Versus

Boy, oh, boy. They don't make them like this anymore and boy, do I wish I had written this flick. This is a movie living and breathing (so to speak) cult following. "Versus" is a thrilling, fast and furious action-horror-comedy-martial arts actioner directed by Ryuhei Kitamara and features a bizarre and original plot line that's virtually nonexistent.

The irony is, even though it's original, the film spends very little time explaining its more complicated bits and gets great mileage out of the Japanese actors, none of whom have real names, other than two or three-word descriptions like the grungy, tough-talking anti-hero "Prisoner KSC2-303" or "The Girl" or "Yakuza Leader with Butterfly Knife." Real deep characters, huh?

The plot is simple, if confusing, and all seven minutes of it occur within the first few scenes: In Japan's "Forest of Resurrection," two escaped convicts are on their way to making a rendezvous with a group of fellow gangsters. A shoot-out occurs over a disagreement between KSC2 and the Yakuza leader regarding a kidnapped young woman in the trunk of his car - The Girl; one of the men is killed, and so is KSC2's buddy.

KSC2 and The Girl run off into the forest, but after he, and each of the gangsters put 50 bullets into the reanimated corpses of KSC2's buddy and the dead gangster. Soon, KSC2, The Girl, and the gangsters realize something is not right about the woods they had set up as a prearranged meeting spot, and it isn't long before they're all emptying clip after clip into the zombified corpses rising up from their shallow graves in the forest floor. (On a side note, I don't think any of the gangsters ever run out of ammunition.)

As it would turn out, the gangsters have been using the forest as a burial ground for their victims, and they're coming back to settle a score with their killers. Since this is the Forest of Resurrection, all the bodies of slain gangsters are rising from the dead and fighting against their living enemies. That's about all there is to the plot, and all you need to know.

This is a strange gem right here, folks. I don't think there's single production in Hollywood that could touch this movie in terms of style and subject matter. It looks fantastic, really giving the woods a life of its own (so to speak), and the mood of the film is effectively surreal. (It kind of reminds me of "The Evil Dead" in a few ways.) "Versus" ultimately plays out like a collision between every low-budget zombie movie, John Woo shoot-'em-up picture, and action movie we've ever seen. Now in Hollywood, ladies and gentlemen, we call that originality.

"Versus" is a skillful blend of each genre and it never loses sight of the main conflict between escaped convicts and gangsters; the zombies are merely a nuisance - who at first appear to be an interference with shadowy gangland activities. But as it would turn out, however, there's more to the story, and the Forest of Resurrection, as well as the zombies somehow figure into a plot that's best explained by the main villain of the picture, a stranger who I presume is The Man (since as I said before none of the characters have real names), who seeks The Girl to use her in his quest to achieve immortality, or something like that.

It's also pretty funny too. Much of the comedy in this movie arises from one panicky gangster member and two horribly disfigured police officers (whom I'm not sure are dead and resurrected or just badly injured) who have vowed to bring down the escaped convicts. And the corny one-liners (ever-present in the American dubbed version) will definitely get you laughing at its attempts to sound cool to our braindead audiences.

Even though "Verses" is not rated, it's extremely bloody with enough over-the-top gore to please any American gorehound or fan of zombie pictures. It's also got enough martial arts action and Woo-style gunplay to satisfy anyone who's gone into the film thinking this is a samurai picture (from looking at the DVD cover art).

"Versus" will definitely win on the cult circuit; whether it's ready to take on the American mainstream is a question that only time will answer. We'll just have to wait and see who the winner of that titanic battle will be...

7/10

You can't beat that combination, unless you add in ninjas, or samurai... or Godzilla, but zombies and yakuza alone make a very compelling film, even if it has no sensible plot.

The storyline is simple enough - prisoners escape, get double crossed, then find out they're in a "forest of resurrection" full of zombies that don't like yakuza very much. That's all you really need to know.

Sit back and relax as you watch hilarious gory and impossibly bad acting. The movie is based on its visual appeal alone, forget the plot and the characters, watch the fight scenes, the strange standoffs, bad monologues, and hideously bad acting.

There are parts, however, where the movie drags on a bit. Killing zombies, even though enormously awesome, does become monotonous after an extended period. But these lulls are few and far between them. The action definitely keeps you hooked for most of the film.

Overall? Great action film.

7/10

I just finished seeing this film. Really interesting camera shots makes film feel like it's in another dimension or on another planet. It also estahblished an eerie, spooky atmosphere and gives a very haunting setting. The good guys can fight, the bad guys (including several Yakuza) aren't afraid to battle, and there are zombies. As the film goes on, the zombies aren't really the main problem the hero faces.

The action scenes in this movie are wild, intense, and can sometimes put a guilty grin on your face. Whether it's sword slicing, bullets blazing, or good old fashioned martial arts, the pace is frenetic and really establishes the characters well. Although a few scenes are paced slower, the action here ties it all together. This is the first time I've seen Zombies in combat who actually put up a great fight. The main part of the story unfolds during the second half and the ending is creative and original. Versus is unlike any movie I've previously seen.

I must've repeated to my friend that the soundtrack for Versus is really cool and it complements the fight scenes fanatic pace. Cool fashion, good amount of gore, and an interesting storyline. Definitely an film not to be missed.

There are 666 concealed portals that connect the world of the living to the world of the dead. In Japan, two prisoners runaway through the Forest of Resurrection, where the 444th portal is located, to meet a group of criminals that had organized their escape. One of the convicts sees a kidnapped young woman and argues with the leader of the gangsters. There is a shooting, and one of the mobsters is killed. However, a couple of minutes later, the dead rises and attacks his former mates. They realize the resurrection power of the forest, and the criminals become concerned, since they used the location to dump their victims in the spot. Suddenly they are attacked by a great number of zombies and have to fight to survive. But when the boss of the gangsters arrives, the survivor prisoner sees that his fate is to fight against his opponent.

The cult "Versus" is a gruesome, insane, gore and bizarre zombie movie. The brainless non-sense story is shot in one location in the woods, is full of action, very funny, fast paced and entertaining, with great choreography of the fights. The anti-hero has killed forty-three persons, faces very cruel bad guys (but we never hear their names), rescues the girl saying that he is feminist, but hits her head every time he needs to fight, meaning all the time. The leader of the bad guys with the knife is very funny and I had a lot of fun with this original film. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "O Portal da Ressurreição" ("The Portal of Resurrection")

Note: On 08 Dec 2020 I saw this film again.

To begin with please don't take this film as serious, as you will be let down. It is in fact a very fun film, which you should really just hop on for the ride as it has some great moments that made me laugh out loud. I'm a big fan of eastern movies, and feel that it stands out on its own due to the combination of styles going on, from the zombie attacks to the samuri / yazuka influence. It travels along at a great pace, the only bad thing about this is the sour taste left in the poor ending, but take that away and its great, and i would say to anyone that they should give it a go, but please watch it with a smile on your face. The sound track is also very good and if anyone knows if it has been released i would love to find out.