The white clad Genji, led by Yoshitsune and the red clad Heike led by Kiyomori, face off once again in a poor mountain town. Both sides searching for a legendary treasure that may be buried there. A lone gunman, burdened with emotional scars but blessed with incredible shooting skills, drifts into town. Expectations reach boiling point as everyone wonders which gang the gunman will finally decide to join. Dirty tricks, betrayal, desire and love collide as the situation erupts into a final, explosive showdown.
A contemporary of such noted film experimentalists as Tetsuo: The Iron Man [1989, maverick Japanese workhorse director Takashi Miike became one of the most talked about filmmakers in the international festival circuit. Despite the derailed manic energy of the aforementioned films, it was the stark relationship drama turned sadistic nightmare Audition that found the director receiving increasing international exposure. Audition succeeded in pulling the rug from under viewers as it turned the age-old image of the submissive Japanese female on its head with a shocking and nearly unbearable finale that had many horrified viewers shell-shocked. Born in Osaka, Japan, in 1960, Miike spent his childhood growing up in Osaka, where he eventually opted to study filmmaking at the Yokohama Academy of Visual Arts. Inspired more by Bruce Lee than Seijun Suzuki, Miike’s distinctive style came more as a result of not studying the traditional rules of filmmaking than a conscious attempt to break them… read more
Just to keep this clear, this is an unofficial prequel/remake of Django, the giallo version of A Fistful of Dollars, which was the Spaghetti Western Yojimbo, the Japanese ronin story inspired to some degree by the War of the Roses, as referenced by Shakespeare in the Henry VI play quoted in this movie. That, my friends, is what you call "pastiche." Also it's a lot of fun. --PolarisDiB
Big disappointment. I rented this with excitement, anticipating the visually stunning cinematography, surreal imagery, and compelling storyline. Unfortunately, the latter is exactly where SWD fails. Miike is too often willing to sacrifice story for shock value, and while there were elements of the film that warranted attention, in the end, I felt worn out. Tarantino is a crappy actor, by the way.
È inutile presentare Takashi Miike almeno quanto ormai è diventato superfluo difenderlo agli occhi dei detrattori. Questi si possono generalmente, corsivo non a caso, suddividere in due gruppi. Il… read review
Ce prélude à ce qu’était Django est une belle petite réussite, en dépit de l’un ou l’autre petit défaut. Que ce soit la version salle d’un peu plus une heure trente ou celle du cinéaste, allongée de… read review
First Yojimbo, then Fistful of Dollars, then Last Man Standing (regrettably), and now this. Frankly, I could watch a Care Bears adaptation of this storyline and be content. Sukiyaki Western Django… read review
from chopping a foot with a piano string to catching a punch with a mouth, from an earth shattering ending to sucking a woman’s nipple until milk burst out. takashi miike has almost done it all. well… read review
