Mermaid Legend

This is one of Toshiharu Ikeda's earliest films; he's best known for EVIL DEAD TRAP.

But this incredible fantasy (English title: MERMAID LEGEND) is perfection.

A fisherman is murdered by developers who want him to give up his land. His wife plots and exacts revenge against his killers.

A brief synopsis can do no justice to the beauty and ferocity of Ikeda's vision.

Mari Shirato delivers one of the finest performances ever as the woman who will not rest until vengeance is done. She, literally, becomes a force of nature, and her climactic massacre scene has a rawness and cinematic purity to it that has never been equaled. As her fury rages, so does the weather, and it is as if she has become part of the storm that washes the bloodshed away.

Ikeda stages much of the action in uninterrupted shots that elevate the film's realism.

Also stunning is the score.

In the 60's and 70's Japanese filmmakers created the "pearl diver" genre, and this uses that lost genre as its starting point.

I can not say enough good things about MERMAID LEGEND. It has haunted me for a decade. It is a gift.

Toshiharu Ikeda's elemental and mythical adaptation of Takashi Ishii's Angel Guts manga, Mermaid Legend, evokes a lyrical sadness for the fading way of life of seafaring fishermen and ama divers. One that starts as a relatively tender study of grief but shifts dramatically in the latter half to become an absolutely brutal exploitation blood-drenched angel of vengeance and yet, despite those exploitation tendencies, it also channels the intense anti-nuclear sentiment of the decade. An eco-thriller that finds the incursive grasp of industrialisation and corporate greed encroaching on natural realms. Ikeda directs a film that begins a presentation lingering somewhere between the realistic and the idyllic, almost artful in several scenes but it's not long before the film shows its true colours, which are essentially bathed in the red of blood. Mari Shirato gives an astonishing performance as Migiwa, managing to capture everything from sorrowful and vulnerable as much as vengeful and unstoppable, a real shame she wasn't in more. Combined with a truly haunting piano score by Toshiyuki Honda, Mermaid Legend remains a brooding requiem for loss, a cautionary parable for man's true acquiescence to the natural world.

A fisherman is killed by greedy land developers because he stands in the way of their plans. His wife seeks total revenge. Sounds interesting in theory. And technically it is a well made film, with beautiful shots and nice music. But then you get one-dimensional, almost caricature-like villains who openly discuss their evil deed like total idiots and such utterly unrealistic violence, it's not believable in the slightest. This is where it turns from a rather athmospheric movie to something more reminiscent of a trashy exploitation flick. I enjoyed the beginning, but ended up not liking it at all.

No pun intended - this had quite the buzz around it. But it surely can't be called a classic ... which I don't think too many people are doing. Still and because I do like Japanese movies and this felt or could have been a case of something outrageous (in only the best sense) ... it really drags on for too long. At 110 minutes length ... this could have easily cut at least 30 minutes and still work ... actually work better.

We understand the beginning, we understand the trouble in earning money ... we get the dreadful state ... and we get the message about making money and all the other corrupt stuff ... actually if the movie did not have that over the top ending (must be gazillions of gallons of blood), I might have gone lower with my vote.

Not just because of the slow pace ... but the logic issues ... after coming up and on to land ... the main character (woman) is accused of something ... with the lack of any evidence ... later instead of letting the police handle the situation ... they try to do something incredibly ... not smart. Not to mention the assaults ... some way over the top and I am certain people will have issues with them (especially the lack at first of fighting back) ... the version we watched had nudity, but had certain moments blurred ... when it came to the area downstairs bodily speaking ... I don't think there is anything explicit ... or too much of it, but if there is (was) we did not get to see it ... just for your information, in case you care. Not saving anything - and no pun intended once more.