12 Essential Live Action Anime Adaptations

Much like video game adaptations, movie studios tend to have a very hard time adapting popular anime and manga series into live-action. But as we're seeing from "Alita: Battle Angel" and the upcoming "Cowboy Bebop" series, these adaptations aren't slowing down. Here's a list of the essential anime and manga adaptations so far - the ones that show how to do these projects properly.

'Shogun Assassin' (1980)

"Shogun Assassin" is basically the granddaddy of live-action anime adaptations. This hyper-violent samurai film is cobbled together from two of the six "Lone Wolf and Cub" movies and geared specifically toward Western audiences. We'd still recommend watching the original movies over the hybrid (especially with that fancy Criterion box set now available), but this is a great option if you want a more condensed take on a beloved manga saga.

'Guyver: Dark Hero' (1994)

While the original "The Guyver" is notable for casting Luke Skywalker himself in the lead role, its 1994 sequel is widely regarded as the superior adaptation. "Dark Hero" swapped out Mark Hamill for future Solid Snake David Hayter. It also featured a darker, more violent tone that did a better job of drawing from the sci-fi manga source material.

'Death Note' (2006)

Netflix's recent Americanized "Death Note" movie turned out to be a huge dud, but at least we still have the 2006 Japanese remake. This film offers a satisfying take on the premise of the original manga and anime, with a teen boy discovering a cursed notebook that allows him to kill anyone whose name he writes. It even spawned two sequels and a spinoff, for good measure.

'Mushi-Shi: The Movie' (2006)

"Mushi-Shi" is a fantasy/horror film that leans much more towards the former. It stars Joe Odagiri as a wandering traveler called upon to protect a village from monsters called Mushi. While criticized for its overly convoluted plot, the film also boasts a strong visual style and a compelling main character.

'Blood: The Last Vampire' (2009)

"Blood" is a case where something is lost in translation from anime to live-action. The film's "vampire-slaying school girl" shtick doesn't work quite so well when the fight scenes are edited to the point of incomprehensibility. Still, some of the source material's charm remains, and star Gianna Jun is a compelling lead, even if the fight scenes leave something to be desired.

'Rurouni Kenshin' (2012)

"Ruroni Kenshin" is currently the gold standard when it comes to adapting a popular anime/manga series into live-action. It's a great samurai period piece with fantastic sword battles, meaning it appeals to general martial arts lovers as well as it does hardcore fans. And it doesn't lose touch with the source material's heart, like so many of these projects tend to do.

'Black Butler' (2014)

"Black Butler" is one of those adaptations that won't win over many viewers who weren't already fans of the franchise. It's a weird movie that embraces its own weirdness. It also helps that this movie isn't an actual adaptation, but rather tells a new story set within the historical fantasy universe of the anime.

'Attack on Titan' (2015)

While we wait to see if WB can do right by this mega-popular manga/anime franchise, at least the Japanese movie duology showed it can be done. "Attack on Titan" and its sequel may lack epic Hollywood special effects, but they do a great job of bringing this post-apocalyptic world and its distinctive monsters to life.

'Orange' (2015)

Not all anime and manga adaptations need to be about monster hunters and samurai. One of the very best adaptations to date is a charming romantic comedy about a high school girl who receives letters from her 25-year-old self.

'Your Lie in April' (2016)

"Your Lie in April" is another remidner that romance-based anime tend to make for the best live-action adaptations. This beautifully crafted tale of high school love also benefits from an excellent musical score.

'Ghost in the Shell' (2017)

"Ghost in the Shell" is often viewed as a poster child for what could go wrong when Hollywood gets its hands on a venerable anime property. We won't deny that the film made the mistake of whitewashing some key roles. On the other hand, it's a gorgeously shot film with excellent action scenes and music, showing what's possible when these adaptations have a true Hollywood budget with which to work.

'Illang: The Wolf Brigade" (2018)

This is a particularly interesting adaptation. The 1999 anime movie explored anti-government riots in an alternate history version of 1950's Japan. This live-action remake instead transplants that story to a near-future Korean Peninsula, as North and South are finally being reunified after nearly a century of war. The end result is too long and convoluted for its own good, but still well worth a watch for anime fans.