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Based on the international anime sensation, Knights of the Zodiac brings the Saint Seiya saga to the big screen in live-action for the first time. Seiya (Mackenyu), a headstrong street teen,...
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- Knights of the Zodiac Review
- Verdict
By Matt Donato
Posted: May 11, 2023 10:25 pm
Knights of the Zodiac opens in theaters on May 12, 2023
This year's manga-to-live-action adaptation of Knights of the Zodiac is as underwhelming a hopeful franchise-starter as you'll ever encounter. Japanese superstar performer Mackenyu will no doubt lure his fanbase into theaters, who will then be met with a long-winded fantasy adventure that isn't the dazzling visual feast they were probably hoping for thanks to such a cumbersome reliance on unspectacular digital effects. Everything about this modern tale of Olympic gods and supernatural powers teases an epic journey, but execution is quite the sluggish opposite.
For those unfamiliar with Masami Kurumada's Saint Seiya manga – which director Thomasz Baginski's film loosely picks and chooses from – Mackenyu's protagonist Seiya discovers his destiny as protector of Sienna (Madison Iseman), the reincarnation of goddess Athena. The screenplay seems to assume we know all of the manga’s background information when charting Seiya's rags-to-superhero arc, skipping over the details and following the most basic beginnings for young characters discovering extraordinary powers they need to harness.
There's a messiness to the collision of Greek mythology and samurai culture that reminds of something sloppily extravagant like Gods of Egypt, lost in world-building that never feels convincing. Instead, it's a smorgasbord of unimpressive digital effects as Baginski struggles to recreate the feel of anime in live action (think Netflix's Cowboy Bebop show), boiling down Kurumada's vivid source material into a bland, loud, voiceless gruel with no substance.
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Even the visual makeup of Knights of the Zodiac feels uninspired. Guraad's supersoldier army looks like rejected models of the 2014 Robocop remake's suit, while Seiya's battle costume armor loses its shine once the fight turns to computer-animated models from practical choreography. Everyone with Cosmo surging through their veins seems to harness a...
Knights of the Zodiac fails to inspire enough excitement to meet the prospect of future sequels with anything more than a shrug. It's not particularly successful at welcoming newcomers into Masami Kurumada's imagination because the film whiffs at echoing the manga creator's vision. Director Tomasz Baginski falls victim to the choppy and unnatural f...
- Matt Donato
May 12, 2023 · Knights of the Zodiac guts a beloved anime franchise to make a pointless movie. It’s drawn from the worst incarnation of the Saint Seiya franchise, and it doesn’t even do that justice
- Cezary Jan Strusiewicz
Strong role models in uneven, violent manga-based actioner. Read Common Sense Media's Knights of the Zodiac review, age rating, and parents guide.
- Tomasz Baginski
- Tara Mcnamara
- Mackenyu, Famke Janssen, Sean Bean
May 13, 2023 · Knights of the Zodiac is a 2023 fantasy movie based on Masami Kurumada’s manga titled Saint Seiya. The film was originally released at the end of April 2023 in Japan before hitting select theaters in the United States in early May.
- Critic
Knights of the Zodiac is an example of everything wrong when a manga-based anime TV series turns into a horribly acted live-action movie that will make even die-hard fans cringe.
May 12, 2023 · While it’s grading on a big curve, given the bumpy history of anime in the West, Knights of the Zodiac is the surprise of the summer as a rousing sci-fi superhero flick with unique Asian ...
