Kai Doh Maru (2001)

Kai Doh Maru is animated in a style designed to reflect the Heian period in which it’s set. That's fine, and at times it’s really beautiful, but it’s much too pale and an over-abundance of pastel colours gives it a washed-out quality. You may even wonder if something's wrong with the brightness on your TV. Structurally it’s got problems, too. It feels like a first draft given the green light based on aesthetics rather than on a story worth telling.

2 arms are better than one out of 5