From Nicky Larson Fan to Netflix Viewer: A Clear Opinion on the City Hunter Film

Everything you need to know about the Netflix film “Nicky Larson”

City Hunter is the origin a manga written and drawn by Tsukasa Hojo, and pre-published between 1985 and 1991 in the Weekly Shonen Jump magazine published by Shueisha. With 35 volumes, the manga was adapted into an anime in 1987. In France, the animated series which was broadcast on Club Dorothée quickly became famous for its dubbing and its censorship which distorted the Japanese saga, but paradoxically made this “Made” version cult. in France”.

Philippe Lacheau's film is also an adaptation of Nicky Larson – the French name of the anime – and not of City Hunter. Indeed, French cinema seized this legend of manga and Japanese animation in 2018 with more or less success. Hailed for its tone and its propensity to remain faithful to the source material despite an obvious change of setting (France), Nicky Larson directed by Philippe Lacheau pleases fans even if it does not transcend the “paper” and animated work.

In 2024, the Japanese regain control of their flagship franchise and turn to Netflix to produce a new film. Directed by Yûichi Satô (Kasane, Kisagari, We Love) and written by Tatsuro Mishima (Yu Yu Hakusho), City Hunter is an action comedy with the main objective of adapting the first volumes of the manga while modernizing the saga on certain points… including humor that often hits below the belt.

The synopsis of the film Nicky Larson: Nicky Larson (Ryo Saeba), a fearsome Tokyo cleaner known as City Hunter, is hired by a mysterious woman to find her missing younger sister. Helped by his sidekick Tony Marconi (Hideyuki Makimura), he launches into a race against time to save the teenager targeted by a criminal organization. Behind a simple case of a runaway lies a vast conspiracy with bloody consequences.

The cast of the Nicky Larson film: Ryohei Suzuki (HK: Hentai Kamen – Abnormal Crisis), Misato Morita (Missing, Ikenie no dilemma), Masanobu Andô (Battle Royale, Sukiyaki Western Django), Asuka Hanamura (Radiation House), Fumino Kimura (The Fable: The Killer Who Doesn 't Kill), Isao Hashizume (The Tale of Princess Kaguya, Space Battleship)

Nicky Larson (City Hunter) releases April 25, 2024 exclusively on Netflix.

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A (too) faithful adaptation

I am a child of the Club Dorothée / Midi les Zouzous generation. Born in 1986, I naturally grew up watching Dragon Ball, Knights of the Zodiac (Saint Seiya), Olive and Tom (Captain Tsubasa), Sailor Moon, Ranma 1/2 and of course Nicky Larson (City Hunter). As a toddler, I had no idea that I was watching a “wish” and watered-down version of an anime that was much more irreverent and “naughty” in essence. I didn't discover the real City Hunter until many years later, and it was a bit of a revolution for me.

I am therefore not a big fan of the film directed by Philippe Lacheau who is not unworthy, but who is much more interested in Nicky Larson than in City Hunter due to the nature of the project… A heresy for the fan that I am. I therefore welcomed this new 100% Japanese adaptation project, which is also supported by an invested creative team, with undisguised joy. The director and screenwriter are by no means beginners, and the same goes for the actors and actresses who deliver performances worthy of the formerly animated characters they now embody.

Ryohei Suzuki is given the most difficult score and his interpretation of Ryo Seaba is (almost) genius. He plays the balancing act between schoolboy humor and excessively stylized sequences with a certain talent, and brings to the screen this standard-bearer of Japanese pop-culture without the cinematic experience becoming “cringe”. The other actors and actresses, with the exception of the villain of the story who struggles to stand out, perfectly respond to the Tokyo cleaner.

Through their facial expressions and their comic tempo, they manage to find this unique tone which made anime (and manga) an unrivaled adventure in the television landscape of the late 80s. I have to admit that I was afraid of censorship, especially for anything related to Ryo Saeba's perverse dimension, and I was pleasantly surprised by the film. The City Hunter of 2024 remains despite everything this pervert with a big heart capable of the worst pranks at the mere sight of a cleavage or a thigh. The scenes of the “banana dance” and the Cosplay show involving a “horse” are worth a watch. They made me die of laughter.

If the humor is perfectly balanced, the action struggles to hit its target (unlike Ryo Saeba). Only the first sequence facing multiple henchmen stands out and offers its share of “Over the Top” moments worthy of the anime. For the rest, Nicky Larson never imposes himself with style. The cut editing and the lack of originality make these moments ordinary… A shame when “the justice called Nicky”. Finally, Yûichi Satô’s film suffers from the “case of the week” syndrome. Nicky Larson in many ways is much less a feature film than an episode stretched over 104 minutes without this ruining its viewing.

City Hunter will please fans of the anime and all those wanting to find Nicky Larson in 2024. Far from being perfect (nothing is in this world), this Netflix Original respects the original work and offers one vision “between tradition and modernity” in the image of Japan and its culture.