For those familiar with Japanese manga and anime, there are few new anime out there that have reached the popularity and recognition as the Jujutsu Kaisen series. And to mark its success, creator Gege Akutami has blessed the fans with “Jujutsu Kaisen 0” to mark the decade. A film so successful, so groundbreaking, that it beat out “Frozen” in streams, setting a new record for animated films.

The story’s main plotline follows Yuta Okkotsu, a high school student who is haunted by the spirit of his childhood friend Rika, who died in a traffic accident. Her spirit has been cursed and she manifests as a monstrous entity who protects him against his will. Unable to control Rika’s immense power, Yuta is helpless to stop the bloodshed caused by his curse. As a result, Yuta is apprehended by jujutsu sorcerers, secret magicians of the world who are trained to combat cursed spirits like Rika. I loved that this film follows one of the storylines from the manga because it gave the film a sense of familiarity and it was nice to see the events that played out on the pages up on the big screen. 

Yuta wishes to end his life in complete isolation so no one else can get hurt, but Satoru Gojo offers him a different path. Gojo has Yuta join Jujutsu High, where he studies with other sorcerers in training in order to control Rika in hopes of helping other people. Yuta learns jiu jitsu and combat arts alongside his new peers, Maki Zenin, a curse tools user, Toge Inumaki, a cursed speech user, and Panda, a talking panda bear. My favorite is Toge because his power allows him to speak nearly any ailment into existence onto his opponents. Thanks to connections made with friends and finding his place at Jujutsu High, Yuta begins to gain the confidence to feel alive. He even begins to become comfortable with his abilities. However, as the training progresses, Yuta learns that the dangers of the jujutsu world go far beyond that of evil spirits.

The plotline itself is a classic shonen tale of a protagonist who fights evil, which is part of the allure that makes this film so awesome. But plot aside, the main reason why I am a fan of the series was the animation style itself. The action sequences especially are beautifully animated in a way that brings each frame into epic proportions. The best way to describe it would be a combination of “Dragon Ball Z” and “My Hero Academia” mashed together to  make the perfect combination of realism and fantasy that propels this film to the next level. Even many of the cursed spirits, who are based off of various creatures in Japanese mythology, look like something you would only ever see in your nightmares. 

The only gripe I have for this film is the somewhat lack of real plot, but then again this is a shonen anime, so that is to be expected. Overall though, I really enjoyed what this film had to offer and I hope to see more of Yuta and the gang very soon. I would give this film nine curses out of 10 for its fantastic animation sequences and lovable characters.