Granted, I have never seen, nor even heard about, the Manga that this 2022 Japanese fantasy movie "XxxHolic" is based upon. So as I sat down to watch this 2022 live action movie, I had no idea what I was in for. I was simply lured in by the movie's cover, and the fact that it was an Asian movie that I hadn't already seen.
Writer Erika Yoshida didn't manage to put together a storyline that appealed to me. The narrative was simply too mundane, slow paced and uneventful. And truth be told, I ended up giving up on the ordeal 32 minutes into the movie. Yeah, I just found no enjoyment in the storyline, nor in the characters.
I will say, however, that the movie was visually quite nice, both in terms of CGI effects and also the sets, wardrobes and props department. They had really put a lot of effort into the sets. But without an interesting or entertaining storyline, then visuals could only do so much.
The acting performances in "XxxHolic" were fair enough. I wasn't familiar with the cast ensemble, but given the fact that the character gallery was pretty terrible, then there wasn't much to be enjoyed here either.
I can't claim to have an interest in watching the rest of director Mika Ninagawa's 2022 movie "XxxHolic", nor do I want to track down the Manga to learn more.
My rating of "XxxHolic" lands on a three out of ten stars. "XxxHolic" just goes to prove that you can't judge a movie by its cover.
