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Returner

Original title: Ritânâ
  • 2002
  • R
  • 1h 56m
IMDb RATING
6.4/10
12K
YOUR RATING
Takeshi Kaneshiro and Anne Suzuki in Returner (2002)
Alien InvasionActionAdventureSci-Fi

A young woman from the future forces a local gunman to help her stop an impending alien invasion which will wipe out the human race.A young woman from the future forces a local gunman to help her stop an impending alien invasion which will wipe out the human race.A young woman from the future forces a local gunman to help her stop an impending alien invasion which will wipe out the human race.

  • Director
    • Takashi Yamazaki
  • Writers
    • Takashi Yamazaki
    • Kenya Hirata
  • Stars
    • Takeshi Kaneshiro
    • Anne Suzuki
    • Gorô Kishitani
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.4/10
    12K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Takashi Yamazaki
    • Writers
      • Takashi Yamazaki
      • Kenya Hirata
    • Stars
      • Takeshi Kaneshiro
      • Anne Suzuki
      • Gorô Kishitani
    • 109User reviews
    • 54Critic reviews
    • 36Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 2 wins & 4 nominations total

    Videos1

    Returner
    Trailer 2:08
    Returner

    Photos23

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    Top cast35

    Edit
    Takeshi Kaneshiro
    Takeshi Kaneshiro
    • Miyamoto
    Anne Suzuki
    Anne Suzuki
    • Milly
    Gorô Kishitani
    Gorô Kishitani
    • Mizoguchi
    Kirin Kiki
    Kirin Kiki
    • Xie
    Yukiko Okamoto
    • Dr. Yagi
    Mitsu Murata
    • Mizoguchi's Henchman
    Kisuke Iida
    Kisuke Iida
    • Mizoguchi's Henchman
    Kazuya Shimizu
    • Mizoguchi's Henchman
    Chiharu Kawai
    • Liu's Interpreter
    Dean Harrington
    • Dr. Brown
    Xiaoqun Zhao
    • Slave Merchant
    Masaya Takahashi
    • Liu Laoban
    Kenji Motomiya
    • Mizoguchi's Henchman
    Hôshi Ishida
    • Shifan
    • (as Hoshi Ishida)
    Misako Nagashima
    Shûgo Oshinari
    • Shooter
    Steve Ryan
    • Future Soldier
    Bernard Beardsley
    • Future Soldier
    • Director
      • Takashi Yamazaki
    • Writers
      • Takashi Yamazaki
      • Kenya Hirata
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews109

    6.411.7K
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    10

    Featured reviews

    7AwesomeWolf

    0% originality, 100% awesomeness

    Version: Columbia Tristar's DVD release. Japanese / English subtitles.

    Time travel is cool. Explosions are cool, as are gun fights. Any movie that attempts to incorporate 'The Terminator', 'Independence Day', 'Leon', and nearly every John Woo movie made between 'A Better Tomorrow' and 'Face/Off' is cool. 'Returner' features all these elements, and therefore, is awesomely cool. Or at least a fun action movie.

    In 2084, the Earth has been nearly overrun by aliens. The last survivors of the human race are fighting a losing battle in the mountains of Tibet. Naturally, these survivors have mad scientists with them who develop all these cool gadgets, as well a time-machine. Milly (Anne Suzuki) volunteers to go back to 2002 to stop the war from beginning. Upon arrival, she teams up with Miyamoto (Takeshi Kaneshiro). Miyamoto is a mercenary seeking vengeance against the Triad gangster, Mizoguchi (Goro Kishitani), who in turn, may actually have caused the war in the first place. Convenient.

    A Japanese friend of mine originally recommended 'Returner' to me, and another friend of ours, knowing full well we are easily impressed by explosions. If, like me, you are easily impressed by explosions and have not yet seen 'Returner', you should stop reading and go watch it right now.

    'Returner' is little more than a stylish action movie. Most of the plot seems to be taken from random elements of 'Terminator', ID4, and 'Leon', and styled in a similar way to ID4, 'Matrix', and a fair number of John Woo movies. I must admit that any comparison to the 'Matrix' is a tad unfair, as the 'Matrix' was also made up of elements from nearly every movie John Woo ever made. As a sci-fi / action movie, 'Returner' is entertaining, if a little cheesy. The action scenes are generally awesome and exciting.

    'Returner' is a fun action movie. It should at least satisfy hardcore action fans, and should be entertaining enough for anyone looking for a fun movie - 7/10
    9el_totob

    Japanese cinema at its best!

    I was told by everyone that this movie was awful. Even the critics said it was bad. Then I wanted to check it out by myself! MAN, has everyone lost their mind? This is probably one of the best sci-fi flick I've ever seen! Never saw something that refreshing since Fifth Element.

    Of course a lot of people are going to say it is a Matrix rip-off, that the script looks like Terminator or Independence Day, blah blah... Then I'm sure these people didn't watch the same movie I did! Cuz it has nothing to do with these films, AT ALL! It may be futuristic, but it has its own universe, its own way to introduce it to you. Plus, you stay close to the characters, to the very end. Even though the plot is big and takes place on a higher level, you always stay close to the characters life, emotions, motivations and goals. That's what I liked about this movie. It may be sci-fi, but the characters are not so far from any drama movies.

