Kingdom
Theatrical release poster
Kanjiキングダム
Revised HepburnKingudamu
Directed byShinsuke Sato
Screenplay by
  • Tsutomu Kuroiwa
  • Shinsuke Sato
  • Yasuhisa Hara
Based onKingdom
by Yasuhisa Hara
Produced by
  • Kouji Hirano
  • Shirley Kao
  • Naoaki Kitajima
  • Shinzou Matsuhashi
  • Ryousuke Mori
Starring
CinematographyTooru Kawazu
Edited byTsuyoshi Imai
Music byYutaka Yamada
Production
companies
Distributed byToho
Release date
  • April 19, 2019 (2019-04-19)
Running time
134 minutes
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese
Box office
  • ¥5.73 billion (Japan)[1]
  • $50.57 million (worldwide)[2]

Kingdom (Japanese: キングダム, Hepburn: Kingudamu) is a 2019 Japanese film directed by Shinsuke Sato and produced by Sony Pictures Japan. It is an adaptation of the manga series of the same name, created by Yasuhisa Hara and published by Shueisha. The screenplay was written by Tsutomu Kuroiwa, Shinsuke Sato and Yasuhisa Hara. Kento Yamazaki, who starred in a 3-minute short of the same name released in 2016, reprises his role as the film's protagonist with a supporting cast that includes Ryo Yoshizawa, Kanna Hashimoto, Masami Nagasawa, Kanata Hongō and Takao Osawa. The film portrays the life of Li Xin, a general of Qin, from his childhood as an orphan through his military career during the Warring States period of ancient China.

Kingdom was released nationwide on April 19, 2019, and it was screened in North America by Funimation in Q3 2019. Two sequels have been released: Kingdom 2: Far and Away (2022) and Kingdom III: Flame of Destiny (2023).

Plot

Orphaned by war, Xin is sold as a slave to a small village, where he befriends Piao, another slave. Growing up, Xin and Piao train together, dreaming of escaping their low statuses and eventually becoming great generals. One day, Chang Wen Jun visits their village in search of soldiers to aid the king Ying Zheng, but he will only accept Piao. A few days later, a mortally wounded Piao appears at Xin's house, warning him that Ying Zheng's brother, Cheng Jiao, has started a power struggle and urging him to go to a meet-up point marked on a map he gives him. Xin is forced to flee as his village is set on fire and the villagers are murdered by Cheng Jiao's army.

At the meet-up point, Xin finds Ying Zheng, but they are ambushed by an assassin. Xin realizes that Piao was accepted into the army to serve as Ying Zheng's body double due bearing a resemblance to him. After the assassin is killed, the two escape through a mountain path with help from Heliao Diao, a Mountain Tribe child who had accompanied the bandits who had previously ambushed Xin. As the three reach the bamboo forest, they are attacked by another assassin. Despite blaming Ying Zheng for Piao's death, Xin defeats the assassin, but he is poisoned by one of his darts. The three take refuge at an ancient summer resort to help Xin recuperate, while Xin learns Piao had voluntarily sacrificed himself to serve Ying Zheng and about Ying Zheng's bitter rivalry with Cheng Jiao.

Ying Zheng's remaining army finally arrive at the summer resort, including Chang Wen Jun, who was previously assumed to have been killed by Wang Qi. The army is outnumbered by Cheng Jiao's army of 80,000 soldiers, while Ying Zheng admits that Lü Buwei, the only person who can outmatch him, is also after the throne. Ying Zheng's army resorts to seeking help from the Mountain Tribe, a former ally of the Qin royal family that had been betrayed centuries ago. On the way, they are captured by the Mountain Tribe and brought forth to the chieftain, Yang Duan He. Yang Duan He orders Xin to be beheaded to test Ying Zheng's loyalty, but Xin's dedication to Ying Zheng's goal and mannerisms impress her, after which she announces that the Mountain Tribe will be affiliated with the Qin royalty again.

Ying Zheng's army arrives at the royal palace disguised as part of the Mountain Tribe, under the pretense of helping Cheng Jiao fight against Lü Buwei. Jie Shi, Cheng Jiao's advisor, allows only 50 people inside, and 10 of them to meet with Cheng Jiao. Inside, Ying Zheng initiates an attack, while Xin, Diao, and Bi use the underground passageway to reach the throne room and assassinate Cheng Jiao. Xin's group is intercepted by Zuo Ci, Ying Zheng's former general, who sends Lang Kai the Executioner after them. Xin kills Lang Kai with the help of the Mountain Tribe, and when they reach Cheng Jiao's room, Zuo Ci defeats Xin's group. Xin's memory of Piao and belief in his own dreams pushes him to continue and he kills Zuo Ci. Cheng Jiao's council flees, but Diao gouges out Jie Shi's eye with a dart and is stabbed by him before he dies. While Diao is safe thanks to wearing armor, Cheng Jiao uses their distraction to escape.

