This movie was another example of excellent story telling. It reveals the struggles of two opposing groups, each vying for the power of a "Savior", the main boy character. But he comes to understand that war is not one-sided, but often disguised by deception and fears. It was especially satisfying watching the child change from a fearful, fragile person, to a strong and powerful young man, though not necessarily in a way one would totally expect.The one drawback I experienced was that with so many characters put into the story, it was hard to tell them apart, and who signified what. Of course, there is a lot of back story that is not presented and, without some research would be difficult to understand. However, I cam e away from it with a renewed appreciation for this type of story telling.

The movie is bland entertainment, but I gave this a 4 because of the nice animation. I didn't care about any of the characters which includes the main character. All of the characters are so uninteresting. They just exist to move the story along, but not to give viewers emotions as well.The dragon of the movie's title is weak for most of the film. He (or she) is probably weak throughout the film. During the ending battle, it was a water dragon against a fire monster. It should be obvious who wins which makes this film even more boring. Normally films can get the ending correct at least, but that isn't the case with this one. Water vs fire means that the winner of obvious. Even though it is usually obvious that the main character wins, this is the worst example of it and it doesn't work.

Even if a anime misses the mark story wise, they usually can make up for it by painting up a beautiful world. This film however does not. The character designs are cheap and crude and while the backgrounds are usually pretty good, they're also at time very simplistic. For example, when the protagonist goes back in time to the city in the beginning and the city is attacked by demons, keep an eye on the background stick figures in one of the scenes where people are panicking. Look at the guy who falls into the river. Sheesh.This anime is for kids who are used to cheap, mass produced Saturday cartoons. If you value quality then look elsewhere.

Jun is an ordinary middle-school boy, except for his unusual birthmark which takes the form of a dragon on his chest. Because of that birthmark, he is abruptly whisked back in time, to the medieval Heian era. That era is remembered for being a peaceful time, but in fact humans, led by sorcerer Gen'un and warrior Raiko, are battling demons called the Oni, and Jun has been summoned back to awaken and control the legendary dragon, Orochi, in the fight. But the humans and the Oni are not quite what they seem, and both sides are desperate to enlist Jun, and Orochi, to their cause in this long-running conflict. Jun, however, is uncertain where the truth lies amid all the contradictory information he receives from each side, and he thinks maybe the best thing to do is simply to stop the fighting....This anime film reminded me a good bit of YA fantasy novels, or perhaps novels for a slightly younger (say, 9-12) set, in that Jun is a typical Everyboy who must fight his insecurities and doubts to become the hero (indeed, Gen'un constantly calls him "Saviour") he is meant to be in a fantasy realm before he can return to his own time, having grown stronger and wiser in the process. Each frame of this film is hand-drawn, and some of the imagery is quite beautiful, while the supernatural battle scenes are quite epic in scope. Not a film to think about very hard after viewing, but an eye-pleasing spectacle to watch.