Hyôryû-gai

The extraordinary movies of the astonishingly prolific Takashi Miike take most viewers quite a bit getting used to, so if you've never seen one of his difficult to categorize films before you're in for a wild ride! His best known movie is probably the modern horror classic 'Audition'. An utterly brilliant movie to be sure, but not really all that representative of the rest of his high octane genre-busting output. Many of his fans regard 'Dead Or Alive' as one of his greatest works, and while I certainly agree it is one of the most extraordinary and original movies released in recent years, it was way too uneven for my liking and marred by one of the most ludicrous endings I've ever seen. 'City Of Lost Souls' is a much less bizarre and extreme experience than 'DOA'. It reaches neither the highs of that movie, nor the lows, and therefore is probably as good a place as any to get into Miike's world, which is quite unlike any other let me tell you! The plot itself is a fairly standard lovers on the run thing that we've seen in countless movies before ('Bonnie And Clyde', 'The Getaway', 'Badlands', 'Wild At Heart', 'True Romance',etc.etc.) but with Miike "plot" is basically just an excuse for messing with the audience's mind and expectations. The multi-racial nature of the cast and the seemingly random and sometimes confusing geographic settings help disorientate the viewer, which allows Miike to slip in some memorable set pieces and images. One in particular, the chicken fighting scene, had me literally speechless, and is one of the funniest and most unexpected sequences I've ever seen. But still, unlike 'DOA', Miike never goes too far into sheer silliness, and that makes 'City Of Lost Souls' are much more consistent and enjoyable experience for me. Maybe if I'd watched this movie first then worked my way up to 'DOA' my reaction to the latter would be more positive, who can say? I would definitely recommend Miike novices to watch this one first before they explore his more outrageous movies. Love him or hate him, you cannot ignore Takashi Miike, a film maker who makes overrated fanboy faves like David Fincher and Guy Ritchie look like the slow kids in the back of the class.

I enjoyed this movie, but I had hoped for more.

This is a straight forward story with lots of off the wall mini scenes/story's between the meat and potatoes of a very average revenge/gangster/drug tale.

The action sequences are pretty good to very good, and the gore level is not too bad(keep in mind this is Japanese in taste and style) Teah just does not make for a charismatic lead, but the rest of the cast were extremely watchable.

There is as always in these style of movies some light humour thrown it to lighten the violence.

This movie was good, but just not that satisfying or mindblowing...I recommend if you know the style and like the director.

Contrary to some of the other imdb users' comments, CITY OF LOST SOULS is one of Takashi Miike's most entertaining films. While not possessing quite the same intensity or shock value of other Miike masterpieces like DEAD OR ALIVE, CITY...nevertheless is fastmoving, balances comic book tall tale surrealism expertly with plenty of violence, sick humor as well as the doomed love story -- what more could you ask? It is NOT the run of the mill generic, mediocre, forgettable action film that most great action film directors are turning out these days. And it involves you with the characters (a multi-ethnic melting pot -- which, as astounding as it may seem to some incredulous viewers, is what major Japanese urban centers are like in this day and age -- by the way, Brazil, home country of lead halfbreed character,Mario, has one of the largest Japanese immigrant populations in the world). If you enjoy Miike, don't miss this. It's his most romantic film (!) without sacrificing any of the blood, the dark, dark humor or bizarre imagery we've come to expect from this unpredictable genius.

This little gem is a solo Miike film. No sequels and not much publicity, the movie oozes with style and the action is brilliantly choreographed. The idea of Japan being filled with immigrants, a midget brushing his teeth with cocaine, animated cockfights - all examples of Takashi Miike's very vivid imagination. The story is to do with a Brazilian guy who falls in love with the sister of a Chinese mafia boss who disagrees with their relationship.the Brazilian, however, will not let the love of his life go for no-one. Like an ultra violent version of Romeo and Juliet with foul toilet gags. another Miike great

8 out of 10

City of Lost Souls, aka Hazard City, is pretty self explanatory from the title. The characters in the movie seem lost and there are dangers lurking around every corner. Who can you trust not to blast one in your back? Well, with Takashi Miike, trust nobody.

I noticed that the cast was a mix of japanese, chinese, and brazilian! It caught my attention when I would hear portugeuse being spoken, then japanese later on. I noticed that Miike included the different languages rather than having it all in japanese which made the film seem more real. Oh, let me say that that's one wacky wedding scene! There are some surprising moments too...which you'll see when you watch the film (no fair in me telling!).

The interactions between the characters seem so random that I felt there really was no good or bad sides. I loved the vodka scene with Michelle Reis who was visually stunning throughout. Plus, Teah plays the cool, suave Mario who speaks through actions rather than dialogue. Also, that yakuza guy is someone you do not mess with!!

Thank you Miike for a unique ending which surprised my friend and I...or maybe it was the Remy Red shots that left me saying "HUH??" I guess I'll have to watch it again....which is a good thing.