Black Butler

In 2020 the world is divided between west and east. The heir of a noble family has been killed and his sister has taken his place; Shiori now lives as a man under the name Kiyoharu and runs the family's work. Her aim is to find the people who killed her family. She has a butler. Sebastian is perfect; he knows every task, wins every fight and never tires. Because he is not human. There is a contract between them: Sebastian will serve until the revenge is done and then take his payment. A new series of killings begins and mummified bodies are found. Kentaro Otani directs with Keiichi Sato. Hiro Mizushima plays Sebastian and Ayame Goriki plays Shiori; Mizuki Yamamoto is in the cast. It is a Japanese production. The source is Yana Toboso's manga series. The adaptation changes the story; the manga is set in nineteenth century England, and the film moves it to the near future and makes the lead a woman. The matter it treats is the price; what the contract costs is known from the start and the narrative does not hide it. The visual design is extravagant; the costumes and settings keep to the manga's look. The action is heavy with wires and effects; realism is not the aim. The narrative gives no room to the secondary characters and the context stays missing for anyone not following the series. Its limit is the adaptation; the changes displeased followers of the series and the narrative is closed to new viewers too. Who it is for: viewers who like manga adaptations and gothic action. Who it is not for: it is confusing, overblown, and the ending closes on the promise of more.