Movie review #1: "Samurai Fiction"
As much as I love the cheap thrill of a low budget martial arts movie, there is a film nerd inside of me which prefers cinematic achievement over lowbrow excitement. But of course, the best films are the ones which appeal to both sides - fun combat which also has visual flair and a philosophical angle. On first viewing of the trailer, "Samurai Fiction," with its Tarantino-esque regurgitation of pulp styles, looked to be just the kind of movie I always am looking for. So I checked it out, watched it, and came back satisfied - but only halfway.
Quick version of the plot: it's pretty by-the-numbers samurai stuff. Kazamatsuri is a dude who gets hired by a samurai clan to guard a valuable sword, he steals it, and is chased by Inukai, a young and hot-tempered fighter who wants to prove himself. After the two clash once (with the theif being the clear victor), Inukai is befriended by Mizoguchi, an older ronin who urges him to give up the sword for a peaceful life. Kazamatsuri starts working for a local gambling house, Inukai falls in love with Mizoguchi's daughter, and so on.
It's near perfect for the first hour or so - the stylish black and white isn't exactly a new gimmick, but thanks to director Hiroyuki Nakano's unique angles and panning shots, you really do get the impression that you're watching something groundbreaking. The plot is rather uninteresting, but as in most samurai films, the fight scenes are what really keeps things moving. The sword techniques used, while hardly over-the-top, are flamboyant and fun to watch (for example, the way Mizoguchi skillfully dodges his enemy's sword without drawing his own). So fun, in fact, that you don't even realize that the actors are pretty mediocre, with Morio Kazama as Mizoguchi being the only exception. The actresses, however, are a different story altogether - while there isn't any of the standard skin-showing, Tamaki Ogawa (as the daughter) and especially Mari Natsuki (as the gambling cheif) just ooze with sexuality. By using nothing but their facial expressions, they make themselves fun to watch for all sorts of reasons which I will not go into on an all-ages blog.
It's such a shame, then, that second half of the movie is such a huge let-down. Mizoguchi helps Inukai recover, trying to talk him out of his impulsive ways. Inukai falls in love, Kazamatsuri just kind of hangs out, and the movie quickly runs out of steam. To top things off, the end of the film is extremely anticlimactic. It's not that there isn't a final swordfight, it's that there is one. If there wasn't, it would at least tie into the movie's theme of giving up violence - but the actual combat which takes place in the end is short and unexciting. After waiting through an hour of slower scenes, we would expect the end to be a little more cathartic. Even the visuals seem sloppier in the second half, with some shaky cameras and poorly chosen locations, and the lead actors taking an even campier approach.
Apparently, this is the first chapter in a supposed series of films by Nakano, so maybe the following films will do away with some of the flaws. It's such a shame that the end was so subpar - the first half had me convinced that I should buy the movie. Now I'm glad I only rented it.
Quick version of the plot: it's pretty by-the-numbers samurai stuff. Kazamatsuri is a dude who gets hired by a samurai clan to guard a valuable sword, he steals it, and is chased by Inukai, a young and hot-tempered fighter who wants to prove himself. After the two clash once (with the theif being the clear victor), Inukai is befriended by Mizoguchi, an older ronin who urges him to give up the sword for a peaceful life. Kazamatsuri starts working for a local gambling house, Inukai falls in love with Mizoguchi's daughter, and so on.
It's near perfect for the first hour or so - the stylish black and white isn't exactly a new gimmick, but thanks to director Hiroyuki Nakano's unique angles and panning shots, you really do get the impression that you're watching something groundbreaking. The plot is rather uninteresting, but as in most samurai films, the fight scenes are what really keeps things moving. The sword techniques used, while hardly over-the-top, are flamboyant and fun to watch (for example, the way Mizoguchi skillfully dodges his enemy's sword without drawing his own). So fun, in fact, that you don't even realize that the actors are pretty mediocre, with Morio Kazama as Mizoguchi being the only exception. The actresses, however, are a different story altogether - while there isn't any of the standard skin-showing, Tamaki Ogawa (as the daughter) and especially Mari Natsuki (as the gambling cheif) just ooze with sexuality. By using nothing but their facial expressions, they make themselves fun to watch for all sorts of reasons which I will not go into on an all-ages blog.
It's such a shame, then, that second half of the movie is such a huge let-down. Mizoguchi helps Inukai recover, trying to talk him out of his impulsive ways. Inukai falls in love, Kazamatsuri just kind of hangs out, and the movie quickly runs out of steam. To top things off, the end of the film is extremely anticlimactic. It's not that there isn't a final swordfight, it's that there is one. If there wasn't, it would at least tie into the movie's theme of giving up violence - but the actual combat which takes place in the end is short and unexciting. After waiting through an hour of slower scenes, we would expect the end to be a little more cathartic. Even the visuals seem sloppier in the second half, with some shaky cameras and poorly chosen locations, and the lead actors taking an even campier approach.
Apparently, this is the first chapter in a supposed series of films by Nakano, so maybe the following films will do away with some of the flaws. It's such a shame that the end was so subpar - the first half had me convinced that I should buy the movie. Now I'm glad I only rented it.
posted by BG | 1:36 PM
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