A live-action feature film adaptation of the "Rurouni Kenshin" manga and anime series made its world premiere at South Korea's 17th Busan International Film Festival.
Four thousand moviegoers viewed the swashbuckling samurai movie Oct. 5, which kicked off the Open Cinema program. The festival ran from Oct. 4-13.
The film won applause from foreign media and became the only Japanese film selected by The Hollywood Reporter as one of the festival's 10 Hot Asian Titles.
The film's director is Keishi Otomo, who was previously known for his movie "The Vulture" and the "Ryomaden" historical TV drama series.
The protagonist, Kenshin Himura, is played by Takeru Sato, an actor best known for his roles in the "Kamen Rider Den-O" superhero TV series and the live-action feature adaptation of the "Beck" manga series.
Created by manga artist Nobuhiro Watsuki, "Rurouni Kenshin" dates back to the 1990s. It originally ran in Shonen Jump weekly comic magazine and then spawned anime adaptations.
The live-action version hit screens on Aug. 25 in Japan, in its first six weeks attracting 2.25 million viewers and taking more than 2.8 billion yen ($35.7 million) at the box office.
Before the screening, director Otomo and lead actor Sato stepped on stage. The audience of 4,000 or so went wild.
"Thank you very much for coming tonight," Sato greeted the audience in Korean.
Otomo said, "I'm honored to come to Busan."
The pair remained for the screening.
"I was so worried about how they would feel, but their response was great," Sato said afterward of the audience. "It is very special that the film should succeed in foreign countries with different languages and cultures."
Visit the film's official website at (http://wwws.warnerbros.co.jp/rurouni-kenshin/index.html).
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