Versus l'ultime guerrier

I hesitated long before I finally decided to see this movie. "Battle Royale" had been my last positive experience with Asian cinema and movies like "The Eye" and "Uzumaki" really turned me off. Besides, I was getting tired of martial arts and feared that "Versus" is going to be one long, boring opera of Kung Fu fighting. Thank God, the movie could prove me wrong. "Versus" is more a parody than anything else, but with really good fighting scenes. I compared the movie with "Evil Dead" in the headline, because obviously both movies play in the woods, feature zombies and don't lack humor. They have something else in common. Both flicks were made with little budget, which you don't see at all. The special effects, the actors and the directors in "Versus" are top noch. I can't point out enough, how much I appreciate the comedy aspect of the movie and how the makers managed to mix that comedy with action and story. The ending is a little controversial.

SPOILERS:

My explanation is that 99 years later, the good brother turned evil and the reincarnation of the villain is now good. If there's a deeper meaning behind that, then it may be that every man that is given power will abuse this power. The ending could also say that established things will eventually turn bad until they are knocked over by new and fresh ideas.

END OF SPOILERS & PHILOSOPHIC THOUGHTS.

The only bad thing I can say about the movie is that it could have been a little shorter. Also, the story lacked logic at times, but story is not what "Versus" is about. It's about fun and gore and, boy, you get both!

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

This movie, while made to be an action type with some subtle humor, grades pretty low to folks looking for an action movie to snuggle up with and watch alone. This movie is much, much more fun to watch with others, preferably with a sense of humor.

If you're not a fan of action, and are looking for anything remotely deep and meaningful, look someplace else.

The movie is shot entirely in a forest setting, with the times shifting from morning to twilight frequently.

The action is very well put together despite being on an obvious low budget. I recommend this movie to anyone with a few hours to kill with a few friends.

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.