13 Assassins

"Thirteen. The time has come to lay down your lives for the greater cause. Are you ready?"

13 Assassins is all about the payoff. And the payoff comes in the form of 50 minutes of absolute carnage at the end of the movie. The story is about 13 warriors, some of the last truly capable samurai at a time when the era of those legendary soldiers was coming to an end, who band together to kill a despicable, deranged and utterly evil lord who is step-brother and future heir to the ruling shogun. Greatly outnumbered, the men devise a plan to force Lord Naritsugu and his guards to a village that they've prepared as what can only be called as a deathtrap.  

If you liked the "Crazy 88's" fight from Kill Bill Volume 1 or the massive battle at the end of Azumi, then the epic showdown at the end of 13 Assassins automatically makes this a must see. But what about the preceding half of the movie? Most of that time is spent introducing us to the 13 assassins, Sir Hanbei - the noble but loyal to a fault man who is in charge of Lord Naritsugu's safety, and making us hate (and I mean REALLY hate) the lord himself. This portion of the movie was necessary to setup finale, but it was understandably not as exciting or captivating as the lengthy battle it precedes. 

Rest assured though, the storytelling doesn't stop when the action begins. Some action scenes in movies can be so endless that they become monotonous (and boring, as a result), but 13 Assassins neatly avoids that trap by including character development until the very end. 

This is a brutal, visceral movie, from the sadism of Lord Naritsugu to the blood-soaked, frenetic finale. If that sounds like something you'd be interested in, I heartily recommend that you give it a shot.

In feudal Japan, the heir to the current Shogun, Lord Naritsugu, is a sadistic devil, raping and murdering at will – doesn't matter if it's peasants, samurai families or anywhere in-between – and because of his standing, nobody will stand up to him. Until samurai Shinzaemon (Koji Yakusho) gathers together a dozen intrepid samurai, and picks up one very odd peasant hunter to make 13 assassins, determined to stop Naritsugu at all costs. Doing so means buying a village and rigging it up as a death trap, and being completely prepared to die horribly, as long as the mission is accomplished. Will the 13 assassins manage to win against all odds? Will the evil Lord Naritsugu see his comeuppance finally? Well, you'll have to see the movie to find out....

At FantAsia 2011, we were treated to the Director's Cut of this film, the director being Takashi Miike, who can sometimes be uneven in his work, but here he does an extraordinary job. The last hour of the film is essentially an extended fight scene and even I, someone who doesn't feel a need for a lot of fight scenes in a film, didn't get tired of it or bored – it was just amazing to watch. The actors are all terrific, and the film takes the time for the audience to get to know the characters, to admire the brave samurai who are all fighting for various reasons but mainly for love of honour, and to roundly despise and hate the evil Naritsugu (played marvellously as a bored aristocrat by Goro Inagaki); the viewer is invested in these characters, and that makes this film truly remarkable. I don't know if Japanese mythology has a Trickster God similar to Coyote in some Native American traditions, but the indestructible peasant the samurai meet in the forest is very much a Coyote character, who adds immeasurably to the humour of the piece as well. Recommended.

This film was a dark-edged delight from beginning to end when I saw it at the 2010 edition of TIFF. The audience there loved it too, breaking out into spontaneous applause during several scenes.

Solid direction by Miike, great characters, beautifully shot and simply some of the best and most intense action sequences put on film - ever! It does have it's obvious influences, such as Kurosawa's "Seven Samurai", but damn, this one kicks ass mightily! You've never seen Shogun like this! And something else to point out: the sound on this film was thundering, shaking and stellar! THIS is the kind of film that reminds us why we go to a movie theatre to enjoy a film on a big screen, why we turn off our cell phones and immerse ourselves in the experience of cinema-going, as opposed to staying home on our couches.

I'll go see it again on the big screen when it hopefully returns to town - you can bet on that!

I'm a huge fan of Takashi Miike, so I was very excited to be able to attend a sneak peek of his latest film. Miike's one of those directors who seems to be trying to make at least one film in every style, and this latest is his foray into the classic "samurai avenging injustices" genre. Only, we all know by now that Miike's style is anything but "classic." He always manages to find a way to infuse his own unique, warped imprint into everything he touches. Especially since he insists on making the most bizarre cameos possible in all the films he directs. They are always really fun to watch for.

So, this film is great. It starts off just as slowly as any of these old period pieces set in feudal era Japan, but it quickly descends into pure mayhem and madness. Shinzaemon is a retired samurai, but he is prompted back into action when he learns that the Shogun's "adopted" (code for bastard) son, Lord Naritsugu, has been terrorizing peasants. He's been killing and mutilating men, women and children all throughout the land, and all with the most cold- hearted, disinterested cruelty. So Shinzaemon decides to assemble a band of other idle samurai to hunt this despot down and assassinate him. Those would be the thirteen assassins that give this film its title. And they really are a very mismatched band of warriors. And these men are caricatures—each outrageous in his own way.

The one thing I really love about Takashi Miike's style is that he's never afraid to just go for it. He's got no shame, and absolutely no restraint. I think this is because he has a deep-rooted sense of humor (albeit a very dark one). It's an ability to identify and appreciate the absurdity in life. Miike's films have a reputation for being pretty violent and bloody (and this one is certainly no exception). But they are also incredibly funny. The gore is certainly meant to shock, but I don't think it's just for the sake of a cheap thrill. I think it's meant to throw us of balance. His work is horrifying where we expect delicacy, and actually quite subtle where viewers typically expect to find vulgarity. Of course, we can always count on Miike for some truly silly stunts too. The result is audiences that are quite delighted and amused, even after witnessing all the horror and disfigurement and devastation. Those moments are upsetting and heartbreaking, for sure. But, Miike really understands how a film should flow, and balances these difficult scenes with the right dose of irreverence. He's a true master, and this film is a roaring success.

Taksshi Mike gives a new face to the 1963 classic '13 Assassins' and he has executed it at grandeur level portraying an event which took place in Japans feudal era.

When an evil and sadistic lord is bringing horror to countrymen, few Samurais who were once loyal to the throne foresee a greater danger. If this Lord Naritsugu Matsudaira plunges himself to the throne in near future the country will be devastated and torn with war. Thus these brave set of men creates a silent and elite secret force in order to assassinate the lord. Gathering only 13 men to their force they fearlessly goes head to head against an army of 200 to fulfill their goal. Brutal and merciless Samurai swords speak for themselves.

This movie is a wonder of its own creation. It brings out ancient lifestyle of Japan in to light with details. And more than that the spirit of the brave Samurais are making the plot truly strong and when they fall and die one by one still they keep the heads high and hearts strong. Courage and determination of a worrier may not seem this strong in any recent movie which I recall.

However be warned that 13 Assassins is not an easy movie to digest. It has blood and gore in great volumes and violence sometimes you might not really expect. Yet they are important in order make the story run to your blood stream. And once the war hits the screen after a long and silent slow momentum, it goes right until the end which is nearly 30-40 mts. So you might actually lose the count of killing.

My reviews at flickshout.tk