5 Things the 'Bleach' Live-Action Movie Must Get Right
We're hoping the producers can pull it off.
The beloved manga-anime juggernaut Bleach is getting a live-action adaptation, and unless it wants to end up like M. Night Shyamalan’s disastrous version of The Last Airbender, there are a few things it must do.
We’ve heard rumors of a live-action Bleach movie for weeks — the 73rd volume of Tite Kubo’s long-running manga hinted at a surprise at the end of the 74th and final volume, and when that issue comes out on Monday, Anime News Network reports that the live-action adaptation will be official.
Shinsuke Sato, director of other manga adaptations like Gantz, Gantz II: Perfect Answer, and I Am a Hero, directing the film. Sota Fukushi, who is known for Kamen Rider, Library Wars, and As the Gods Will, will star as the main protagonist, Ichigo Kurosaki.
To be fair, it’s about time that the manga series ended. But if Sato is going to attempt to bring the Japanese graphic novels to life with real actors, there are a few things he absolutely can’t mess up.
'Bleach' first cover
1. Do Not Whitewash the Characters
Look at the various shades and hues
Several movies have received backlash for whitewashing roles – hiring white actors for characters who are of a different ethnicity. Both the upcoming Doctor Strange film](https://www.inverse.com/article/15335-marvel-s-kevin-feige-explains-why-doctor-strange-white-washed-the-ancient-one) and Paramount’s westernized live-action remake of Ghost in the Shell have faced accusations of whitewashing. Bleach has a lot of characters of varying ethnic backgrounds so there should be no need for whitewashing.
2. CGI Animation
A lot of live action movies anime remakes (see Avatar: The Last Airbender ), have a tendency to use horrible CGI animation to bring characters’ moves to life. In Bleach, characters have a special move called a bankai, which can often be very visually stunning. It will be interesting to see how the creative team figures out how to make the anime-style moves look realistic.
3. End Everything With the Final Aizen Arc
Most lit villain
The problem with Bleach is that it went on for too long. If the first live action movie is good, hopefully, the producers won’t drag it out into some of the anime’s late-seasons plot points. Many fans felt as if the manga (and anime) should have ended with the Aizen arc, which makes it the perfect place to finish a series of films.
4. Nail the Pacing
The beginning of Bleach has a lot of hidden details and important pieces that later get revealed. Ichigo should not go from weak Soul Reaper to super strong Vizard in a span of thirty minutes. His progression is slow and as such, the movie should attempt to reflect that.
5. Ichigo’s Orange Hair
So pensive
Ichigo is the Japanese word for strawberry. He has very bright orange hair that can possibly be difficult to replicate. Even Tite Kubo feels that it might look weird in a live action movie, but here’s hoping that the eventual character designs manage to preserve some of the technicolor hairstyles from the anime.
