Masa Nakamura Movies
Maverick Japanese director Takashi Miike re-teams with longtime writing partner Masa Nakamura (Andromedia, The Bird People of China) for this Western inspired by Sergio Corbucci's violent 1966 classic Django. It's been hundreds of years since the Battle of Dannoura, yet the Genji and Heiki clans are still feuding. In this poor mountain town, there is rumored to be a great hidden treasure. Genji gang leader Yoshitsune is sure that his white-clad warriors will find the treasure first, but Kiyomori and his red-clothed Heike gang aren't about to walk away empty-handed. When a mysterious lone gunman with an incredibly fast trigger finger rolls into town, everyone wonders which gang he will join. As betrayal, deception, and cold-blooded murder become commonplace, the silence of this once-quiet mountain town will be broken by the piercing echo of gunfire and the air will become dense with the smell of death. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hideaki Ito
Two men imprisoned for seperate murders find their fates mortally intertwined in cult director Takashi Miike's homoerotic meditation on the societal flaws of modern-day Japan. Jun (Ryuhei Matsuda) is an effiminate gay bar employee who, after being sexually assaulted by a customer, brutally murdered his attacker in a fit of rage. Shiro (Masanobu Ando) is a brutish, heavily-tattooed thug whose combative nature has resulted in too many run-ins with the law to count. When both men are imprisoned for murder, Shiro's undeniable charisma and intensity draws Jun like a moth to the flame. As the two men learn from behind bars to open up and accept one and other for who they really are, a warm bond begins to grow that finds each man confiding his innermost secrets with the other and Shiro taking an almost paternal interest in his fragile young friend. When a confrontation erupts in the common area of the prison and one inmate strangles another to death, the guards are shocked to find Jun sitting on Shiro's lifeless body. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ryuhei Matsuda, Masanobu Ando, (more)
In spite of its title, this film bares no direct relation to Takashi Miike's rip-roarin' Dead or Alive, which is not surprising since ended with world going up in flames in the last installment. This film opens with Mizuki (Sho Aikawa), who is hired by an eccentric magic enthusiast (Tsukamoto Shinya) to off a yakuza crime lord, only to have his target wasted by a rival mobster Shuichi (Riki Takeuchi). It turns out that the two are long-lost childhood friends who grew up in an orphanage in a remote island in the Inland sea. After the crime, they find themselves drawn back to their childhood haunt. There they reconnect with another friend, Kohei (Kenichi Endo), who ended up not a hired gun, but a modest fisherman who also runs the orphanage. After giving a hilarious performance for a room full of kids, Mizuki and Shuichi decide to leave the island and to work together as hitmen. This time, however, they're killing to make a difference -- figuring that with each scumbag they ice they can save ten children when they donate their proceeds to charity. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sho Aikawa, Riki Takeuchi, (more)
One of Japan's hottest young directors, Takashi Miike directs this curious adventure story set in China's picturesque Yunnan province. Workaholic Tokyo salaryman Wada (Masashiro Motoki) ventures into deepest, darkest China to investigate a massive deposit of high-quality jade. Tailing him is Ujiie (Renji Ishibashi), a snarling yakuza hell-bent on getting Wada's company to repay its debts. Led by their unflappable guide, Shun (Mako), the two go through rural villages and striking landscapes, quickly leaving behind all signs of the 20th century. As the trail grows narrower and more remote and as they brave gales, bugs, and floods, the long simmering tension between Wada and Ujiie bursts into full-scale contempt. One night, after Shun gets blind drunk, he hits his head and loses his memory. Now completely lost, the trio stumbles upon a hill tribe, whose children are adorned with wings made from bamboo and paper. Their teacher, a blue-eyed woman named Yan (Li Li Wang), tells them that she is teaching them to fly. Wada quickly becomes obsessed with this curious local. After she tells him that she has a book on human-powered flight and that her grandfather was a downed British airman, he almost believes that she can teach her students to soar. Soon Wada feels purged from the evils of city life while Ujiie decides to dedicate his life to protecting the village. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Masahiro Motoki, Renji Ishibashi, (more)
