The movie is set in the ultra-violent world of feudal Japan somewhere around the Edo period. The lead character, Jubei, is a wandering samurai who picks up jobs where he can whilst running from a secretive and destructive past. One day, he saves a member of the Mochizuki Koga ninja team, Kagero, from getting raped and quickly finds himself embroiled in a world of politics and death. You see, a former associate of Jubei, Himuro Genma, has somehow crawled his way out of the afterlife and is now working on behalf of the Shogun of the Dark: at his disposal are a group of specially trained ninjas named the Eight Devils of Kimon. Genma uses the Devils to extort money and gold from the populace, intending to buy up weapons from the Portuguese and take over all of Japan himself. With his demon ninjas and immortality, it seems like there is no one to stop him from taking over the country, unless a certain samurai steps up to the plate. Cue dramatic music!
Despite appearances, Ninja Scroll does have a smidge of a plot, just enough to get the lead character out and about killing demon ninja monsters. In fact, the whole thing plays out like an old school video game: Jubei kills ninjas until he reaches the mini-bosses and kills the mini-bosses until he gets to the big boss. The story seems to only exist to keep him moving from one fight to the next and even he ends up being reluctant to do it (in the movie, he gets poisoned and is promised the antidote if he fights). It’s a pretty by-the-numbers action narrative which is only exacerbated by the tropey characters. The female lead Kagero merely exists to show off her tits, fall in love with the lead and die, which leads to Jubei’s only emotional scene right before his big fight with Genma. She’s got a tough exterior and a wounded heart, but in just two days, love is in the air for this buxom babe! Jubei doesn’t fare much better. He’s your typical John Wayne tough-guy lone wolf with an unprecedented amount of sword fighting skills, but only if his hand is forced. After 25 years, it just doesn’t age well.
All in all, I wouldn’t say that Ninja Scroll is the best thing ever; hell, it’s not even like the twentieth best thing ever, but it’s definitely a classic must-watch for anime and animation fans. Also, it’s streaming right now, so it’s not like you have to go anywhere to watch it. Check it out if you have a couple of hours!