Bunraku

Depicting the history of man's taste for intraspecies slaughter, the rather nifty, silhouette-animated opening sequence sets up the events leading to the movie's post-apocalyptic, gun-controlled future setting. In these surroundings arise two warriors, each seeking out the villain of the piece for a reason of his own.

This star-loaded feature seems to have everything going for it: a cast of proved pedigree (including Ron Perlman done-up like Rob Zombie); a stylised comic book setting (with the use of modern-day comic heroes as "ancient" legends); and some nifty narration. Unfortunately, I found it quite difficult to give much of a shi t about the story and characters, insipid and generic as they were. The action sequences, whilst hardly the worst I've seen, fail to make much in the way of impact, and half the lines delivered are mumbled, necessitating quite a bit of frustrating backscanning. Admittedly, Harrelson's bartending mentor and Perlman's ennui-stricken Big Bad provide a smidgen of interest, but they're no match for the aesthetically-appealing mediocrity of the film they find themselves in...and can someone tell me what the point of Demi Moore's character was? In summation, a beautifully bland beat 'em-up which took up two hours too many of this viewer's life.

I had no idea what this film would be like before I watched it - I saw it was sci-fi and watched it anyway. During the (most impressive) intro, I saw just about every Hollywood name I ever knew mentioned. It has quite an impressive cast.

Set in an indeterminate timeless point in the future where all firearms have been outlawed and the gangs rule the streets, a couple of strangers decide to take them on. Nothing hugely original in the story; I think the cast signed on because of the way it was filmed. It looks amazing. Maximum points to the lighting guys and the set designers - at first I thought it reminded me of a living computer game, however, about half way through it, I changed my opinion to more like a graphic novel.

All the cast seem to be enjoying being in an 'arty' flick, but just sort of mumble their lines. These (slightly over the top) dialogue sequences are intercut with a few fight scenes which are okay as they go, but nothing you haven't seen before.

Yes, it all looks great - every scene is a visual treat on the eyes. There just isn't much more to it than that. I don't know what it was aiming for. Some scenes are downright comical (intendedly so I'm guessing?), others are way too up themselves and serious.

It's probably a great film. I enjoyed it at first, but it got a little old a little too soon. Serious art-house sci-fi fans only. Perhaps the failings are on my part?

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I must say at least to all the viewers who expect something else from this movie, you really need to understand what Bunraku is. It's a one word title. That itself tells you what to expect from the movie. With the amazing star-cast, each one does justice to his little role with ease. The script is not demanding so the acting is sombre in accordance with the characters. I really did not know what to expect from this movie and truthfully had to look up the meaning of Bunraku in the end of the film. I was awed with the direction, it takes some really amazing talent to put a script like this on film and gt it interesting. For every penny worth, if I were 10 yeas old, I'd love the movie, I'm 35 now and love it even more. Starting from Pac-Man up to Afro Samurai and from the Wild west to Shichinin no samurai, the Script Writer and Director have left no stone unturned. The movie is very very aesthetically pleasing in context to the title. I remember as kids when we had the pop-up story books, I couldn't have imagined anything better than this movie in my head. The movie may not be for everyone...... But for people who can appreciate the difference from run of the mill animation and Tarantino like action, here a movie worth watching a few times.

What a pleasant surprise! So many symbols, details and colors. This movie is, like it says in the summary - moving pictures. Of course, the comparison with Sin City is inevitable, but this is different. Original. Poetry of composing colorful images. And yet, it still looks like a comic book brought to life. Or a theater of shadows. Or puppets (which is what Bunraku is all about, as a traditional Japanese theater). Everything made of drawings, cardboard and wood, except for some vehicles (Europeans will feel some nostalgia seeing old Fiat 600 and Reanault R8 Gordini) and swords. Surreal and yet very much close to what we imagine as real. Cast is excellent, as well as direction, editing, music and camera. Why not 10 stars then? There are some theatrical element I thing are not adequate for the whole composition. But you don't have to be so picky. Watch it and enjoy the art of making movies as moving pictures.

In a bleak and heavily stylized future world, two disparate characters are united in purpose. Yoshi (Gackt) is a samurai warrior, and The Drifter (Josh Hartnett) a tight-lipped loner. Making the acquaintance of a wise Bartender (an appropriately cast Woody Harrelson), they take on all the minions of a powerful, hirsute crime lord named Nicola the Woodcutter (Ron Perlman).

Complete with loopy narration by Faith No More frontman Mike Patton, "Bunraku" is pretty goofy stuff, stuffed with various gimmicks. The script has some amusing dialogue, but in the end is pretty routine; one might wish that the filmmakers spent as much time working on the script as they did the visual design. And the film is admittedly a real eyeful in terms of images. The production design, cinematography, and visual effects are first rate. The film is also enough of a curio to make it moderately interesting. It combines elements of martial arts epics, Spaghetti Westerns, post-apocalypse dramas, live-action comic books, and film noir, making it an original mixture of genres. The action isn't the best one will ever see, but it's perfectly serviceable, with the good guys taking some real lumps on the way to the final showdown. The music score by Terence Blanchard is one of the best components.

The cast is variable, as some of them come off better than others. Perlman mumbles his way through his role. Demi Moore is utterly wasted as the object of his affections. Harrelson's bright presence helps quite a bit, and Kevin McKidd has a fun part as the villains' primary henchman.

The bottom line: this serves up some adequate entertainment for people who want to relax their brain for a while. At two hours and five minutes, however, it definitely goes on too long.

Filmed in Romania.

Six out of 10.