The Deer King

(2021)

★ 6.8 IMDb · 112 votes

Genres: Animation, Drama, Adventure, Fantasy

Year: 2021

Runtime: 113 мин

Country: Japan

Director: Масаюки Миядзи, 安藤雅司

Cast: 堤真一, 竹内涼真, 杏, Hisui Kimura, Ацуши Абэ, Йошито Ясухара, Тору Сакураи, Синсю Фудзи, Томомити Нисимура, Тэссё Гэнда

Plot

Following a brutal war, former soldier Van toils in a mine controlled by the ruling empire. One day, his solitary existence is upended when a pack of wild dogs carrying a deadly and incurable disease attack, leaving only Van and a young girl named Yuna as survivors. Finally free, the pair seek out a simple existence in the countryside but are pursued by nefarious forces. Intent on protecting Yuna at all costs, Van must uncover the true cause of the plague ravaging the kingdom—and its possible cure.

In the years following a vicious war, the Empire of Zol now controls the land and citizens of rival Aquafa-except for Aquafa's Fire Horse Territory, where wild dogs that once carried the deadly Black Wolf Fever continue to roam free. When a pack of dogs race through a Zol-controlled mine, Van, an enslaved former soldier, and a young girl named Yuna are both bitten, but manage to escape as the sole survivors of the attack. Finally free, Van and Yuna seek out a simple, peaceful existence in the countryside. But as the deadly disease once again runs rampant, they find themselves at the crossroads of a struggle much larger than any one nation.