Samurai Fiction

"Samurai Fiction": Definitely worth watching - I thought it was a little slow at first (and a little sparse and inconsistent with the humour), but it definitely got better at the end. It won't make you more of a Hotei Tomoyasu fan (boy, he looks weird - almost like a manga character... like "Jei" in Stan Sakai's "Usagi Yojimbo"), and the swordplay won't exactly blow you away, but the adaptation of the black & white (with selective colour, a la "Rumblefish") genre is excellent. Being a Kurosawa fan, I especially liked the general "feel" of the cinematography and the video transfer, as it was digitally modified to add graininess and capture that circa-1950's TOHO ambiance. Critical attention was paid to camera angles, set design, character development and mannerisms, all playing true to the Kurosawa-esque model and at the same time sparing no opportunity for the sight gag and comedic element. Yes, for the Hirosue Ryoko fans-in-denial, the female lead (Ogawa Tamaki) bears a somewhat close resemblance (slightly less boyish), but that's besides the point. The movie felt like it was part of an Ulfuls music video at times (I think it was "Guts Daze"), which was exactly what made it so good. Highly recommended.

SAMURAI FICTION (4 outta 5 stars) What a terrific movie! It's described as a comedy but, while it does have a lot of humour in it, I think it holds up pretty well with any of the classic samurai stories. The movie is in black and white (with select use of colored images throughout) and I found the visual style very reminiscent of early Kurosawa. In fact, if I had been told that this was an early Kurosawa movie I would have believed it completely. Except for the soundtrack, that is! As old fashioned as the look of the movie is, it has a very modern rock soundtrack by the great Tomayasu Hotei (you know his music from "Kill Bill"). Tomayasu even co-stars in the movie.. playing Kazamatsuri, the badass samurai who steals a clan's revered ceremonial sword and triggers some strong (violent) emotions. After nearly killing a trio of young men bent on recovering the sword, Kazamatsuri becomes obsessed with fighting a peace-loving samurai master who has given up the idea of violence and killing. But maybe he will change his tune if his daughter is threatened...? Great plot, great performances... the actual swordplay may seem a little less flashy than most modern epics but its still exciting stuff, especially when backed by Tomayasu's stirring rock score! The soundtrack might be the one thing that puts people off this movie... personally I didn't find it distracting or "wrong" at all. The old-style movie directing and the "MTV Music" style melded perfectly.

If only every samurai flick from Japan is this cool, then I'd be a very happy man. But then again here lies the greatness of Samurai Fiction. It does not conform to the common rules of period film making. In fact, director Hiroyuki Nakano creates a genuinely fresh look at that age-old jidaigeki genre, by doing everything in the opposite direction. His sense of humour is slick, his presentation stylish and by the end of the movie you can not avoid being moved by the heart of the story. It's actually cathartic for me, a fan of samurai films and Japanese drama/comedy.

Don't be misled by the trailer though, Nakano takes on the film is far from creating a parody of the likes of Kurosawa. SF is essentially a fresh comedy which happens to be set in the Edo period, because it works so well in conveying his message to the audience.

The casting is pitch-perfect, characterization is sublime, editing is effective and smartly executed, while the direction is top-notch and funky. You would also love the art direction, cinematography and best of all the soundtrack of the film. The music pieces themselves are melody narrator of the story, as they carry you throughout the journey and mark transitions of the scenes so effectively.

I must say Samurai Fiction will be half as good without the music, so a special praise should go the the talented Tomoyasu Hotei, who himself turned in such a cool performance as the ronin Kazamatsuri. He's probably the most suave renegade on film after the great Toshiro Mifune.

The film directly opens with a promise of a sequel by directly entitling the movie Episode One: Samurai Fiction. Then we jump backward all the way to the year 1696, the Edo Period. The narrator then states that the character you see on the screen was the narrator himself, 300 years ago. The film then closes with the same narrator saying that it would take him a long time to learn the lesson of love. Enter the sequel: Episode 2002: Stereo Future. Can't wait to watch it!!!

Style and Substance. That's what Samurai Fiction is about. I was surprised at the many MTV-ish stylistic shots incorporated into the movie, without a blatant disregard for the storyline, incorporating very modern rock into its soundtrack.

The Inukai clan had their family sword stolen by a renegade samurai Rannosuke Kazamatsuri. Swearing to get it back, Heishiro Inukai embarks on a journey to hunt down Kazamatsuri. However, his skills are no match for a seasoned warrior who has killed many, and almost had his life ended until he is saved by a hermit Hanbei Mizoguchi.

It's a tale of 3 very diverse samurais, each carrying a theme. The peaceful Hanbei Mizoguchi, highly skilled, but abhors the use of violence. The cool and violent killer without remorse Rannosuke Kazamatsuri, who becomes obsessed with challenging Hanbei to a duel. The inept Heishiro Inukai, who defies his father's wishes to embark on a solo quest to regain their family honour. Thrown into the fray are 2 ninjas on a quest to protect Heishiro and carry out his family's orders on his behalf, and Koharu Mizoguchi, the adopted daughter of Hanbei, with whom Heishiro falls in love with.

The storyline might be pretty ordinary, on one end, the revenge theme, the other, love and peace. But I suppose these are themes that are quite universal, especially in martial arts stories.

The fights are all done very simply. Stylish, but kept uncluttered. Shot in black and white, colours are used sparingly, except for the coating of entire frames in red when someone gets killed. You don't see blood, but you see plenty of varying shots and angles of the fight sequences, done mostly with the help of a crane.

What works for me are the comedic characters like Heishiro's friends, early in the beginning, in their run up (pardon the pun) to catching Kazamatsuri. Also, the soundtrack is totally awesome, unlike the use of traditional music to spice up the fights. You might also know that Ronnosuke Kazamatsuri is played by real life rocker Tomoyasu Hotei, who also did that excellent track Battle Without Honor or Humanity, used in the Kill Bill Vol 1 movie.

It's weird to notice that this movie is actually billed as Episode 1. It's been 8 years and I'm not aware of a sequel or continuation in place. But I guess Samurai Fiction has already told the story it wants to tell, and there shouldn't be a need for a follow up.

Code 1 DVD contains the movie and a making of documentary, and a separate disc containing bloopers, cast biographies, how two scenes actually looked in colour, the trailers, and an entire 1 hour feature on the making of the Samurai Fiction, which showed that a simple movie also has its fair share of difficulties, and Mother Nature did its best to stall production.

This is a well presented movie with very interesting camera work and music.

In late 17th century, a samurai is wrongly accused to be stealing the clan's treasured sword, and has no choice but to kill the accuser on the spot and flee with the sword.

The son of a clan's high official pursues him with 3 friends, to the dismay of his father who sends ninjas to protect them, knowing their swordsmanship is far from being good.

This story uses the traditional Japanese principles of irremediable fate, where the characters are drawn towards actions because of the pressure of duty, sense of righteousness and pride. This contrasts with the American good-vs-bad approach to storytelling.

A lot of subtle Japanese humor with situational comedy, silliness and awkward personalities that you'll appreciate more if you learn Japanese stereotypical behaviors or understand some of their social culture.