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Bleach
Considering how popular anime is and how profitable superhero stories are, you would think there would be a wealth of great or at least decent live-action anime adaptations out there. You would be wrong. It’s hard to find an anime adaptation that’s tolerable, let alone worth your time. That’s what makes one of Netflix’s latest international acquisitions, Bleach, so remarkable: it’s a genuinely fun movie.
Directed by Shinsuke Sato, the film adaptation is based on the manga and anime of the same name. The story follows the life of teenager Ichigo Kurosaki, a rebellious loner who can see ghosts. But after a chance encounter with a woman who is essentially a Grim Reaper, his life changes forever.
The Bleach movie version leans into the original property’s silliness and love of action, creating a fast-paced romp. It’s a perfect low-stakes Friday night watch. So how did Bleach succeed in an arena where so many other adaptations have failed? And what can future anime/manga adaptations learn from this film?
Its characters looked realistic rather than authentic.
No matter how well it’s cast, no live-action adaptation is ever going to look exactly like the manga or anime it’s based on. That’s just a fact of life. There are differences between animation and live action. But rather than trying to force direct parallels and sticking Sota Fukushi in a bright orange wig, director Shinsuke Sato and his team went in a tamer direction, opting to make Fukushi’s hair look like a cool dye job. Likewise Sato all but abandoned Rukia’s signature hairstyle for actress Hana Sugisaki, interpreting her hairstyle into something more believable.
As a result there were no blindingly atrocious yellow wigs to distract viewers throughout the movie (looking at you, Fullmetal Alchemist movie). Everyone in the film looked like a plausible real person, which is something you don’t miss until it’s taken from you.
'Bleach' wasn't whitewashed.
It feels weird that “don’t be racist” needs to be included on this list, but that’s where we are. Bleach is a story set largely in Japan with Japanese characters. Of course there can be well-made and respectful adaptations of international properties. But going with a primarily Japanese cast for this particular property was a good move, especially during a time when whitewashing in adaptations seems to be more of the norm than the exception.
Action first, logic second.
Sato’s Bleach knew exactly what it wanted to be — a fun, action-filled thrill ride. Until its final moments, the Bleach movie ignored the more somber and self-reflective emotions of this universe, instead wholly focusing on making its hero’s journey arc as fun as possible. There were epic, over-the-top fight scenes. Snarky graphics appeared out of nowhere. The nefarious Hollows looked cool rather than realistic or scary. It was awesome.
This isn’t to say that every single adaptation needs to be another sleek adventure. The beauty of art is that you can tell any story in a myriad of ways. But long-form storytelling, like television, manga, and anime, gives creators the luxury playing with themes and tones over time. A character that seems mean and one-dimensional at their introduction can grow to be shockingly nuanced by a story’s end. Movies are supposed to tell standalone stories. There simply isn’t time for the same drastic narrative shifts as long-form storytelling. Picking a creative direction and really focusing on executing that rather than trying to mimic every emotional tone of the source material greatly helped Bleach.
It focused on a single story.
This is by far the biggest thing Bleach got right, and it’s the biggest mistakes most adaptations make. One movie can’t cover 50+ episodes of a series. Any film adaptation is first and foremost a movie, and every movie needs to tell a coherent central story.
Telling the story of Ichigo and Rukia’s first meeting and transformative friendship doesn’t even span the first season of the Bleach anime. But you know what? It tells a good, focused story. By focusing on the emotions and begrudging acceptance that blossoms into a friendship between these two characters, the emotions and stakes of Bleach work. This adaptation has two people you’re clearly rooting for instead of a never-ending barrage of new characters and a swamp of unclear backstory. If we never see the full story of Bleach in live-action, that’s fine. Watching one good yet narratively incomplete adaptation is better than watching a sloppy, near-complete version.
The 'Bleach' movie knew what it was.
Sota’s take on the franchise wasn’t trying to dive into any new depths, and it wasn’t trying to best its source material. It merely sought to give a beloved property the big screen treatment. In this way, the Bleach movie feels more like a Marvel superhero origin story than almost any other anime adaptation. It looks good, it has great action scenes, and it never takes itself too seriously. Sometimes that’s all a movie needs to be.
The Bleach movie was never going to be better than the original manga or anime. Those stories have been constructed over years and have had more space to create complicated arcs. But that doesn’t mean a theatrical adaptation can’t be fun, even with all its limits. And who knows? Maybe the Bleach movie will draw some people to discover the greatness of the manga and anime. That’s pretty cool.
