Can’t go to Japan to experience Gintama-themed rooms? Don’t fret! You still have the chance to see Gintoki and his friends as they kick ass in the live-action film adaptation of Gintama! The film is set for release in our local theaters on August 30, according to Pioneer Films.
The live-action film Gintama is based on the acclaimed manga series by Hideaki Sorachi. The manga first appeared in Weekly Shonen Jump in December 2003 and continues to be one of the top-selling mangas in Japan.
Set during the late-Edo period, it follows the story of samurai Gintoki Sakata who saved Shinpachi Shimura and his sister, Tae, from a group of aliens that invaded Japan. Shinpachi ended up becoming Gintoki’s apprentice and worked with him doing odd-jobs. When they rescued Kagura, a teenage alien girl, from the Yakuza, she eventually joins them and the trio became known as Yoruzuya — freelancers who will do just about anything.
Gintama is very comedic as Sorachi uses gags and pokes fun of other shonen series. But he balances it well with drama — specifically, the struggle of society to preserve its culture against the aliens who are slowly changing their way of life.
The film opened in Japan last July 14 and stars Shun Oguri (as Gintoki Sakata), Masaki Suda (as Shinpachi Shimura), and Kanna Hashimoto (as Kagura).
If you enjoyed reading the manga or watching the anime, be sure not to miss out the live-action adaptation of Gintama on August 30!