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Battle League Horumo

By Chris Zimmerman
July 22, 2010 - 13:35

Adapted from a 2006 best-selling novel by Manabu Makime, Battle League Horumo is a film that shares many familiarities with Pokemon and Digimon in which players train pint sized monsters and pit them against one another to prove their superiority. This isn’t your average kiddie flick however, as cursing, nudity, and over the top violence is standard fare in this whimsical adventure.

Directed by Katsuhide Motoki, Battle League Horumo finds much of its story trailing the exploits of two Kyoto University freshmen, Abe and Takamura, as they are recruited into “just a regular, ordinary club” at the university. Going by that description, one can’t fault the two for believing it to be any but a simple university club. It’s not long before they, along with others are roped into joining full time as they are pulled into a 1000 year old battle between four universities using oni( Japanese for demon) as soldiers. As penance for losing, the leaders of the losing club must accept “divine punishment” as a way to appease the Gods.  

As a prerequisite to controlling the armies, club members are required to strike several humorous poses or dance in a frantic manner befitting of an individual suffering from spasms. While these sequences can be attributed to slapstick humor, there are some generally funny moments such as a scene in which a club strips down and sings uproariously while cartoon clouds maneuver in front of their nether regions.

The actors are in a large part responsible for the success of the films humor, as they commit themselves fully to providing convincing portrayals of the characters, no matter how goofy they may be. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about the animated Oni, whose CGI is far from being considered the industry’s standard. While their effects aren’t so bad that they can take viewers out of the movie, they aren’t especially convincing either.

Those looking for a background history on the school’s rivalries or the story behind the summoning of Oni will be left sorely wanting for more. The film doesn’t waste much time jumping into the action, thrusting Abe into a conflict for the love of his life Sawara, resulting in the fracturing of the club into rival factions who face opening the gates of Hell. There is little room for exposition in between, allowing the action to guide the story forward.

Given the cast’s intensity and the less than slim premise, Battle League Horumo could have easily found itself overwhelmed by the intrinsic need to deliver a film completely different from what is here. Thankfully, it is a genuinely funny bit of cinema from beginning to end, relying in no small part on the performances of its young cast, who sell it as a serious work, albeit with a little more quirk than the average movie.

In any case, with the premise of diminutive Oni fighting at the behest of naked club members, viewers should expect enough laughs to justify the bizarre tone of the film. Silly? Sure, but entertaining none-the-less.

B

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12