Jujutsu Kaisen is a popular manga series and anime that follows high school student Yuji Itadori as he finds himself thrown into a world of curses and Jujutsu Sorcerers. Both the manga and anime are ongoing, with the manga currently having 20 volumes and the anime 24 episodes. Among the volumes is Volume 0, Jujutsu Kaisen 0: Jujutsu High, which serves as a prequel to the main Jujutsu Kaisen series. Jujutsu Kaisen 0: The Movie is a film adaptation of this volume released in U.S. theaters on March 18, 2022.

In Japan, the movie was released on December 24, 2021, and was a box-office hit. International fans waited almost three months to watch the film, all while hearing great reviews from fans in Japan. But the wait was worth it– in the U.S., tickets sold out, and the movie brought in $17.6 million during opening weekend. Currently, the movie is the tenth highest-grossing anime movie of all time, with an international profit of $156.28 million (comicbook.com).

Jujutsu Kaisen 0: The Movie deserves all of its success and praise. First of all, it has a compelling storyline that is almost exactly like the manga and ties into the Jujutsu Kaisen main storyline seen in the animated series. The movie’s protagonist, Yuta Okkotsu, is seemingly cursed by a dangerous spirit. However, this cursed spirit is unexpected: it’s Yuta’s childhood friend, Rita Orimoto, whom he promised to marry moments before she was killed by a car. Somehow, when she died, she turned into a cursed spirit and attached herself to Yuta to protect him (if protecting counts as brutally injuring those who bully him).  

The movie focuses on Yuta and the curse inflicted upon him, the other three first years from the Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical College, and everyone’s favorite sensei, Satoru Gojo. The antagonist is a villain fans should know from the main Jujutsu Kaisen series, Suguru Geto, whose goal is to steal Yuta’s powerful curse for himself using his cursed spirit manipulation. The movie’s storyline almost perfectly matches up with the manga, except for the addition and expansion of some scenes, characters from the anime who weren’t in Volume 0, and a better look into Geto, which sets up his character for season two of the anime.

The storyline is only a part of why Jujutsu Kaisen 0: The Movie is so good. You can’t forget about the animation, which is outstanding. There’s something extra special about seeing fight scenes from the manga animated, and it doesn’t hurt that the animators do a fantastic job. In emotional scenes, the characters’ feelings are prominent, and in funny scenes, the animation provides an added bonus. Not to mention, the Japanese voice actor for Yuta, Megumi Ogata, does a great job. Yuta is a timid character, only gaining confidence at the movie’s end, so the voice acting fits his character well. 

Jujutsu Kaisen 0: The Movie is successful for a reason. With the combination of a compelling storyline that does justice to the manga, stellar animation, and talented voice actors, Jujutsu Kaisen 0: The Movie is a must-watch for any Jujutsu Kaisen fan.