Evil lords, honorable samurai, beautiful women, impossible tasks, death, that’s right the samurai epic is back! 13 ASSASSINS hits theaters in the United States today, and it’s not one to miss. Director Takashi Miike’s previous works have been impressive, including AUDITION, and ICHI THE KILLER, however this is his most mature and masterful film to date. Almost everything about this movie is pretty awesome. The art direction, set construction and cinematography are all top-notch, taking one right back to feudal Japan in a great way. Even the roads are well done. I also really enjoyed how Miike decided to limit the use of CGI in the film, giving it a more natural and gritty look… picture old-school syrup-style blood spraying everywhere and you’ll get it.
The sound editing in the film is also impressive. The music is minimal and the dialogue is mixed well with the chaos in the fight scenes, which are numerous. Speaking of dialogue, the film is in Japanese, and subtitled in English, which I particularly love. I don’t like dubbed films, it takes something away from them, and they sound terrible, so thank goodness. The actors speaking it will probably be little known in America, but the acting is superb, and I hope many will take notice. Everyone’s presence is necessary, and all of their roles are performed with skill, especially in the fight scenes. And, speaking of fight scenes, whoever did the choreography for all of them is good. Just as a teaser, there is one scene which pits the thirteen samurai against two-hundred, and nothing in the scene really gets confusing. But what about the plot? Continue reading →
