The Blind Swordsman.
- Thread starter Phil
- Start date
Re: The Blind Swordsman.
This film is great, not my favourite of Takeshi Kitano but great none the less. The director plays the lead role
You should check out, Brother, Hanni Bi, Kids Return or Sonatine. Most of his films are about Yakuza gang wars and cops. I call him the Japanese Scorsese
Eyeglayze
This film is great, not my favourite of Takeshi Kitano but great none the less. The director plays the lead role
You should check out, Brother, Hanni Bi, Kids Return or Sonatine. Most of his films are about Yakuza gang wars and cops. I call him the Japanese Scorsese
Eyeglayze
Re: The Blind Swordsman.
Eyeglayze, you liked "Zatoichi"? Are you a Zatoichi fan in general, like of the other films?
I'm confused by this flick. I normally like Kitano. Even weird Kitano, though I prefer normal Kitano.
And I like samurai flicks. The theater I saw this at tonight had "Twilight of the Samurai" last week, and it was excellent.
But this, Kitano's "Zatoichi", I'm just not sure about. The story just isn't expressed very well. Completely unmotivated scenes, nothing at all to do with the plot, or the characterizations. Really poor editting, with flashbacks and "hey, remember when you saw this part of this scene ten minutes ago?" edits all over the place, all very jarring.
I can live with the stylized field hands/Stomp-style performance(s). But the dance number, what the hell? This is a samurai flick and I'm watching a Broadway number... It doesn't add up for me.
If it lost about twenty minutes, it'd be a great flick, worthy of being a Zatoichi film. As it is, I'm kind of mad that Miike didn't get to make his Zatoichi because of Kitano wanting to do this.
The audience seemed to like it, though, so maybe I'm just missing something vital, or I had too many preconcieved notions of what one of these films should be.
Lots of interesting use of CG to replace practical effects, though. A notch up from the level of the stuff in the "Dead Or Alive" series (not the videogames...).
Eyeglayze, you liked "Zatoichi"? Are you a Zatoichi fan in general, like of the other films?
I'm confused by this flick. I normally like Kitano. Even weird Kitano, though I prefer normal Kitano.
And I like samurai flicks. The theater I saw this at tonight had "Twilight of the Samurai" last week, and it was excellent.
But this, Kitano's "Zatoichi", I'm just not sure about. The story just isn't expressed very well. Completely unmotivated scenes, nothing at all to do with the plot, or the characterizations. Really poor editting, with flashbacks and "hey, remember when you saw this part of this scene ten minutes ago?" edits all over the place, all very jarring.
I can live with the stylized field hands/Stomp-style performance(s). But the dance number, what the hell? This is a samurai flick and I'm watching a Broadway number... It doesn't add up for me.
If it lost about twenty minutes, it'd be a great flick, worthy of being a Zatoichi film. As it is, I'm kind of mad that Miike didn't get to make his Zatoichi because of Kitano wanting to do this.
The audience seemed to like it, though, so maybe I'm just missing something vital, or I had too many preconcieved notions of what one of these films should be.
Lots of interesting use of CG to replace practical effects, though. A notch up from the level of the stuff in the "Dead Or Alive" series (not the videogames...).
Sol M.
Veteran
Re: The Blind Swordsman.
Haven't had a chance to check out this flick yet. I like Beat Takeshi tho
, so I'll definitely be checking it out at some point in time.
Brother is a cool Takeshi movie, but if you really want to see his acting chops, check out "Kikujiro". He's still playing his trademark gangster role, but, dare I say it, in a way you've never seen him play it before ;D
Goblin, when you say you saw, "Twilight of the Samurai", do you mean "The Twilight Samurai"? I don't think I've every heard of "Twilight of the Samurai", but "The Twilight Samurai" is definitely a must see (and is currently making it's rounds in the US film festival circuit.
Haven't had a chance to check out this flick yet. I like Beat Takeshi tho
, so I'll definitely be checking it out at some point in time.Brother is a cool Takeshi movie, but if you really want to see his acting chops, check out "Kikujiro". He's still playing his trademark gangster role, but, dare I say it, in a way you've never seen him play it before ;D
Goblin, when you say you saw, "Twilight of the Samurai", do you mean "The Twilight Samurai"? I don't think I've every heard of "Twilight of the Samurai", but "The Twilight Samurai" is definitely a must see (and is currently making it's rounds in the US film festival circuit.
chi_red
Well-known member
Re: The Blind Swordsman.
Yeah,
I am a big Takeshi fan, but I haven't really liked his last two films either(Brother, Zatoichi, I haven't seen Dolls(2002) yet, so no comment on that).
Has anyone seen Samurai Fiction(1998 )? Described as the "world's first rock'n'roll samurai movie,". I like Samurai Fiction alot.
Yeah,
I am a big Takeshi fan, but I haven't really liked his last two films either(Brother, Zatoichi, I haven't seen Dolls(2002) yet, so no comment on that).
Has anyone seen Samurai Fiction(1998 )? Described as the "world's first rock'n'roll samurai movie,". I like Samurai Fiction alot.
Re: The Blind Swordsman.
Sounds very similar to the coolest movie made in 1989.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096945/
Rutger Hauer is the man...
Sounds very similar to the coolest movie made in 1989.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096945/
Rutger Hauer is the man...
Re: The Blind Swordsman.
