Scarlet proves that you can’t keep a good Bard down, since following Riz Ahmed’s Hamlet, the Oscar-winning Hamnet, and the zero-awards-winning Hamnet sketch in SNL UK, here’s another film that’s based on Hamlet.
Given the mystical ways frequently applied to Japanese anime – including a dragon turning up for no reason, for this film, for both this world and the Otherworld, you find that life and death co-exist alongside each other. However, the latter is where you go after you die, and our titular heroine, voiced by Mana Ashida, finds that she’s dead. Bummer!
But back to the start of the story, in Denmark, at the end of the 16th Century. Scarlet’s (Mana Ashida) Her mother is an evil bitch who, when she was a young girl, tore up her intricate drawings – tantamount to destroying a hobby, while her husband, Claudius (Kôji Yakusho – Pulse), claims his brother, Amleth (Masachika Ichimura) – also her father, is a traitor and will be executed. Another bummer.
For reasons I didn’t understand, Claudius also turns out to be in the Otherworld – still bossing his staff around in this afterlife – along with two of Amleth’s executioners, but then time works differently, here, even to the point where Scarlet meets present-day paramedic Hijiri (Masaki Okada). Together, they must travel to the Infinite Land, where the dead can live, but along the way, it’s difficult to find someone to trust, and this long road trip feels like they’re walking through the set of Time Bandits in the Ancient Greece segment.
If they fail to get there, then after being stuck in the Otherworld, you risk dying for good, and drift away into nothingness.
Overall, Scarlet looks fantastic, but the plot is a well-worn tale of revenge, making this two hours a bit of a slog, which is a great shame, since when this film was expected to reach cinemas late last year, Odeon showed a trio of Mamoru Hosoda films with The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Summer Wars and Wolf Children.
There are no mid- or post-credit scenes.
Scarlet is in cinemas now, but isn’t yet available to pre-order on Blu-ray or DVD. However, once announced, it will appear on the New DVD Blu-ray 3D and 4K releases UK list.
However, you can buy many of the Anime novels here.
Detailed specs:
Cert: 
Running time: 114 minutes
Release date: March 13th 2026
Studio: Sony Pictures Entertainment
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Rating: 5/10
Director: Mamoru Hosoda
Producers: Yûichirô Saitô, Nozomu Takahashi, Toshimi Tanio
Screenplay: Mamoru Hosoda, Todd Haberkorn
Hamlet by: William Shakespeare
Music: Taisei Iwasaki
Cast:
Scarlet: Mana Ashida
Hijiri: Masaki Okada
Amleth: Masachika Ichimura
Claudius: Kôji Yakusho
Gertrude: Yuki Saitô
Cornelius: Yutaka Matsushige
Voltemand: Kôtarô Yoshida
Rosencrantz: Munetaka Aoki
Guildenstern: Shôta Sometani
Polonius: Kazuhiro Yamaji
Laertes: Tokio Emoto
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.