Berserk: Ougon Jidai-hen I - Haou no Tamago

In the Kingdom of Midland, a mercenary named Guts wanders the land, preferring a life of conflict over a life of peace. Despite the odds never being in his favor, he is an unstoppable force that overcomes every opponent, wielding a massive sword larger than himself.

One day, Griffith, the mysterious leader of the mercenary group Band of the Hawk, witnesses the warrior's battle prowess and invites the wandering swordsman to join his squadron. Rejecting the offer, Guts challenges Griffith to a duel—and, much to the former's surprise, is subsequently defeated and forced to join.

Now, Guts must fight alongside Griffith and his crew to help Midland defeat the Empire of Chuder. However, Griffith seems to harbor ulterior motives, desiring something much larger than just settling the war...

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Related Anime

Adaptation:	Berserk
Alternative version:	Kenpuu Denki Berserk, Berserk: Ougon Jidai-hen - Memorial Edition
Sequel:	Berserk: Ougon Jidai-hen II - Doldrey Kouryaku

More characters

Characters & Voice Actors

Guts

Main

Iwanaga, Hiroaki
Japanese

Griffith

Main

Sakurai, Takahiro
Japanese

Casca

Main

Yukinari, Toa
Japanese

Judeau

Supporting

Kaji, Yuuki
Japanese

Nosferatu, Zodd

Supporting

Miyake, Kenta
Japanese

Donovan

Supporting

Pippin

Supporting

Fujiwara, Takahiro
Japanese

Rickert

Supporting

Kotobuki, Minako
Japanese

Corkus

Supporting

Matsumoto, Yoshirou
Japanese

Bazuso

Supporting

Kobayashi, Kendou
Japanese

More staff

Staff

Kamagata, Eiichi

Producer

Yonemori, Hiroto

Producer

Kubooka, Toshiyuki

Director, Storyboard

Shimizu, Yasuyuki

Episode Director, Key Animation, Animation Director

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Opening Theme

"Aria" by Susumu Hirasawa

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Ending Theme

	"Blood and Guts" by Shiro Sagisu
	"Utsukushikumono" by Ai

Reviews

Feb 3, 2012

ParaParaJMo

Recommended

Just earlier this morning upon writing this review, I had the privilege of watching this movie in theaters in Japan. For the longest time, virtually everyone who has watched the original Berserk anime series have endlessly demanded more. And now that day has come upon us though not really in the most idealistic of terms. Many of us wanted a continuation of where the series leaves off, but for now, we have to settle a re-telling of the Golden Age arc which will eventually pave way for the rest of the manga to be adapted.

As for what it is covered, if you're already familiar ... with the source material you of course know what to expect and it's once again faithfully adapted (spoiler: there is no blackswordsman arc at the beginning). But I feel that for those already familiar with story, you want to see it with whole new animation which the original series was harshly criticized, then new animation is what you get and it's pretty awesome. But I suppose starting from the Golden Age, it can attract new audiences as well.

The action is very fluid and I feel that the postures and the weight of the armor and swords are properly depicted in the battle scenes. There are no still shots or any corner cutting. It really felt like an animated 300 but without all the trendy slow-mos and bullet time. What I really liked in the opening battle sequence is that the soldiers on both sides show fear in their eyes and that their arms and hands do shake when in battle knowing they could die. I like how more danger is more implemented with the battle scenes. Of course the battle scenes are violent, but I feel there is more psychology behind the battles as well. I like how Guts in his earlier days is portrayed as someone who fights off his experiences and instincts. When he's on that field, to him, it's just a day at the office.

I felt that the shaky camera angles you see in the Borne films was utilized too much. The panning both zooming in and out and the circular shots try to give it a live action feel. At this point, the fighting isn't drastically defying the laws of physics so the action does feel realistic.