    I heard someone saying that the Japanese love to copy American movies. BLASPHEMY! If you look carefully, it's the total opposite. Weren't the Americans the ones who did a remake of Godzilla? Weren't the Americans the ones who did free adaptations of Ringu and Ju-On? Aren't the Americans planning to do a live-action movie of The Transformers? Besides, Matrix IS a Japanese animation *rip-off*. It deliberately got his inspiration from anime such as Ghost in the Shell or X. And if you want good example of innovative Japanese movies, I recommend to you Akira Kurosawa's, even though it has nothing to do with sci-fi.

    Anyways, Returner is a must see to all sci-fi fans and to all Japanese movies and animation lovers. I can guarantee you a good time if you watch it *open-minded* and if you put aside the *rip-off* crap we've been so fed about.

    9 out of 10
    7TheWillVega

    The Returner is one of the best Sci-Fi flicks i've ever seen

    The day was set to end, I had two videos in my hands I had just rented an hour before, one of them was "Lost in Translation" and the other one was "The Returner".

    To make a long story short, my attitude turned pretty sour after viewing the more anticipated "Lost in Translation" and turned on "The Returner" thinking it would be pretty cheesy....turns out, I was completely wrong.

    The Returner, even though it obviously borrows a lot of ideas from other films, is incredibly entertaining. The main characters Miyamoto and Milly were incredibly engaging, the bad guy (with his "Vash the Stampede" look and gun) was pretty cool, the storyline (filled with some comedy, drama, action, and a science fiction twist of course) was not that bad (some parts were a lot more enjoyable than others), the execution of the directing was what caught my attention, and the overall impression I got from it was completely passable and whole-fully entertaining.

    Even the ending and the soundtrack was superb. It made me drop my jaw in awe during the credits, it really had that much of an impact with me throughout the entire thing. I long for the special double disk edition (if it exists that is, not entirely sure yet).

    For those who love action/SCI-FI flicks, this is a definite must. And this is also recommended for those who love Japanese Cinematography in general.
    9InzyWimzy

    Combo of Red Bull and speed

    I know that I will definitely have to see this film again. Japanese movies are getting that sleek futuristic look and Returner is chock full of it. Although I have to admit, there seem to be a lot of "homages" ranging from Matrix, Men in Black to Fifth Element, X-Files and so on. Still, it's an action packed with cool style to boot.

    The main hero and butt whooping babe work well together. From martial arts, lasers, guns, explosions, action scenes are so rapid that you're left blinking in awe. I definitely think towards the final 30 minutes, it does seem to go on a tangent and a friend and I were trying to piece together what we could and keep up. The CG is used well in enhancing the style of the film, especially the futuristic technology stuff.

    If possible, catch this in the theater or on a good home system and you won't be disappointed.
    6paul_m_haakonsen

    When the future is threatened to become history...

    This Japanese Sci-Fi thriller is actually quite good, and it starts out in a fairly good pace and keeps rolling forward at that pace. The movie is driven by an equal amount of story, action and character development. There are some similarities to the "Terminator" movie though.

    "Returner" (aka "Ritânâ") is about Milly (played by Anne Suzuki) who is living in a war-torn future, the year is 2084 and aliens are waging war on mankind, and mankind is losing. In a desperate attempt, Milly flings herself through a vortex, traveling back in to to the days prior to the incident that sparked the war. Here she gets help from a reclusive gunman named Miyamoto (played by Takeshi Kaneshiro).

    Story-wise then "Returner" is entertaining and fast paced. The dialogue is good and the characters are alive and colorful.

    The effects were good and passes as believable, although I was puzzled at how the driver and gunman disappeared from inside an exploding car as it came crashing down on the road.

    Fun and action-filled entertainment, "Returner" is well worth watching, regardless if you like Japanese movies or not.

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    Related interests

    Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith in Men in Black (1997)
    Alien Invasion
    Bruce Willis in Die Hard (1988)
    Action
    Still frame
    Adventure
    James Earl Jones and David Prowse in Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
    Sci-Fi

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The name of the aliens in this film, the "Daggra", is the Tibetan word for "Enemy".
    • Goofs
      During the highway chase when the car is blown into the air and falls back down, the cable that was used by the crane to lift the car up into the air so they could drop it again is visible as the vehicle crashes to the ground.
    • Quotes

      Xie: Humans are good at lying. Especially guilty ones.

    • Connections
      Featured in Troldspejlet: Episode #30.9 (2004)
    • Soundtracks
      Dig In
      Performed by Lenny Kravitz

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    FAQ18

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • August 31, 2002 (Japan)
    • Country of origin
      • Japan
    • Official site
      • Official site (United States)
    • Languages
      • Japanese
      • English
      • Mandarin
    • Also known as
      • Người Hùng Trở Về
    • Filming locations
      • Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan
    • Production companies
      • Amuse
      • Fuji Television Network (Fuji TV)
      • Imagica Corp.
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $73,060
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $29,214
      • Oct 19, 2003
    • Gross worldwide
      • $9,978,256
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 56m(116 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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