In the courtyard, Cheng Jiao confronts Ying Zheng, but is quickly defeated. Ying Zheng spares him, but he beats him down to punish him for the suffering he caused. In the midst of this, Wang Qi and his army appear in the courtyard, where he asks Ying Zheng what he will do as king, under the condition that he will behead him if he does not provide a satisfactory answer. Ying Zheng vows that he plans to unite China under the Warring States period, even using force as a means to ensure that there would be peace in the future. Satisfied with his answer, Wang Qi allies with Ying Zheng and orders Cheng Jiao's remaining army to retreat. With the battle won, Xin revels in the glory of making both his and Piao's dreams come true.

Cast

Production

Production took place in Japan, and the filming occurred in China and Japan during April 2018.[3][4]

On April 18, 2018, Hara tweeted a movie-ized cover illustration promoting the manga's move to the big screen.[5] A trailer was released by Sony Pictures on January 16, 2019.[4] The film was released nationwide on April 19, 2019.[4]

An English-subtitled trailer was screened at SXSW 2019 in March, where lead actor Kento Yamazaki had paid a courtesy call to the vice president of Sony Pictures International.[6] Funimation later announced that they were holding screenings of the film during the second quarter of 2019.[7]

Reception

Box office

The film earned 729 million Yen (US$6.17 million) in its opening three day weekend, selling over 500,000 tickets.[8] As of June 16, 2019, the film earned ¥5.47 billion ($50.4 million)[9]

Home media

An English-language subtitled trailer was released by Toho in March to promote a North American release. Funimation Films announced that it acquired the license for an American and Canadian release in the summer.[10] The film is expected to be released in North America on August 16.[11]

Critical reception

On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 94% based on reviews from 16 critics.[12]

Awards and nominations

Award Category Nominee Result Ref.
44th Hochi Film Award Best Director Shinsuke Sato Won [13]
10th Location Japan Awards Best Director Won [14]
62nd Blue Ribbon Awards Supporting Actor Award Ryo Yoshizawa Won [15]
VFX-Japan Awards 2020 Excellence Award Kingdom Won [16]
Best Award Nominated
43rd Japan Academy Film Prize Best Film Nominated [17]
Best Director Shinsuke Sato Nominated
Best Cinematography Tarō Kawazu Won
Best Supporting Actor Ryo Yoshizawa Won
Best Supporting Actress Masami Nagasawa Won
Best Lighting Direction Kingdom Won
Best Art Direction Iwao Saitō Won

The first film opened in Japan on April 2019, and eventually earned a cumulative total of ¥5.73B or roughly $53.2M USD. [18]

Sequels

On May 28, 2020, a sequel film was announced to be in production. Shinsuke Sato is returning as director; Kento Yamazaki, Ryō Yoshizawa, and Kanna Hashimoto are returning cast members.[19] Titled Kingdom 2: Far and Away, it was released in Japan on July 15, 2022, and generated 5.16 billion yen in box office revenue within Japan.[20][21] [22]

A third film, with the director, Shinsuke Sato, and much of the cast returning, titled Kingdom: The Flame of Destiny (キングダム 運命の炎, Kingudamu: Unmei no Hōno), was released on July 28, 2023.[23] 10January2024 will be on Blue-Ray with over 3 hours of exclusive bonus footage. [24] Highest earned at opening; the film has earned a cumulative total of ¥5,115,450,360 or roughly $34.88M USD as of 10Sep2023 [25]

Fourth film: Kingdom IV: Return of the Great General They prepare for the Battle of the Bayou against the Zhao. Around 476-221 BCE our beloved war orphan continues on his journey on becoming one of the Qin's Dynasty's Greatest Generals on Earth/Under Heaven & helping his king unite all of China for the first time! (Produced by Toho https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toho) & projected to be in theaters in Japan 12 July 2024. It's touted as THE BATTLE OF THE GENERALS! Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OToBkoJWzP8 [26] [27][28]

