▪	RELEASED BY:		VIZ MEDIA
		▪	ASPECT RATIO:		16:9 ANAMORPHIC WIDESCREEN
		▪	AUDIO:		ENGLISH AND JAPANESE DD 5.1
		▪	RUNNING TIME:		97 MIN
		▪	RATING:		T+
		▪	RELEASE DATE:		11/10/2009
		▪	REVIEW DATE:		12/01/2009
		▪	REVIEWED BY:		HOLLY ELLINGWOOD

Naruto, however, has other things on his mind. The priestess sees visions and in them, Naruto will die.  Can he complete a mission that tells him it will end his life? Naruto has fought fate since day one of his life, being a boy with the nine-tailed demon fox sealed within him. Whether facing off against a Ghost Army, a demon dragon, or a lethal fate, he will challenge it. But can a person escape their predestined end?

The Shippuden movie opens with the shocking death of Naruto. It has spectacular animation with Naruto battling a black and deep purple mystical demon dragon inside a lava pit cavern. The anime then steals away to the disturbing scene of a villain named Yomi using Dark Medicine Ninjutsu to control and use the chakra of his shinobi followers to unseal the barrier keeping the spirit of the dreaded Moryo imprisoned. Now loose, Moryo has only to take the soul to where the body is sealed away in a faraway shrine in order to resurrect Moryo and allow him to continue the destruction of the earth he had nearly completed generations ago!

Alarms are raised in all the great nations of the land. Moryo must be stopped. He’s on the move with his Ghost Army, laying waste wherever they go as they steadily make a path to his body for his full resurrection. To stop it, Tsunada charges Squad 7 with Naruto and Sakura along with Rock Lee and Neji replacing Kakashi as captain, to go to the Land of Ogres and escort the priestess Shion to the shrine that keeps Moryo’s body. There they must destroy it in order to ensure that Moyro’s ambitions, along with Yomi’s dreams of world domination, never come to pass.  However when they first meet the priestess, Shion is rude and spoiled and upsets everyone with the vision of Naruto’s death. He is told it is inescapable. He believes fate is what you make it. If you don’t like your destiny then you fight it.

The journey to the shrine is a perilous one. They are ambushed by Yomi’s ninja and the battles are trying as his ninjas can use at least two elemental ninjutsus. Wind, Air, Fire, Water, they wield each of them with deadly precision. The ambush costs the squad one of their travelers and puts them on the run. Meanwhile the efforts of the Leaf Village to stop the Ghost Army have all failed. Now time is racing to catch the team where all the hopes of world survival rest upon the shoulders of the young members of Squad 7 and a priestess who hides her great sorrow and immense burdens with bratty behavior and a harsh attitude.

The next battle with the Yomi shinobi is even fiercer. The rest of the team try to buy time for Shion and Naruto to reach the shrine but the individual fights are vicious and brutal. Naruto and Shion make it to the shrine only to have to face Yomi who carries Moryo’s soul. Naruto undergoes a death defying battle as he contends with Yomi’s lethal and insidious Dark Medicine ninjutsu and Moryo’s demonic powers, as well as the fate that tells him he will die this day. Shion must battle as well. She learns about her mother’s past as she tries to erect the barrier. However Moryo has pulled off a terrible trap and now his demonic spirit rises and Naruto must fight a dragon beast. Both girl and boy must decide if they can fight Fate and if anyone can, it will be Naruto, believe it.

The movie is dramatic, suspenseful, action filled, and stunning visually. It has all the eye-catching imagery on the theatrical level one would hope to see in a movie release. It is very pretty to watch. It holds good use of CG animation to heighten the experience of the battles. The overall theme of Fate and destiny versus free will suits the character and world of Naruto perfectly. Shion’s inner battle with self-doubt and feeling trapped by fate is combined with her outer one against Moryo and raises the bar of the emotional impact of the climax of the film.

EXTRAS:
Bonus features include original Japanese trailer, line art gallery, Viz anime trailers, special movie music videos of the songs “Hero’s Come Back” and “Michi” that TV fans will recognize from the TV anime series. The release also includes a 24 page booklet done Eastern style (read right to left) that is an English translated replication of the Japanese theatrical booklet release and contains full color anime clips from the movie, character synopsis, Japanese credits (translated in English), the lyrics to the ending theme song “LIE-LIE-LIE” sung by Soryu, and interviews with the Japanese cast, both heroes and villains, as well as interviews with Japanese staff including Masashi Kishimoto (Creator), Director Hajime Kamegaki (Air Gear, Fushigi Yugi), and Screenwriter Takegami Junki (Naruto Shippuden TV, One Piece).

IN SUMMARY:
Naruto Shippuden the Movie is a stellar addition to the runaway hit series!