What I felt somewhat upset that they changed the voice cast from the original TV series who were also used in the DC and PS2 games. I felt that the new seiyuu for Guts didn't have the same intimidation and that don"t fuck with me attitude that Nobutoshi Canna had. Sakurai Takahiro did capture some of Griffith's qualities but strongly lacked his charisma. Casca's new voice actress is nothing compared to the great Miyamura Yuko. If they could get those voice actors for the games, why not for something as big as this? Was this Miura's choice like masami's when they did the new Saint Seiya oavs?

Thankfully the music is once against compared by Hirakawa Susumu. To me, not having him for the music is like not having Kanno Yoko not doing the music for a Cowboy Bebop sequel and it would also be like Initial D without the Eurobeat. The style is still the same but brought to a whole new intensity appropriate for the epicness this project will bring.

For now, this movie does a great job of being just the beginning of what is to come. I understand this is supposed to be released internationally. I hope when it hits theaters or is on DVD wherever you are, you support this movie.

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May 30, 2012

Shadow67733

Mixed Feelings

For my review I will simply break things down by the rating system here and explain my choices. A little background on me.. I have been a Berserk fan since I discovered the series back in 2001. This is the series that originally got me into anime and eventually manga. I have owned and watched the 25 ep anime countless times and have read and own all the currently existing manga chapters. This is my favorite story series, bar none.

Okay, lets begin..

Story: The problem with the story is pacing. The movie leaves off way to many character building moments in favor of action ... and try to compress all of it in a laughably short time frame(88mins if I remember correctly). There is simply no time to make the connection with the characters and hurts immersion badly in my opinion. Many scenes were cut and not for the better. To be honest not many movies nowadays have such a short run time and it did not do this one any favors either. The movie needed another hour. Also, for those who expected something more "faithful" to the manga, this movie cuts out just as much, if not more, then the anime but keeps just enough to make sure the story can progress.

Art: To be honest the new style did not bother me visually as much as some other reviews I read have mentioned. I believe some said how.. "it made their eyes bleed" along with other colorful self mutilating descriptions of horror. I will say however, that it is hit or miss. Literally. There are some scenes that are beautiful and really well done but there are also a few parts that are awkwardly animated to say the least. For me it was not a deal breaker but something I did notice. The action segments were well done overall along with most of the still 2d scenes.

Sound: This will be quick. The original anime series soundtrack was better at carrying the mood and keeping a good theme. No contest, hands down, the end. I am glad Susumu Hirasawa was able to contribute "Aria" to the production(which is a fantastic track), but only to hear it once at the beginning intro and not as part of an overall theme was unfortunate.

Characters: I have to say, none of the voice acting wow'd me. Don't get me wrong, it was not awful but the original anime simply had a better voice cast with more versatility. Character design and shading was also funky at times with consistency. I have already mentioned the lack of character development so I won't rehash all of that again.

Overall: As a Berserk fan, its very much watchable. Sad to say though it was not what I hoped for when I was excited to see my series reborn. It could have been done so much better with all the story and material available to use from years of Miuras work. I'm also not sure their abridged version will attract the new fans they hoped which is a shame for a great series. I will admit one caveat, that as the entire movie series is not yet out my comments about character development may change depending how they handle key character and plot moments over the course of the next film. I do also realize how unfair it is to compare it to an anime which had way more content when this movie series is not yet complete. I am holding my judgement on the entire series until I can watch it fully.

My opinion with this movie: As Berserk fan its something you will want to see...but(and it hurts to say this) don't expect to much.

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Dec 24, 2012

Abs0

Not Recommended

Art: Where to begin with how much the art sucks? The fact that a movie released in 2012 somehow has worse 3D graphics than a computer game released a decade early? The fact that the same fucking "nameless soldier" model is used for hundreds of soldiers in every fucking scene regardless of whether if it's action or not? The fact that the models are ugly and plain as fuck even when used for close-ups and still shots? The fact that the faces are completely flat and not even shaded 90% of the time? Everything in the movie is undetailed, from the weapons, to the faces, ...

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