[quote author=TylerGred link=board=movies;num=1092974374;start=0#8 date=08/23/04 at 10:16:32]Sounds very similar to the coolest movie made in 1989.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096945/
Rutger Hauer is the man...
[/quote]
I was about to mention that. That was a cool movie.
All the best
Fidel.
[quote author=TylerGred link=board=movies;num=1092974374;start=0#8 date=08/23/04 at 10:16:32]Sounds very similar to the coolest movie made in 1989.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096945/
Rutger Hauer is the man...
[/quote]
I was about to mention that. That was a cool movie.
All the best
Fidel.
Re: The Blind Swordsman.
Personally, I really like Kitano's interpretation of Zatoichi, but if you're looking for a samurai film that sticks close to the genre, this isn't for you. A lot of people have compared this to Kill Bill, and in a way I suppose it is similar as it's what you would call an "art house action movie."
With the dyed-blonde hair, the CG generated spurts of blood, the hip-hop tap dance sequences, etc, this movie puts a very unrealistic and modern twist on the samurai genre. Kinda like Samurai Fiction, but a whole lot more fun to watch in my opinion (although Samurai Fiction is great too, I own that movie on DVD).
Overall, this movie is very quirky, violent, but fun. If you've enjoyed other Kitano films, chances are you'll like this.
There are a few problems with the story, but, like Kill Bill, this is one of the few films I've seen where the style and direction succesfully make up for any plot holes. (aside from these two similarities, though, Zatoichi is completely unlike Kill Bill, so don't get the wrong idea).
I've seen the older Zatoichi films (not all of them, of course), and I've enjoyed those as well. It's just a matter of perspective. If you go into the new Zatoichi expecting a continuation of the old movies, or to be an average "samurai" film, you're gonna be seriously dissapointed. Kitano himself said the only similarities between the originals and his movie is that it features "a blind massuer with excellent swordmanship" (and, of course, yakuza, but even if there weren't any in the originals, Kitano would have put them in. He just loves yakuza, heh heh) Almost everything else feels different.
P.S: My favorite Kitano movie so far is "Kikujiro" (I haven't seen Hana-Bi or Sonatine yet, though), but a lot of people seem to dislike this film for some reason.
P.P.S: Just looked up the "Blind Fury" movie you guys mentioned, and apparently it's a tribute to the original Zatoich series. Looks cool. I'll have to see that sometime.
Personally, I really like Kitano's interpretation of Zatoichi, but if you're looking for a samurai film that sticks close to the genre, this isn't for you. A lot of people have compared this to Kill Bill, and in a way I suppose it is similar as it's what you would call an "art house action movie."
With the dyed-blonde hair, the CG generated spurts of blood, the hip-hop tap dance sequences, etc, this movie puts a very unrealistic and modern twist on the samurai genre. Kinda like Samurai Fiction, but a whole lot more fun to watch in my opinion (although Samurai Fiction is great too, I own that movie on DVD).
Overall, this movie is very quirky, violent, but fun. If you've enjoyed other Kitano films, chances are you'll like this.
There are a few problems with the story, but, like Kill Bill, this is one of the few films I've seen where the style and direction succesfully make up for any plot holes. (aside from these two similarities, though, Zatoichi is completely unlike Kill Bill, so don't get the wrong idea).
I've seen the older Zatoichi films (not all of them, of course), and I've enjoyed those as well. It's just a matter of perspective. If you go into the new Zatoichi expecting a continuation of the old movies, or to be an average "samurai" film, you're gonna be seriously dissapointed. Kitano himself said the only similarities between the originals and his movie is that it features "a blind massuer with excellent swordmanship" (and, of course, yakuza, but even if there weren't any in the originals, Kitano would have put them in. He just loves yakuza, heh heh) Almost everything else feels different.
P.S: My favorite Kitano movie so far is "Kikujiro" (I haven't seen Hana-Bi or Sonatine yet, though), but a lot of people seem to dislike this film for some reason.
P.P.S: Just looked up the "Blind Fury" movie you guys mentioned, and apparently it's a tribute to the original Zatoich series. Looks cool. I'll have to see that sometime.
Re: The Blind Swordsman.
I've seen the film and I loved it because of the overall message. The idea that a person who is blind can see the truth better than a person with sight (Even though Kitano's Zatoichi was just acting blind). This is obviously not a new concept, but I like how it was portrayed in this film. I also enjoyed the irony created at the end of the picture when Zatoichi trips over the rock.
The stomp dancing section at the end of the film was simply funny. He seems to be poking fun at the old Japanese films / tv shows; where the villagers always rejoice at the end. But overall, it just comes down to personal choice. There are plenty of films that I dislike while other people seem to love them.
Heck, if everyone agreed all the time, this world would be pretty boring... Or a better place... Nah, it would just be boring.
I've seen the film and I loved it because of the overall message. The idea that a person who is blind can see the truth better than a person with sight (Even though Kitano's Zatoichi was just acting blind). This is obviously not a new concept, but I like how it was portrayed in this film. I also enjoyed the irony created at the end of the picture when Zatoichi trips over the rock.
The stomp dancing section at the end of the film was simply funny. He seems to be poking fun at the old Japanese films / tv shows; where the villagers always rejoice at the end. But overall, it just comes down to personal choice. There are plenty of films that I dislike while other people seem to love them.
Heck, if everyone agreed all the time, this world would be pretty boring... Or a better place... Nah, it would just be boring.