References

  1. ↑ 山崎賢人主演『キングダム』3弾、7月28日公開！馬陽の戦い＆紫夏編を描く. Cinema Today (in Japanese). January 1, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
  2. ↑ "Kingudamu (2019)". The Numbers. Nash Information Services. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
  3. ↑ Schilling, Mark (October 9, 2018). "Sony Japan Unveils China-Set Manga Adaptation 'Kingdom!'". Variety. Archived from the original on March 28, 2019. Retrieved March 15, 2019.
  4. 1 2 3 Sony Pictures Japan (January 16, 2019). "KINGDOM-International Trailer-Sony Pictures Entertainment (Japan)". YouTube. Archived from the original on April 17, 2019. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
  5. ↑ "Hara Yasuhisa Official Twitter". Archived from the original on March 16, 2022. Retrieved October 13, 2018.
  6. ↑ Pineda, Rafael Antonio (March 13, 2019). "Live-Action Kingdom Film's Subtitled Promo Teases N. American Release". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on August 1, 2019. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
  7. ↑ Sherman, Jennifer (May 7, 2019). "Funimation Screens Live-Action Kingdom Film in N. America in Summer". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on September 9, 2019. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
  8. ↑ Pineda, Rafael Antonio (April 24, 2019). "Kingdom, Shin-chan, Sound! Euphonium Debut in Top 5 at Japanese Box Office". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on May 20, 2019. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
  9. ↑ "Kingdom (2019)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Archived from the original on April 4, 2022. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
  10. ↑ Sherman, Jennifer (May 7, 2019). "Funimation Screens Live-Action Kingdom Film in N. America in Summer". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on May 9, 2019. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
  11. ↑ Sherman, Jennifer (July 8, 2019). "Live-Action Kingdom Film's English-Subtitled Trailer Streamed". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on July 8, 2019. Retrieved July 8, 2019.
  12. ↑ "Kingdom (2019)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Archived from the original on August 12, 2019. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
  13. ↑ "【日本アカデミー賞全リスト】作品賞は「新聞記者」に、「キングダム」が最多受賞". 映画ナタリー (in Japanese). Archived from the original on February 8, 2022. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  14. ↑ "「第10回ロケーションジャパン大賞」授賞式にロケツーリズムのトップを走る監督・地域が集合！". February 21, 2020. Archived from the original on November 22, 2021. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  15. ↑ "ブルーリボン賞「翔んで埼玉」が作品賞に、中井貴一や長澤まさみも受賞". 映画ナタリー (in Japanese). Archived from the original on December 1, 2021. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  16. ↑ "過去のアワード | 一般社団法人 VFX-JAPAN". 一般社団法人VFX-JAPAN (in Japanese). May 25, 2016. Archived from the original on February 5, 2022. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  17. ↑ Schilling, Mark (March 6, 2020). "'Journalist' Named Best Picture at Guest-Free Japan Academy Awards, Held Amid Coronavirus Fears". Variety. Archived from the original on January 31, 2022. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
  18. ↑ "Kingdom Gets 4th Live-Action Film". 8 January 2024.
  19. ↑ Pineda, Rafael Antonio (May 28, 2020). "Live-Action Kingdom Film Gets Sequel". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on May 30, 2020. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
  20. ↑ Pineda, Rafael Antonio (July 20, 2022). "Live-Action Kingdom Film's Sequel Opens at #1". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on December 26, 2022. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  21. ↑ 山崎賢人主演『キングダム』第3弾、2023年夏公開決定. Oricon News (in Japanese). December 13, 2022. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  22. ↑ "Kingdom Gets 4th Live-Action Film". 8 January 2024.
  23. ↑ Loo, Egan (December 31, 2022). "3rd Live-Action Kingdom Film's Teaser Unveils Title, Story, July 28 Debut". Anime News Network. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  24. ↑ "'Kingdom IV: Return of the General' Live-Action Film Readies for War with New Teaser Trailer, Japanese Release Date Confirmation". 30 December 2023.
  25. ↑ "Kingdom Gets 4th Live-Action Film". 8 January 2024.
  26. ↑ "【ついに天下の大将軍が動きだす―】映画『キングダム 大将軍の帰還』スーパーティザーPv｜2024年7月12日(金)公開". YouTube.
  27. ↑ "'Kingdom IV: Return of the General' Live-Action Film Readies for War with New Teaser Trailer, Japanese Release Date Confirmation". 30 December 2023.
  28. ↑ "Kingdom Gets 4th Live-Action Film". 8 January 2024.
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