who gets raised by Hiko the Swordsman after his whole family is killed by thieves. Hiko then renames the boy Kenshin, the lovable samurai we all love. However this movie shows the darker, more sinister segment of his life, and shows he is called Battousai The Man Slayer. The torment that Kenshin has to live with is unbearable. Running away from his master before his training is complete he goes around trying to overthrow the Tokugawa Shogunate which ruled japan during the Ninteenth Century. He kills with no regard but then he meets Tomoe. A woman who shows Kenshin that killing isn't necessary to justify his means. With many turns of events this makes for an excellent time watching this movie!

johnericbackstrom Never mind that it is animé, this is great art! Everything takes place in the last breaths of the shogunate in Japan with different clans struggling to get ahead in the new era.We follow the life of young Kenshin who commits his sword to a worthy cause. Kenshin is merely a boy ordered to do a mans job, and although he never takes pleasure in his job he gets caught up in all the violence while surrounded by death learns how to love.This is the gem in the Rurouni Kenshin franchise and is worthy of a perfect score. I haven't been moved and awestruck by a movie for a very long time. Were the movie is a good but not fantastic animé movie this is an epic of war, love, sword fighting and drama. Just the look of the movie is unparalleld by animated movie and no computer animation seems visible. If they have used it they have stayed true to the manga.This is not just great animé this is great cinema. All fits to the concept from the animations, the surroundings, the vocal-acting to the soundtrack. I strongly recommend the subtitled version because you will want to get the original voices and all the drama you can sense with the tone and delivering of their lines. I have no clue on who the voice actors really are but I would like to believe that they are the Japanese versions of highly regarded Shakespearian actors. Even if I don't get the language the deliver the acting so honest, sincere and focused that I don't see myself watching an animated movie.