From Wiki: Jiraiya (literally "Young Thunder"), the title character of the Japanese folktale Jiraiya Gōketsu Monogatari ("The Tale of the Gallant Jiraiya"), is a ninja who uses shapeshifting magic to morph into a gigantic toad. The heir of a powerful clan in Kyūshū of the same name, Jiraiya fell in love with Tsunade, a beautiful young princess who masters slug magic. His arch-enemy was his one-time follower, Orochimaru, who mastered snake magic. You can read a rendition of the folk tale in English here: www.readbookonline.net Though the headings to the major scene changes are subtitled. I believe this might have had "benshi" narration when it was played in theaters. Benshi is a professional narrator who tells the story and does voice overs while the film is played. This may be why there are some talking scenes with no intertitles, as it was left to the benshi to narrate the story. I became utterly fascinated with the stylized choreography, movements and interplay of the actors in this film. Also it is possibly one of the first Japanese tokusatsu (special effects) movies, using fades and jump cuts to introduce humans transforming into frogs and snakes. The creatures all played by actors in suits (ala Godzilla). Since it seems to only exist without a soundtrack, I made one. All Music: Kevin MacLeod used under the Creative Commons license Attribution 3.0 Using these pieces: Finding Movement - Arcane - Chee Zee Jungle - Eastern Thought - Firesong - Ritual - Temple of the <b>...</b>
Jiraiya the Brave 1921
tokusatsu
japanese special effects
ninja
magic
