Movie Reviews
13 Assassins
Starring:Kôji Yakusho
Takayuki Yamada
Yûsuke Iseya
Director:
Takashi Miike
MPAA Rating:
R
Release Date:
29 April 2011
Genre:
Action | Adventure | Drama
When it comes to sword swinging action epics, Hollywood has tried almost all periods of history from the Roman Empire to the Dark Ages of Europe. Then look at Asian action movies, most of which are about Chinese martial arts with mystical Kung Fu. If you are the mood for something a little more impressive and exciting, dare I suggest the latest Japanese adventure film from legendary Toho Studios (Godzilla, Spirited Away): “13 Assassins”. This was a smash hit in Japanese box offices, you may very well enjoy it too.
We open in 1830′s Japan when the Shogunates appoint a new military leader Lord Naritsugu (Gorô Inagaki) with reluctance. The reason for this is soon revealed, as rumors begin spreading of his wanton cruelty to innocent people. Traditionally, the Shogun was always something of a dictator, but never this bad. Naritsugu is first seen raping a random married woman, then kills her husband in front of her, entirely on a whim for amusement. Then he ties up a family of two women and a boy in a courtyard, then with bow and arrow uses them for target practice. The worst of all is a young woman who he used as a concubine, then proceeded to sever her arms and legs and cut out her tongue. When you see this poor girl, even the most stoic viewers will cringe in disgust at her anguish. So what is to be done? The father of the murdered husband calls upon his friend Shinzaemon (Kōji Yakusho), a noble samurai and mighty warlord, for help in taking Naritsugu out of his position. Shinzaemon’s final decision is an assassination, a revenge scheme to protect all of Japan from this murderer. However, the Shogun’s personal bodyguard numbers 70 samurai strong, so he’ll need help. Shinzaemon calls upon as many able bodied soldiers who will be willing to lay down their life for the safety of their country. In addition, he even signs up his disgraced nephew Shinrokurō (Takayuki Yamada), a gambler and whore monger, to take back his samurai honor and join the fight. What follows is a scheme to kill Lord Naritsugu by any means possible.
The film’s overall attitude feels like a cross between “Seven Samurai” and “300″, as if Akira Kurosawa and Zack Snyder made a movie together. The traditions of 19th century Japan are well explained and the use of Harakiri (a ceremonial samurai suicide) is often shown. However, once we start the final hour of the movie the battle begins and doesn’t let up until the end! As Lord Naritsugu is on a dirt road headed north, Shinzaemon purchases a small border town en route to evacuate the inhabitants and turn it into a giant “death trap”. Indeed, with 13 samurai they are able to create 20 ft. tall trap gates, fire pits, and even dynamite explosives for the Lord and his bodyguard. Even so, his protection grows up to 200, so you know there’s going to be a lot of killing. Of course, that’s to be expected from director Takashi Miike (Audition, Ichi the Killer), who throws blood and body parts all over the screen. On the other hand, compared to his earlier films Miike does not embellish on the violence, just using it as a tool to tell his story his way. Also, look for the 13th assassin Kiga (Yūsuke Iseya), a lowly mountain man who fights with no sword, just rocks and slings to throw them. His comic relief is welcome, echoing Toshirō Mifune in “Seven Samurai”.
It’s been a long time since Japan gave us an exciting film that isn’t Anime or about a giant lizard. “13 Assassins” is actually based (in part) on true events. Inagaki gives a great performance with a truly frightening villain, and Yakusho an equally memorable hero. These samurai are not just saving their country, they’re saving us too.