Tokyo Ghoul’s live-action adaption is out now on DVD, Blu-Ray, and digital release. Based on the seinen manga of the same name, Tokyo Ghoul focuses on Ken Kaneki, a once human young man who had to undergo a surgery to become a ghoul in order to save his life. As Ken struggles with his new life as a ghoul, he learns that they aren’t quite the monsters they’re prepped up to be.

Tokyo Ghoul is a 2017 live-action film based on the manga of the same name, it is distributed by Shochiku and licensed by Funimation.

Editor’s Note: A review copy of Tokyo Ghoul Live-Action on Blu-Ray was provided by Funimation Entertainment. This will be a condensed version of our original theatrical screener review which can be read here, 

Ken Kaneki played by Masataka Kubota.

With the extremely fast growth in popularity of the Tokyo Ghoul franchise comes a new live-action adaptation. While most anime live-action retellings are often frowned upon (the North American ones anyways), the Tokyo Ghoul film is rather faithful to the manga. I’d argue it’s even more faithful than the first season of the anime which was fairly close to Studio Pierrot’s credit, as much as they seem to love to troll Tokyo Ghoul fans. For a near two hour film Geek Sight and director Kentarō Hagiwara obviously tried to be as respectful to the source material as humanely possible and because of this Tokyo Ghoul succeeds where most live-action adaptations fail.

The CGI for the kagune effects in Tokyo Ghoul is absolutely beautiful.

THE GOOD: One of the first things that will likely blow viewers away is the effectively creepy, yet strangely awesome CGI for the kagunes of the Ghoul characters. Designs are near mirror images of the manga, which is often hard to emulate in live-action this alone is enough for Tokyo Ghoul to be praised, however it does more than just have pretty looking monsters. The film is incredibly close to the source material and I could barely find a missing panel if any within my viewing. Acting performances are some of the best I’ve ever come across with live-action adaptations.

Fan-favorite Touka played by Fumika Shimizu.

THE BAD: While the film does take good care of it’s source it does struggle to keep focus on the Ghouls and CCG. This is mostly down to time constraint.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Though not perfect, Tokyo Ghoul’s live action retelling is pretty damn close. The acting and CGI is just enough to keep you invested until the very end, and the faithfulness to the manga keeps the potential for more and even better adaptations down the road. Otaku Dome gives Tokyo Ghoul Live-Action an 88 out of 100.