Bleach The Movie: 1 Memories of Nobody
Released By: Manga Entertainment

Rating: 12

Running Time: 93 Mins

Audio: English and Japanese Dolby Digital 5.1

Release Date: Out Now

Reviewed By: Sandra Scholes

This is the first movie in the series, and what considered as the start of three full-length episodes where substitute Soul Reaper, Ichigo Kurosaki has to help his friends in certain cases that come up.

Normally it involves Hollows, but in this case Ichigo comes in touch with a strange girl called Senna who looks like a Soul Reaper, but on seeing her, Ichigo realizes that there is an influx of Blanks. These are already passed over souls who have no memories and they are aimlessly wandering around causing trouble. They are on their trail, but have no idea why it happened and who the ringleader is. Ichigo only remembers that Kon has seen a dark figure hanging around the Blanks.  He doesn't have to wait long, though as Senna is captured and held by The Dark Ones, a faction who are out to cause trouble wherever they go.

They have to go to Urahara’s shop to find out what they can do to stop the problems they are having with the real world and the Soul Society. Kisuke opens their eyes when he tells them there is a barrier between these two worlds that is enlarging, called the Valley of Screams, and the Blanks they saw are lost between those two worlds, but trouble can happen when the Blanks combine to become a single being called a Shinenju.

Senna is seen running away again, and Ichigo tries to talk to her, but only succeeds in fending them off her. When he tries to help her out, the members of the Soul Society come to him ordering him to hand over Senna who they think is actually the evil entity Shinenju they have heard about. The Dark Ones finally come and announce themselves, wanting a fight which Ichigo fails in taking out the ringleader. He instead is badly wounded and taken for healing. In failing he and the Soul Society captains and lieutenants have lost her and Senna is taken by the Dark Ones for their cruel experiments, and in one where she will be the one who destroys both the real world and the Soul Society.

Memories of Nobody is a dark and extremely emotional movie, and it is easy to see that the writers and animators have worked hard on the first movie, hoping for a different kind of story where Ichigo has to rely on his friends a little more. Senna is a victim all the way through the anime, and one who has to prove herself even though she is seen as weak when she appears. She is a trier, and not like the other Soul Reapers. Ichigo, as is usual with him isn’t invincible; in fact he is the exact opposite. Although he has a tremendous amount of power, the can’t always defeat a foe the first time around.

Unlike in the TV series, the movie offers a higher production value, so with the addition of Blu-ray features, it gives a clarity to it that will impress the viewer. Memories of Nobody first aired back in 2006 in Japanese cinemas which saw Ichigo in the substitute shinigami arc of the series. 



Bonus Material: Inside Bleach The Movie, Japanese Production Interviews, US Theatrical Trailer, Original Japanese Trailers and Original Japanese Movie Booklet. (in translated version).


Verdict: Emotionally charged and slower paced than the other movies made after it, yet it is memorable for that reason.