This film is set in early seventeenth century Japan; after centuries of conflict there is peace at last. Ruler Tokugawa Ieyasu fears that two rival ninja clans, the Iga and the Kouga, represent a threat to the peace. These tribes live secret villages hidden deep in the mountains and to rid the country of them he arranges for them to name their top fighters and have them battle to the death. There is a complication though; the young leaders of each group of fighters, Kouga Gennosuke and Oboro, have fallen in love and secretly married. They want to avoid conflict but soon it may be too late.

If you like martial arts films with plenty of action, including gravity defying wirework and characters with supernatural powers then you are likely to enjoy this. Most of the action takes place is beautiful woodland settings as individuals from clan face each other, usually one on one. The ninjas' powers are nicely varied and are not typical superhero level powers. The story is enjoyable with a central romance that drives rather than detracts from the plot. There are clear references to 'Romeo and Juliet' throughout but this isn't merely a Japanese version of that story. The effects are decent enough; the CGI might look a bit obvious in places but the action scenes still look impressive. While it is less violent than many samurai/ninja films there are a few moderately shocking moments. The characters are good with the cast doing a solid job playing them. Overall I'd certainly recommend this to fans of the genre.

These comments are based on watching the film in Japanese with English subtitles.

Two rival shinobi(aka ninja) clans have remained at peace for 400 years thanks to a governmental mandate. Unbeknownst to anyone two of the ninjas have fallen in love and secretly married. A mandate from the Shogun comes down saying that the five best warriors from each of the two clans must battle to the last man to determine which son will follow the shogun on to the throne, however there is more than meets the eye and the young lovers are caught in the middle of it.

I really liked this movie a great deal. This is the sort of movie that pulls you in from its opening and holds you straight to the end. I like that this isn't a straight battle film. There is more going on than just the fights, there is a meditation on love, honor, the nature of life going on. This is a movie about character and its the characters that you care about not the action or the pretty pictures.

If there is a flaw in the film it would have to be the fact that each shinobi has some sort of magical power (Eye of destruction,tentacle like arms,poison breath). It makes the movie seem more like a comic book or a video game than reality. Its a minor flaw really since the movie still works despite it (though I wonder how much better this would have been if it had been played completely straight).

This is a really good movie that you'll want to see if you like action films with a bit more going on.

I must disagree with the other comment, this is one of the best movies I've seen lately. It is not meant to be a ninja story, nor a love story, but a love story between two ninjas. It is one of the most romantic movies i've seen, without being lame and girlish. It has beautiful sets, good music, and an end that will make you think twice about the difficulties of life, and honor. I can only say i cried twice on this movie, and i don't cry that easily. I saw the movie because of the video game with the same name, i hadn0t heard of this film before, and I'm so glad i saw it.

It's worth seeing, if not for the story or action, then for the great, great places they show...