Baban Baban Ban Vampire – review

Director: Shinji Hamasaki

Release date: 2025

Contains spoiler

This is a live action version of a manga that has also been an anime series and is part of the Yaoi manga type (sometimes referred to as Boys Love, or BL). The primary character in this is Ranmaru Mori (Ryô Yoshizawa) – a historical figure who was a retainer to daimyo Nobunaga Oda in the 16th century. Ranmaru is famous for his loyalty and died with the daimyo. In Edo era literature it was common to connect them sexually and the inference in the flashback scenes, within this, is that there was a romantic bond between them.

in the alley

It starts, however, in an alley. A radio speaks about the heat wave as a figure pulls himself along, his breath laboured, dragging a foot. As we get a closer look at him we see that his ear has a point to it. He collapses and then manages to pull himself to a sitting position. A little boy is playing ball and finds him, smiling he asks if he wants to go to his home and the man, who is Ranmaru, agrees, we see he has a red pupil. The year is 2015 and we see the seasons rapidly change by the Koinoba Hot springs, a bathhouse, until we get to 2025.

Ryô Yoshizawa as Ranmaru

Ranmaru is scrubbing the bathhouse tiles with a broom, and occasionally mimicking playing guitar. Rihito (Rihito Itagaki) comes in with a tomato juice for Ranmaru. Rihito was the little boy and is now 15, his family own the bathhouse and Ranmaru has lived with them and worked there since the incident 10-years before. The next day Rihito is to start High School and is nervous. Once the household is asleep the vampire flies off into the night.

cross doesn't work

Before he flies out, we discover that he finds Rihito’s innocence intoxicating but has not preyed on the boy as the optimum blood is that of an 18-year old virgin – I’ll come back to this. Several of the characters get a song introducing them and their backstory – Ranmaru's is the first song. In it we get part of the past with Nobunaga, we also get the idea that, since his Lord died, he sees humans as nothing but food – but he does seem to prey on ne’er do wells and we see a victim hold up a cross. It has no effect.

Rihito Itagaki as Rihito

At breakfast (with Rihito’s dad, mom and grandpa) there are jokes from his dad about young High School boys falling in love when they meet girls at school, a joke that does not go down well with Ranmaru, who has dragged himself down to breakfast to see Rihito off, especially as dad mentions using protection. Ranmaru, of course, wants the boy to stay virginal but comes off as prudish. He is open about being a vampire with the family, they think he has committed to a persona.

the main characters

On the way to school Rihito literally bumps into a girl called Aoi (Nanoka Hara) and falls in love with her immediately. Ranmaru flies to her home to scare her off but she is not interested in Rihito but is a massive vampire genre fan and immediately falls for Ranmaru. Later, we meet her brother Franken (Mandy Sekiguchi) a body builder who becomes (non-romantically) besotted with Ranmaru. We also discover the homeroom teacher, Umetaro Sakamoto (Shinnosuke Mitsushima), is a vampire hunter and was the one that nearly killed Ranmaru (but has now fallen in love with him). As well as this there is another vampire (Gordon Maeda) in the area who may well have a grudge to settle.

vampire attack

So there is a lot of romantic farce flying around and this is where we get to where this was a tad difficult. The relationship between Ranmaru and Rihito is not presented as romantic, though at a non-verbal level there is some display of chemistry, rather he is dedicated to Operation Virginity Protection. Certainly, for the older vampire (450 but turned at 25 – the historic figure died at between 16-17) the attraction is of blood, he wants to drink the lad but seems genuinely fond of him also. However, whether sexually or to devour, there is an uncomfortable layer of grooming implied. It should be noted that the actors are 31 (rather than 25) and 23 (rather than 15).

animated arm

Beyond this, however, the film is genuinely funny, the farce works well. Despite the feel that there is grooming, Ranmaru is an endearing character, is far from the wise person he thinks he is, thus creating the farce, and the film is as much about him overcoming a broken heart that his exposure to humans allows. There is a cracking moment with the other vampire who is scared of crosses as he read that he must be, in the forbidden book – Wikipedia. Another great bit is where Ranmaru has his arms chopped off and they come alive, scuttling to find him and fighting the other vampire before reattaching. There are some very anime moments – Franken working out and leaving a huge pile of bodies was not a moment grounded in reality. Despite an uneasy feeling as laid out, this is a well made and well-acted film – 7 out of 10.

The imdb page is here.

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