Netflix completes Tomoaki Koshida and Kenji Nakamura’s anime Japanese film trilogy with Mononoke the Movie: Chapter III – The Curse of the Serpent, now streaming on the platform.
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Netflix → complete → platform
The supernatural psychological horror title takes viewers back to the Ōoku, where the mysterious Medicine Seller (Crispin Freeman) is needed one last time.
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Seller → take → Ōoku
The Imperial Palace‘s joyous celebration is marred by the birth of a vengeful spirit, pushing the Medicine Seller and all of the Ōoku dwellers to the brink as they fight for survival, understanding, and fresh starts.
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they → mar → survival
after the events of Mononoke the Movie: Chapter II – The Ashes of Rage, the Medicine Seller (Crispin Freeman) returns to the Ōoku just in time for the long-awaited birth of a new male successor to the royal line.
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Seller → return → line
Even former skeptics like Ōoku guard Sakashita (Blythe Melin) now welcome the mystical man back with warmth and gratitude after his work at the Inner Chambers slaying the unnatural specters known as mononoke.
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skeptics → welcome → mononoke
Unfortunately, excitement over His Majesty’s (Kevin Andrew Rivera) first son soon gives way to panic as a ferocious serpentine spirit unleashes at the Imperial Palace, ruthlessly squeezing the life out of victims with a raging river of emotion.
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spirit → give → emotion
At the same time, His Majesty’s official consort Yukiko (Shaciah Rose) struggles after supposedly giving birth to the new heir.
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consort → struggle → heir
Against the wishes of her closest advisor, Tokiwai (Anne Yatco), Yukiko refuses to accept that this baby is hers or that she could be replaced in His Highness’s life or heart.
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she → refuse → life
When similar feelings of devotion and denial reveal themselves through the mononoke, the Medicine Seller must look into the Inner Chamber’s Water Goddess and her actual identity 150 years past as Ōoku founder Lady Ama (Rebecca Wang).
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Seller → reveal → Ama
Only then can he determine the mononoke‘s Form, Truth, and Reason, before fighting tooth and nail to exorcise his most formidable foe yet.
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he → determine → foe
What Movies Will It Remind You Of?
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It → remind → You
You may be reminded of other incredibly animated movies with surreal or supernatural aspects like Children of the Sea, Spirited Away, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle, and Paprika.
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You → remind → Sea
Despite their many differences, both the enigmatic main lead, the Medicine Seller (Crispin Freeman), and supporting figure, official consort Yukiko (Shaciah Rose), leave a strong impression as stirring, memorable characters elevated by their voice actors’ committed performances.
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lead → leave → performances
When it comes to the actual storyline, Mononoke the Movie: Chapter III – The Curse of the Serpent can get confusing, especially if you can’t recall everything from the previous two films.
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you → come → films
Even then, this third installment’s breakneck pace makes it difficult to gather your bearings as the movie hurtles you from one frenetic scene to the next.
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movie → make → next
Luckily, it’s not hard to enjoy the ride anyway when you have an anime title as optically arresting as this one.
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you → ’ → one
Somehow this last film manages to raise the trilogy’s already-high bar visually with exceedingly ambitious action scenes and supernatural sequences that kept me riveted, especially in the final act.
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that → manage → act
The film has the difficult task of wrapping up three movies’ worth of story, but it somehow still manages to feel like a satisfying conclusion largely thanks to the animation and art, but also due to how it culminates emotionally.
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it → have → animation
Heavy moments and evocative images ensure that you resonate with characters and feel the story in your gut rather than your brain, because beyond the otherworldly circumstances and wild visuals, at its core this is a tale about humanity and healing in the wake of regrets, traumas, and personal ghosts.
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this → ensure → regrets
Our Call: Look past the fast pacing and intense action to see that Mononoke the Movie: Chapter III – The Curse of the Serpent is ultimately a satisfying finale to the Mononoke film trilogy, complete with both style and substance.
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Mononoke → look → style
If you enjoyed the previous movies or just appreciate stunning feats of animation bolstered by stirring central themes, be sure to go ahead and STREAM IT!
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you → enjoy → IT
Maddy Casale is a Chicago-based writer and comedian who covers everything from animated series to Hallmark movies.
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who → base → movies
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