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Ninja Kids/Nintama Rantarō Sequel's Teaser Streamed
posted on by Lynzee Loveridge
A teaser trailer for Ryuta Tasaki's Ninja Kids!!! Summer Mission Impossible (Nintama Rantarō: Natsu Yasumi Shukudai Daisakusen! no Dan) film began streaming on the film's official website on Saturday. The film is the second live-action adaptation of Soubee Amako's long-running Rakudai Ninja Rantarō ninja gag manga.
In the film, the ninja apprentice Rantarō (Seishirō Katō) and his friends Kirimaru (Roi Hayashi) and Shinbei (Juri Shingetsu) have to reclaim the mystical Gokurakumaru sword. It is said that the wielder of Gokurakumaru shall rule the world. Various ninja from all over Dokutake Castle and beyond are also manuevering to get their hands on this sword of immense power. Rantarō "and his classmates are assigned to retrieve the stolen sword, their first real ninja mission! As an incentive, it's proposed that the kids will have no schoolwork during the winter holidays if they succeed in the mission AND finish their summer homework in time!"
The original manga, the 1993 Nintama Rantarō television anime, the two anime films, and the two live-action films all center around Rantarō, a ninja apprentice at an elite ninjutsu academy in historical Japan. As elementary students, Rantarō and his ninja-in-training friends are called "Nintama" — a contraction of the words "ninja" and "tamago" ("egg").
Tasaki comes to this project after working on much of the Kamen Rider franchise, the live-action Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon series, and the Gamera the Brave film. Takashi Miike had directed the first live-action film.
The original manga has sold 8.7 million copies, while the 1993 television anime is still ongoing after over 1,500 episodes. The second live-action film will open in July, on the 20th anniversary of the television anime. The entertainment news source Oricon reported last year that a "major" American production company was in negotiations after expressing interest in remaking the first live-action film.
[Via Nippon Cinema]
