Naruto Shippûden: The Movie

I've been a fan of the Naruto Anime Series since it's glory days. When I got hooked, it was around episode 50 out of the near 300 episodes out today. I've seen them all and I have got to say, the production and writing team are doing their best to destroy this franchise. Horrible filler episodes, lackluster animations, clichéd story lines, and hackney character developments. This entire movie felt like one long and boring filler arc of the Naruto television series. When the action kicked up, it was alright. The animations and choreography were all standard for where the series is right now, but it was nowhere near the quality a feature film should have. The story is just modified from every Naruto movie we've seen before. Just do yourself a favor and re-watch Rock Lee fighting Gaara or Kimimaru, and you'll get more excitement out of it than from this movie.

This time, the narrative centers on a gang of renegade ninjas who choose to bring back to life a demonic spirit that, if it were to reconnect with its body, would destroy the entire planet. Team 7 (Naruto, Sakura, Rock Lee, and Neji) is tasked with protecting Shion, the shrine maiden, as there is only one way to stop this from happening: for her to go and reseal the demon. This Naruto movie follows the same pattern as all the others, with them needing to defend a significant person, getting to know them, and engaging in fierce combat along the way. However, the underlying premise concerning Shion's ability to foresee people's deaths adds a little spice to the otherwise mediocre story.

The characters this time are Naruto, Sakura, Rock Lee, and Neji, as I previously mentioned. You know what to anticipate from them if you've been watching Naruto Shippuuden, but as usual, Naruto is the main character and remains irritatingly foolish until a later point. Shion turns out to be a rather deep character herself, so it can be forgiven that it does the whole Naruto attaching himself to the main character thing like it always does. This time, the antagonists are quite creative-drug users-but their acts aren't really justified.

Since this is a motion picture, excellent production values are to be expected, and they are. Fluidly animated action sequences, amazing lighting effects and interactive settings. But it's evident that some details, like the CG army and fire effects, were trimmed. The soundtrack will make you feel as though you've heard it before, even though the music is really great and fits the emotions nicely. The humorous ED theme, however, is something that no one has heard before.

"Naruto Shippuden the Movie" marks the first cinematic entry in the Shippuden era, taking place during the early arcs of the series' post-time-skip period. Directed by Hajime Kamegaki, the film delivers a self-contained story centered on a prophecy of Naruto's death, wrapped in high-stakes action, supernatural threats, and familiar character dynamics.

Strengths: The film wastes no time plunging into action, opening with a dramatic sequence that suggests Naruto's impending demise. This sets a dark tone, quite distinct from earlier Naruto films. The animation is fluid, especially during fight scenes, showcasing the studio's improved choreography and visual effects. The central conflict against the spirit demon Moryo carries an epic quality, even if it leans on the typical "resurrect an ancient evil" trope.

Naruto's characterization remains consistent: reckless, loyal, and driven by his desire to protect others. His interactions with priestess Shion provide some emotional depth, even hinting at romantic undertones, although not deeply explored. Shion herself is one of the better-written one-off characters in the Naruto film series, evolving from cold and pragmatic to someone who sees value in Naruto's selfless worldview.

Weaknesses: Despite its darker premise, the film suffers from the same issues that plague many anime tie-in movies: lack of stakes in the broader narrative and limited development for supporting characters. Sakura, Neji, Rock Lee, and the rest of the squad get sidelined after a brief burst of action. Additionally, the prophecy concept is underutilized; rather than truly exploring Naruto's thoughts on fate or mortality, the story plays it safe with predictable plot turns.

Moreover, the villain, Moryo, is largely forgettable-more of a force of nature than a compelling antagonist. His lack of personality or motivation beyond destruction weakens the emotional investment in the final battle.

Verdict: "Naruto Shippuden the Movie" delivers solid action and a serviceable plot, with enough emotional weight and spectacle to entertain fans. It doesn't break new ground, but for those wanting a compact dose of Naruto's heroism, it gets the job done. Just don't expect it to stick with you long after the credits roll.

Rating: 6.6/10 - Entertaining but formulaic. Strong start, flashy battles, and a decent character arc for Shion, but ultimately lacks the narrative punch of the series' best moments.

The first three Naruto movies were entertaining and exciting. And they showed the essence of what Naruto's character is about. This fourth installment is not that much different but is nearly not as compelling as the previous movies were. In Shippûden Naruto has grown considerably. And you do notice that he has matured. In this movie it is like he never changed except for his appearance. To me it is strange why the writers don't show some elements that are relevant to the show or it's characters. After the developments in Naruto Shippûden I had hoped that we at least got to see what happened in the two years that Naruto was training with Jiraiya or something like that. But to have the same story told over and over does get boring. (Priestess is cocky,Naruto gets angry and corrects her and finally ... her. You know. The end!). This movie does contain some superb action scenes especially the one with Rock Lee. Not a a bad movie,but very pale in comparison to the previous movies and the series.

Naruto Shippūden the movie is noticeably darker than most Naruto movies. It is the first Naruto Shippūden film and fourth Naruto film overall. It was a pretty hyped up movie. The main part of the plot that got fans interested during promotion was the rumor of the death of the series' main character, Naruto Uzumaki. Now the annoying thing about this film is that the plot follows the classic mission for Naruto in the series: protect or escort a client-usually a female-usually a princess. Naruto is assigned with Sakura, Neji and Lee to protect a princess named Shion who has the limited ability to foresee the future, limited meaning that he can only see death. Apparently the priestess/princess wakes up from one in which some unfamiliar blonde leaf Shinobi in orange(Naruto) dies fighting this frigging scary demon called Moryō. It really added a mystery factor to the movie. Hence, Destiny...Prophecies...The Boy's...End!(trailers) To add to the horror aspect of the movie, the antagonist is stirring up some crazy ritual jazz and the priestess Shion in basically an exorcist who has to stop Yomi. Overall, the movie's plot is a general repeat of the whole protect the girl thing, even adding the whole thing where she's mean, spoiled and ungrateful for what he has until Naruto changes her with his ideology. But this is movie is more thought out and is on the darker side of Naruto movies for sure. The glimpses of Naruto Uzumaki's death and his friends mourning at his grave really hype up people to watch the film and find out what happens to the main character and how he avoids such a terrifying end to his life by this dark creature. The constant deathly visions of the near future also keep you curious. Action in this film is pretty cool too as it was nice to see Naruto, Sakura, Neji and Lee(original series main characters) face these new foes who sought world destruction. There are a bunch of cool and epic moments and touching parts too concerning sad back-stories. I do recommend this movie though to most if not any type of viewer as it should be entertaining enough.